My new kitten will not clean its anus. Help!

I got a new kitten last week. He is now 12 weeks old. I have not seen him cleaning or grooming his anus once yet. After he uses the litterpan, if I don't wipe him, he leaves little brown wet spots where he sits. So I've started dabbing his bottom with t.p. after he goes. Will I have to do this forever? Please tell me that cats eventually learn to groom their backsides! Is there anything I can do to encourage this? Like, putting Vaseline back there to get him to try to lick it off? He acts like he doesn't have a clue that he's supposed to use his tongue as toilet paper. I've had cats for 20 years and never encountered one who didn't take care of their business. I feel bad for him, but I don't look forward to 15-20 years of wiping kitty butt so he doesn't leave wet, stinky butt prints around the house. HELP!!

I see this a lot at the shelter where I volunteer. As they get older they learn to clean themselves but yours is still pretty young. I'd plan on doing the wiping for a little while unless you want poopy stains on everything. I know how you feel. I have an overweight cat and unfortunately she's so fat that she, um, can't reach it if you catch my drift. Some pet-safe wipes may also help better than just toilet paper alone. Don't worry, it will happen!

Oh, by the way, welcome to the site!

That gives me hope. Thanks for the welcome to the site, too. I wish I'd discovered this site long time ago. Just had a CRF cat that had to be put down after many months of sub-q fluid and med treatment. It would have been great to have a forum to ask questions.

Glad to help. I too wish I had found this site sooner. Finally, a site for cat owners as obsessed with cats as I am! I thought I was the only one who made such a fuss over my cat, totally spoiling her and buying her nothing but the best. My husband and I don't have kids, so she is like my child! I've only been a member less than a week but I've already received such good advice and made some new friends. You'll love it!

Most kittens will learn to groom themselves but I have a dear friend whose cat never learned. When he was old enough to appreciate catnip, she bought some catnip spray and sprayed a little bit on his behind. He learned IMMEDIATELY to clean his rump. Your baby is still probably too young to appreciate nip, I understand that kittens start taking an interest in it about 6 months old. But every kitten is different.......

I would also consider the fact that if you just got him last week, you probably switched his food rather suddenly from whatever he was eating before. This plays an effect on the quality of his stool and his whole digestive tract in general, it might make it a little softer then otherwise and this is why his butt seems gross. Many cats don't lick themselves clean immediately as if they were wiping, there shouldn't be poop stuck there. Make sure your kitty is on a high quality kitten food to keep his stool healthy and firm.

I was also going to suggest looking at the food your feeding. My kittens don't ever have poop left after they go the bathroom, but their poop is pretty solid formed.

tiger1206 said:

I was also going to suggest looking at the food your feeding. My kittens don't ever have poop left after they go the bathroom, but their poop is pretty solid formed.

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What brand food you give then please? I have them on Felix as good as it looks wet + royal canin british shorthair kitten... I give him about 2.5 pouches a day, 35grms, he is 7.5 months old -he leaves brown marks whenever he goes to do a poo and he does not clean himself

You might consider a food change too. The stool should be solid and not leave wetness behind. It changes with every individual cat, so you may have to change several times to hit on a good combination. any changes should be done SLOWLY, over a week at least, or it can cause diarrhea! I give my cats Friskies and Fancy Feast in the gravy lovers chicken and they do fine.