Food allergy

Kingston as a kitten

Kingston now

Poor old Kingston had a rough start to life! Almost from the moment his family brought him home for Christmas he had diarrhoea and vomiting. At first we thought it was the change of diet.
When it continued we tested him for infectious diseases like Tritrichomonas, Giardia, Cryptosporidium, Clostridia and Salmonellosis. All tests were negative.
In January we and his family switched him to a low allergy diet and miracle of miracles his stools firmed up and he stopped vomiting! He also started putting on weight and playing more.
Food sensitivities and allergies are not common but when all the common causes of gastroenteritis in kittens are ruled out we have to consider them.
Good to see Kingston growing and happy with his  loving family!

Cats have allergies too!

An allergy to flea saliva is the most common allergy we see in cats. Cats allergic to fleas groom more than normal and some develop large ulcers on their lips or in their mouths. Some scratch furiously around their head and ears, others develop pimple-like lesions on their rumps and trunks, or red lines on their legs and bellies. Cats are so fastidious with grooming that we frequently find no trace of the fleas.
After a thorough check for other parasites and problems we treat the affected cat, any other pets in the household and the house for fleas before we go on to allergies that are more difficult to treat and diagnose.
As usual cats love to confuse their vets - cats with food or pollen allergies may show all or any of the same signs as flea allergic cats! Food allergies are the least common type of allergy but we prick our ears up if a cat has intermittent vomiting or diarrhoea as well as skin signs. 
We prescribe a special low allergy diet if we suspect food allergy. If the signs go away on the diet then we trial different proteins until we find the one the cat is allergic too.
Atopy, which is the proper name for allergies to pollens, dust mites and other inhaled allergens, is more common than food allergy, but more difficult to diagnose and treat.