Constipated Kitten, Help!

I'm a new cat owner and I didn't even know cats could be constipated, but I think mine is. He has been sleeping crouched in the corner for a few days and he doesn't want to play. He was eating his wet food (but not his dry food) until today, but now he's not eating at all. He hasn't had a bowel movement since Thursday and I'm getting really worried. I called the vet today, but she never called me back.

The vet's not open until Monday and I really don't know what to do. I read that milk can make a cat go, is this true? What kind of milk? (skim, low fat, whole?)

If anyone has any insights, I'm all ears.

Thanks.

How long have you had your cat for? Have you recently changed his litter? Our new kitten refused to poop until we got the kind of litter she was used to using at her previous home. Just an idea in case that pertains to your situation.

Otherwise, try contacting another vet so that you can get him in sooner?

Originally Posted by Malakaiii

How long have you had your cat for? Have you recently changed his litter? Our new kitten refused to poop until we got the kind of litter she was used to using at her previous home. Just an idea in case that pertains to your situation.

Otherwise, try contacting another vet so that you can get him in sooner?

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Thanks Malakaii... I've had the cat for a few months, but I haven't changed the litter. Thanks for the idea though, I didn't think of that.

The trouble with vets is that I live in an area where everything's closed on Sundays...

What about the milk thing? Have you ever heard of that?

I've heard of milk giving cats diarrhea, but I haven't heard of it being used as a constipation reliever before. Personally I wouldn't be giving him anything additional to his usual diet as that may cause more problems than it solves, or mask the problem so that the vet cannot properly diagnose him.

If you aren't able to get to a vet before Monday, probably the best thing you can do is give him tons of love and support. Be sure that you are keeping track of everything going on (sounds like you are doing a good job) so that you can give the vet the 'big picture' when you go in.

Originally Posted by Zinkthecat

I'm a new cat owner and I didn't even know cats could be constipated, but I think mine is. He has been sleeping crouched in the corner for a few days and he doesn't want to play. He was eating his wet food (but not his dry food) until today, but now he's not eating at all. He hasn't had a bowel movement since Thursday and I'm getting really worried.

I called the vet today, but she never called me back.

The vet's not open until Monday and I really don't know what to do. I read that milk can make a cat go, is this true? What kind of milk? (skim, low fat, whole?)

If anyone has any insights, I'm all ears.

Thanks.

Click to expand...

Here is some quick advice from one of my cat books that will hopefully help you before Monday:

Try adding a few drops of olive oil or canola oil. Also, give him some unflavored Pedialyte to make sure he has enough moisture in his body.

I just went through this with a kitten I pulled from an HS. Salem had been constipated for quite some time. I called the vet on a Saturday evening and she gave me a few tips/tricks. They helped, but he still needed to have an E-vet trip on Sunday to have two enemas. Now he is doing excellent.

First and foremost, how does his backside look? When they are severely constipated the anus will become inflamed and start to protrude.

Is he straining in the litterbox and not producing?

You can use human baby glycerin suppositories. I had to do two on little Salem. Soooooooo not fun. It helped move some of it through, but not all of it.

She also suggested warm water flushes. I had small syringes on hand and tried the warm water with a bit of mineral oil. Didn't help much though.

Butternut squash (Gerber naturals) or canned pumpkin work wonders to add moisture and fiber to the intestinal tract.

The vet did suggest milk and I tried it. Didn't seem to have much affect though.

I would try some of the above, but definitely make an appt asap at the vet.

I hope kitty gets better.

What I have used in the past & what has worked:

-add a few drops of olive oil or veg. oil to food & mix-in
-add approx. 1 tsp. of pumpkin (canned) to food & mix-in

Sending hugs and prayers from Mississippi that the kitty goes to the bathroom.



Also gonna do the poo poo dance for the kitty.

Is kitty any better? Did anything work?


By the way, welcome to TheCatSite.

Hey all,

Thanks for all the good posts.

The kitty is at the E-Vet right now getting an enema... I didn't know kitty-enemas were so expensive. The moral of the story is that he needs new kitty litter. For some reason he has been eating it! The vet suggested shredded newspaper instead.

I think he'll be okay. He's going to be very mad at me though!

Good Cheer and Kittens for all!

Originally Posted by Zinkthecat

Hey all,

Thanks for all the good posts.

The kitty is at the E-Vet right now getting an enema... I didn't know kitty-enemas were so expensive. The moral of the story is that he needs new kitty litter. For some reason he has been eating it!

The vet suggested shredded newspaper instead.

I think he'll be okay. He's going to be very mad at me though!

Good Cheer and Kittens for all!

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I am glad that you found out what is was.

Whoo! I'm glad you took him to the vet and that they are fixing him up. I hope he's feeling like his old self soon!

Clumping litter and the 'crystal' litter can clog up the works for kittens who eat it! Also remember that they will clean it off their feet, so even if they aren't dining on it, it can still get into their system that way. On the recommendation of some cat-loving friends, we started using something called "stove pellets" that they sell at the hardware store. They are tiny wooden pellets that are absorbant and can be flushed (in small amounts). They aren't dusty like gravel litter, don't stick to the cats' feet, and smell nice. Plus it's $5 for a HUGE bag.

Wow, that sounds great!

Thank you for the prompt response and the pic.

I try to use only natural stuff (in fact this litter I was using was pretty expensive because it didn't have any chemicals in it).

Oh well, I'm learning.

You might also want to look into purchasing "yesterday's news"...it is really meant for ferrets but great for the little one's (who do tend to ingest litter) and for any injured kitten/cat where you don't want to litter to stick or clump to them. Very inexpensive and goes a long way.
Good luck.

What an informative thread! For the sake of others who may read it, let me add one cautionary note: apparent constipation has to be treated very gently (in cats and in people, too), because it's always possible that there's a "torsion" (twisting of the bowel)... and if that's the case, anything with a laxative effect is going to put additional stress on what's already a dangerous situation.

From my personal store of miscellaneous information...