Blood on stool. sound like colitis?

kazanlak

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my male cat had blood on his stool this morning, not much, but noticible since the stool was fresh (if i can i clean his stool out of the box immedietly otherwise he tramples it during his somewhat incompetant and repeated attempts to bury it and will sometimes track it everywhere). the blood appears to be on, rather then really IN it and it is red, not blackish in color. i had noticed an even smaller amount a couple days ago and figured it must have been from straining (because honestly sometimes the size of this cat's bowl movements are mind boggling..) but since there is a bit more today i'm a bit concerned.

i didn't save this particular stool because i had gotten the business hours for my vet confused and thought it did not open until later in the day when i wouldn't be able to go in.

based on my limited research so far it sounds like it could possibly be a mild bout of colitis? i noticed the blood because the stool was fresh and not covered with litter, and although the stool have a mostly normal shape they do seem to be a bit soft. my cat is acting normally and eating normally, and has been using the box normally as well. i gave him a bit of canned pumpkin which a search on this site suggested could help somewhat. if i see more bloody stool the sample is going to the vet to be examined. but i may not get a chance at a fresh sample for another day or two (it's a matter of chance if he goes when i'm around)
basically i'm looking for some kind of reassurance that i don't need to fly into a panic here and can wait for another fresh sample to bring to the vet's rather then bringing the cat himself. or does it sound too serious to wait?
 

sharky

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age of cat ??

has the cat been wormed??

diet of cat??
 

mschauer

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For what it is worth, Coco used to frequently have a small amount of fresh, red blood in her stool. My vet assured me that all sorts of benign things can cause it. I could just be a mild irritation of the bowel that goes away on its own.

But, if it happens frequently you need to find out why. But don't panic.

In Coco's case it was happening because she was having digestive problems and undigested or poorly digested food was passing through her bowels and causing irritation. She also had chronic loose stools.

I hope it is nothing serious in your case...
 
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kazanlak

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Originally Posted by sharky

age of cat ??

has the cat been wormed??

diet of cat??
he is about 15 months old and neutered.

he was wormed along with his sister when i first got them just over a year ago. other then brief supervised forays onto the front walk and yard, they are indoor cats.

the main part of the diet is the purina healthy weight formula (more for his sis, who is a bit overweight) which i leave out and allow them to pick at freely since my job keeps me away all night and sometimes longer. they have been on this food for several months now. they were on Iams kitten chow until they were about 11 months old.
also in the mornings they each get half a container of the meow mix "market select" stuff in the plastic cups. i have been feeding them this for months as well and alternate between flavors and they seem to like all of them.
 

darlili

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That bit of bright red blood occassionally happens with my Dante - do check with your vet, but I got the same diagnosis as Coco, and was told basically don't worry unless it's every day and his behavior changes.

Then again, the same thing happens to me every now and again, and my internist said the same thing as the vet!
 
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kazanlak

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Update:
I called the vet and they recommended i bring him in. since i live very close by i ran over to the vet's and just got back. The vet checked him out, since i didn't have a stool sample handy the vet went ahead and took one himself, and checked it. he didn't find any blood in the small sample he did get.
overall he found nothing wrong with my cat, no fever, no signs of illness, but said to keep an eye on him and if another bloody stool occurs to bring it in along with the cat so they will have a better sample to analyze.
he suggested that a broken blood vessal from straining might possibly be the case but said to bring in a sample so they can examine it.

so i'm pretty much back where i was this morning.
i'd really have preffered that some kind of conclusion had been reached because i don't care for this waiting game stuff. but hopefully i can get a sample soon and get this taken care of.
 
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kazanlak

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another Update:
Boris was kind enough to produce a stool sample twenty minutes after getting back from the initial vet trip. so back we went. this time the fecal analysis showed the presence of toxidiosis (guessing on the spelling there) which is parasitic protozoa in the intestinal lining. This can cause some bleeding and irriation The vet said that my cat probably had it all along, but that it took awhile to manifest itself. Both cats will be treated since they are siblings and if one has it, it's likely the other does too.
 

sharky

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I am glad he obliged and gave a stool sample...
now he can be treated
 
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kazanlak

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Originally Posted by sharky

I am glad he obliged and gave a stool sample...
now he can be treated
yep. i waited a day to start treatment since he was throwing up and acting under the weather after two vet trips in less then two hours (one of which involved a lot of poking around his backside). I didn't want him vomiting up the medicine and the vet said i could wait a day until his stomach calmed down.
not that it would have mattered because when i gave him and his sis their initial dose this morning i got more all over me then in their mouths....but anyway the treatment has been started..
 

areias

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Glad it was fairly simple and nothing more serious! It's always nice to know what is exactly wrong with your animal.
 
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