Cat Fecal Health Kit

What it screens for

Bacteria and bacterial toxins — the overgrowths behind most sudden digestive upsets. Several can pass to people.

Viruses — including panleukopenia, the serious one every cat owner wants ruled out quickly.

Intestinal worms — roundworms, hookworms, whipworm, and tapeworms, detected by their DNA rather than by waiting for an egg to appear under a microscope.

Protozoa — single-cell parasites including Tritrichomonas, a leading cause of stubborn diarrhea in young cats, and Toxoplasma, relevant for any household with a pregnancy.

See the full target list — 27 targets

Bacteria & toxins

• Clostridium perfringens alpha toxin (CPA) — a common bacterial overgrowth linked to sudden diarrhea
• Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin (CPE) — the toxin gene tied to more significant disease
• Campylobacter jejuni — bacterial diarrhea; can pass to people
• Campylobacter coli — bacterial diarrhea; can pass to people
• Salmonella spp. — bacterial infection; can pass to people

Viruses

• Feline panleukopenia virus — a serious, vaccine-preventable viral disease
• Feline coronavirus (FeCoV) — a common and usually mild virus worth knowing about

Roundworms

• Toxocara cati — the most common cat roundworm; can pass to people
• Toxocara canis — the dog roundworm, occasionally found in cats
• Toxascaris leonina — a roundworm of both cats and dogs
• Baylisascaris procyonis — the raccoon roundworm; uncommon, and worth catching early

Hookworms

• Ancylostoma — the common hookworm; can pass to people
• Uncinaria stenocephala — the northern hookworm

Whipworm

• Trichuris vulpis — a whipworm causing chronic, on-and-off diarrhea

Tapeworms

• Dipylidium caninum — the flea tapeworm, the one owners most often spot
• Taenia spp. — tapeworms picked up from hunting
• Echinococcus granulosus — a tapeworm worth catching early; can pass to people
• Echinococcus multilocularis — a rare tapeworm worth catching early; can pass to people

Protozoa

• Tritrichomonas blagburni — a leading cause of chronic diarrhea in young cats
• Giardia spp. — soft, foul-smelling diarrhea; very contagious between pets
• Cystoisospora spp. — coccidia, a common cause of diarrhea in kittens
• Eimeria spp. — coccidia, usually picked up from the environment
• Cryptosporidium spp. — a protozoal parasite causing watery diarrhea
• Cryptosporidium felis — species-level identification of the cat strain
• Cryptosporidium canis — species-level identification of the dog strain
• Toxoplasma gondii — a protozoal parasite; important to know about in households with a pregnancy
• Neospora caninum — a protozoal parasite, occasionally found in cats

Every sample is processed by PCR in our laboratory. Panels are reviewed and updated by our veterinary advisors as the science evolves.