Strange Litter box problem

slinky's mom

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This is my first post, because this is the first problem I have had with my adorable little guy.
He will go into the litter box to do his business, and before he has completely relieved himself, he jumps out of the box, while "stuff" is still hanging off of his bottom. Because it is still attached, it usually falls some where in the house we dont want it.
This started about a week ago, and he has never had this problem before.
We took him to the vet, and they said he was fine.
We have not changed anything about his litter box at all.
We havent added any pets to the house, and his behavior seems completely normal otherwise.
He pees normally.
Help before he ruins our carpet!!!!
 

cheylink

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Hi
and welcome to TCS. Is he short or long haired? Has he indulged in any house plants recently? Have you changed his diet at all or has he gotten into and possibly ingested anything abnormal? Sometimes they can become constipated and have difficulty passing, when this happens they often will drag their butts or leave gifts around the home. Also when they pass fur through their system, the same can happen if they don't vomit the fur balls up. There are supplements you can give them to help regulate the digestive system and pass fur balls.......
 

lyrajean

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I've had this problem with Aya.

It's because she's a wanna-be-string-eater -really not good for kitties they can get plugged up!

I've found that I have to be extra careful to not leave anything string-like lying around. Including my hair. Did i mention she climbs behind my head on the sofa and starts to munch on my hair? On a regular basis.

And its usually my hair that I find stringing her poop together so that the last chunk is still dangling from her bum when she exits the box.
 
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slinky's mom

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Thanks!
He is short haired, his food has not changed at all..He has free access to dry Natural Balance all day, and a scoop of wet food at breakfast and 1 for dinner.
We dont have any house plants for him to nibble on..
He does like to play with string, so its possible that he has eaten a bit of that..
I try to give him the hairball gel stuff twice a week.. He doesnt make the gagging furball noise, but he could still have plenty in him.. Should I give him more of that?
He is also a bit more vocal before he goes to the bathroom..


Originally Posted by cheylink

Hi
and welcome to TCS. Is he short or long haired? Has he indulged in any house plants recently? Have you changed his diet at all or has he gotten into and possibly ingested anything abnormal? Sometimes they can become constipated and have difficulty passing, when this happens they often will drag their butts or leave gifts around the home. Also when they pass fur through their system, the same can happen if they don't vomit the fur balls up. There are supplements you can give them to help regulate the digestive system and pass fur balls.......
 

bennett

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another reason to keep the string away - it can cause bowel problems. my miss kitty had to have a 3k surgery to remove some string she found. i'm very careful to cut strings off anything i see to avoid having to go through that again with any of ours.
 

cheylink

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Originally Posted by Slinky's Mom

Thanks!
He is short haired, his food has not changed at all..He has free access to dry Natural Balance all day, and a scoop of wet food at breakfast and 1 for dinner.
We dont have any house plants for him to nibble on..
He does like to play with string, so its possible that he has eaten a bit of that..
I try to give him the hairball gel stuff twice a week.. He doesnt make the gagging furball noise, but he could still have plenty in him.. Should I give him more of that?
He is also a bit more vocal before he goes to the bathroom..
Sounds like he may be slightly constipated... You mentioned he is sometimes vocal before using the litter box, is this a more recent behavior?
How old is he? Have you examined his poop to see if it has excessive hair, or when he leaves the litter box with poop still attached, what does it look like? You mentioned you do give him fur ball ointment twice a week, this is good. If they have difficulty passing hair through their digestive tract, they won't show symptoms like coughing up hairballs.
I haven't met a cat yet who doesn't like playing with string, but it is very important to keep string of any kind away from him. Chances are he is ingesting whatever string he is playing with and this is extremely dangerous. There are very few string/thread materials that can be digested and most important while passing through the digestive track can cause irritation, bowl twisting, and worse...Things like ribbon, carpet threads, dental floss, plastic ties, sewing thread, string, yarn..........
I don't know if I am on the right track or not. Since the vet gave him a clean bill of health, I would ask them what they would recommend as a laxative......I hope any of this helps in any way
 
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