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!

Older head of the house

Eighteen year old Andy Mitchell is a frequent visitor to Hall Vet Surgery. He has a few little troubles that need attention so that he can get on with his home duties as head of the house.
A few years ago his owners noticed that he was getting stiff and having trouble jumping up on the window sill to check the yard. Because he is not a fan of pills he has a medication rubbed on his ears to ease the pain in his joints. Guard duty is a lot easier now.
Since he fled his last home a decade or so ago he has had intermittent bouts of flu. Often this happens during times of stress - as defined by Andy. His carers manage this by bathing his eyes and nose, giving him lots of TLC and with antibiotics when necessary.
A few years ago his carers noticed that he was vomiting more and more and losing a bit of weight. His vet diagnosed food intolerance or inflammatory bowel disease. A special diet for sensitive stomachs keeps the carpet clean.
A mild heart murmur has never worried him, but today we found that his blood pressure is up a bit - and that worried us. He may have to go on medication to bring it down because high blood pressure damages cats' eyes, kidneys and other organs.  
Andy Mitchell is a typical older cat - multiple little problems that when managed well let him live the life he enjoys.