Giardia Coccidia In Kittens

Giardiasis and coccidiosis are parasitic infections of the intestinal tract which are fairly common in kittens particularly during the weaning stage.

Giardia coccidia in kittens. Giardia and coccidia are single cell intestinal parasites that produce similar symptoms. Change in ownership other disease present. If it is not treated over time it can cause damage to the lining of a cat s intestinal tract. Coccidia get grouped together with worms because they are routinely searched for in stool tests for worms fecal ova and parasite test.

This makes it almost impossible for pet owners to differentiate between the two. Giardia is another protozoan infection resulting in soft frothy greasy diarrhea which can be treated with panacur. Dogs are most often infected with genotypes c and d while cats are usually infected with f. Infections occur in adult cats and kittens but are much more likely to cause serious disease watery or bloody diarrhea in kittens.

Causes of giardiasis giardia are one celled organisms neither worms bacteria nor viruses. 1 there are eight giardia genotypes a through h. Like giardia there are several types of coccidia and for dogs and cats a subset called isospora is the infective species. With appropriate and prompt treatment the prognosis is good.

Coccidia is a nasty little single celled organism that causes mucousy diarrhea in kittens and can be treated with the prescription drug ponazuril. It most commonly causes watery mucus based diarrhea in animals. Coccidiosis is a parasitic type of infection caused by the coccidia parasite. What are the symptoms.

What are giardiasis and coccidiosis. While albon sulfadimethoxine is the only fda approved drug the recommended dosing schedule is to administer it for 5 21 days which can be costly both monetarily and in staff time. You ll need to take your pup to the vet for tests to get an accurate diagnosis and the required treatment as the treatment for giardia is different than that for coccidia. We do recommend ponazuril as the preferred treatment of coccidia in kittens in a shelter.

Both giardia and coccidia cause varying degrees of diarrhea. Kittens are often susceptible to illnesses that healthy adult cats can fight off because their immune systems have not yet fully developed.