My cat has diarrhea and a high eosinophil count

Our question this week was:

Dr. Debra – my cat's diarrhea… My vet says that Kallie's eosinophil level is 47, and this is a high reading. Could you give me some information about this reading? She's a Calico. Right now she's on Prednisone with limited success and a high fiber food. She has also started defecating throughout the house. I've had her since late April and since been under veterinary care ever since.

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Edith Liinasaa

Answer

Hi – thanks for your email. You wrote that your calico cat named Kallie has diarrhea and a high eosinophil count. I'm guessing the number you have is a % (47). Normal eosinophil counts in cats is 0-9%. An article that might be helpful is: Understanding Blood Work: The Complete Blood Count (CBC) for Cats.

There are several causes for high eosinophil counts and also several causes for diarrhea in cats. You have been dealing with this for a long time.

I'd discuss doing a panacur trial (treat for parasites) if this hasn't already been done. Also, if it has been going on that long – they may want to do a procedure called an endoscopy to obtain an intestinal biopsy to determine the underlying cause for the diarrhea. It is possible it is the "Inflammatory bowel disease". I'd recommend that you especially read that article. Prednisone is a treatment for that disease.

A couple more articles that might be helpful to you are "Diarrhea in Cats", Eosinophilic complex in cats, intestinal parasites in cats, and inflammatory bowel disease in cats.

Best of luck!

Dr. Debra

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