Expert: Karen Craft - 4/27/2007

Question
QUESTION: Hi Karen:  I have two questions.  The first concerns my kitten’s guttural meowing.  It is a Russian Blue kitten, 4 ½  months old, that I bought from a breeder in the Midwest.  I am in New York and it was shipped to me in late February at 11 weeks old.  Lately, I’ve noticed that he gives out these very frightening-sounding guttural meows which are usually accompanied by frantic racing around the house.  Should he come across me while in this state, he will stop in his tracks and tense up, and his tail will become bushy as if he has come across not me but some monster.  In general, I find that he is more vocal than the profile on Russian Blue cats indicates, but that may be because he’s still a kitten or that’s just how he is? He has been examined by a vet and declared healthy except for (1) an URI that he had as soon as he arrived, which was treated with two rounds of antibiotics and (2) Giardia.  Can you explain this kind of a meowing coming from him?

The second question concerns the Giardia.  Since his first positive result immediately upon arriving in my home, he received two rounds of Panacur three weeks apart.  After each round he tested negative. During that time, the only symptoms I could detect in the kitten was some stomach rumbling and gurgling and occasional flatulence.  Then I was treated for Giardia and to access the situation had him tested again.  The test came back positive.  The only symptoms this time around were softish stool that was slightly yellow but only in parts here and there and possibly some slight flatulence. He is currently on Day 5 of a ten-day treatment. It is heartbreaking that my introduction-to-my-kitten time has been marred by my having to deal with this.   Most of my time has been spent  cleaning things like crazy, both cat belongings and household things like surfaces and floors, with Clorox solutions, disinfecting everything in sight and washing hands obsessively, throwing things out to cut down on my work or because I have no idea if I can sufficiently disinfect the item, etc.  I have thrown out his scratching post, scratching bench, all fabric/fur/feather cat toys, and even an expensive cat bed imported from Germany.  From some directions, I am told that I am overdoing it and all I need to do is wash my hands a lot and not kiss the kitten; from other directions, that my cleaning in this way is necessary.  I have no idea which direction is correct.  Information on the internet is contradictory as is the advice I am getting from different vets and doctors.  Do you have any experience or opinion on this? To complicate matters,  I understand that tests for Giardia, whether the direct on fecal or the more sophisticated, newer one that looks for antigens can be false negative as well as false positive.  I am beside myself with apprehension and cannot help feeling that there will be no end to this and that I will never feel sure that it’s now okay to kiss the kitten. I feel as if I will never be confident enough to think that it’s now okay to stop the obsessive handwashing and disinfecting of everything. The possibility of false results is disconcerting.  Any insight into this abysmally disappointing situation would be greatly appreciated.  Thank you much.


ANSWER: Hi Olena,

I am not familiar with Giardia except for what I have read myself. I hope you notified the cattery where you got him from. It sounds like you are doing everything you can to get rid of this pest. From what I have read you don't have to worry about to much about catching this from him. Also giardia sometimes doesn't respond to one drug but to another. If he is still reading positive I would switch him to metronidazole. The meowing sounds like something is really upsetting him. It could be because of the chemical smells in the house or it could be he saw a strange cat outside. You have trace back his steps to where he was when he first meows. Try to see what is bothering him in the area. Good luck and let me know what happens.

Caio, Karen

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you Karen. Yes, the cattery knows about the giardia and hasn't really been of much help.  The breeder claims that she has had her other cats and kittens tested and that all results have been negative.  Regarding the meowing, he has done these long guttural sounds in almost every room in the apartment so it would be hard to trace the source.  Also, I'm on the 4th floor, so I doubt he saw another cat, but, now that I think of it, he may have seen a squirrel. It seems to me that he is itching to climb and sometimes when he emits these sounds, he stares up at things (cabinet, refrigerator top)as if he wants to have something to climb.  Could it possibly be that he is maturing, or at 4 1/2 months would that be too early?  I plan to have him neutered in the beginning of June, when he's six months old.  Regarding the chemical smells: he does eat his food from bowls and mats that I am disinfecting, so I'm not sure the smells are distressing (if this is distress) him. Thank you again. Sincerely, Olena

Answer
Ho Olena,

Yes, at 4 1/2 months, he can be mature. I try to have my cats neutered before they are 6 months. And it does sound like he wants to go up. Try seeing what happens if he can get to the top area. I have one cat who is not happy unless he can get to the top of my kitchen cabinets. I think it makes him feel safe. And he also can see everything from up there. Good luck.

Ciao, Karen