Fecal occult blood (FOB) testing, can be a useful screening test for cats. Unfortunately, there is limited information on using human point-of-care tests in our feline patients. There are no recent published reports of clinical FOB tests used as surveillance for disease in a population of cats.

Our goal was to perform FOB testing using the human point-of-care test Hemoccult®, on healthy cats to screen for potential subclinical disease. Fresh stool samples were collected from the litterbox within 12 hours of defecation for sample testing at three separate time points. All cats were presumably healthy, recently dewormed, and individually housed, ranging in age from 6 weeks to 5 years. A total of 30 stool samples from 18 cats were analyzed.

The stool from each cat at each time point was tested in triplicate using the Hemoccult® FOB test kit. Test interpretation was performed as fresh, 24, 48, and 72 hours after the FOB test was set-up. Nine stool samples were positive (30%) when tests were interpreted as fresh. Only 4 or (13%) of samples remained positive at subsequent test interpretation at 24, 48, and 72 hours. The fresh positive stools were from 6 different cats. The subsequent positive stools were from 2 different cats, one of which was later diagnosed with ulcerative stomatitis and the other, a kitten, with significant parasitism.

When used as a screening test, the Hemoccult® FOB test detected a positive result in 30% of the studied patient population when interpreted as a fresh sample. However, when the test was interpreted at 24, 48, and 72 hours post set up, the positive results were only 13% of the patient population. The FOB test is a useful screening test in cats. Repeated testing is recommended to differentiate transient from active bleeding.

Disclosures

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