Kind of gross but poop question!

Ok this might sound weird and gross but Im curious about this. Does anyone have cats with not solid poop but not diarrea poop. Its all poop not watery nor does it seperate but it isnt solid! Ive already been told that theres nothing wrong with them they are healthy and they have good weight they arent dehydrated or anything they just have runny poop...does anyone else have a cat like this. Fatman has solid normal looking poop to me but GiGi and Herc have this non solid non diarrea poop..It bothers me but Im not sure if I should try something like a home remedy to firm it up. It isnt hard to clean out of the litter box it just bothers me while Im scooping poop!

Hmmm any advice or anything!?!

I've noticed Tasha has developed the same lately. I was feeding TOTW and was thinking maybe it was the lack of wheat, but we switched to a discount brand (happens when I send hubby for cat food!) and she's still not firming up. Actually there was a little blood last night, but that's a different issue altogether (probably caused by the worms).

I KNOW Tasha has some worms (as in there was a lovely round-worm sitting in some poop on my stairs last night, she's obviously not feeling well) and I'm thinking that might be the main cause of the diarrhoea. I had some good luck feeding her cat food mixed with dio earth so I'm going to try that again tonight to clear up the worms. Dosing her is NOT an option as she still won't let me catch her since I tried to flea comb her last week .

What worms Tasha does have aren't outwardly noticeable (other then coming out in her poop) she has a no belly with a shiny coat and good weight.

IF there are no worms involved or other parasites, it may be food related. I have all of my fosters on probiotics. It's called Animal Essentials. Other people here have used other products like Prozyme and Holistic solutions. Give one of these a try and see if it helps. You will know in a few days.

Personally, I think loose stools are not something to be ignored. It indicates improper digestion of food. Cats with loose stools may appear to be OK but they aren't getting the full nutritional benefit from the food and so their systems may not be as strong as they could be.

There can be negative long term health problems as a result of loose stools. For instance natural expression of the anal glands requires a firm stool. If the glands aren't properly expressed they can become impacted. Also, the intestinal walls may lose elasticity from long term loose stools and constipation may result when a firm stool tries to pass.

I've used Holistic Solutions to "treat" Coco's loose stools. AddieBee mentioned other products that might be useful.

Loose stools aren't normal but unfortunately they seem to be becoming more common and so people are getting the idea they are normal.

Originally Posted by AddieBee

I have all of my fosters on probiotics.

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You could try yogurt for a short period (although, I know the lactose could actually make it worse depending on your cat) especially for younger kittens.

My senior has loose stools, but he has many problems and is living on borrowed time, being spoiled rpotten and watched closely as it is. All the others have nice firm ones, and no trouble passing them.

Have you changed their food recently? Or possibly even the manufacturer has changed the formula? I agree with the poster who said it should not be ignored, have you brought a sample to the vet to be checked for parasites?

POOP Problems! Yes my maine coon has that very same problem! I have found "Runni Poo" to work amazing. I just give her a small teaspoon of tuna every morning and put three drops in it. She eats it no problem and I am telling you this stuff works. Here is the site that I got it from!

http://www.nativeremedies-store.com/...ctCode=PRPR001

They have been checked out and are not sick no worms nothing like that...They just have runny poo....It doesnt even smell really bad. Actually aside from GiGis gas malfunctions Fatman with the normal poop is the smelly one....I just went to Petsmart looking for a probiotic and they had one there but it didnt seem to fit the description of what I was looking for so I didnt buy it. There were other slots there but they were empty so I asked an employee and they said they will have more by Monday and to stop back and check. I also was checking out Feliway but holy potatoes that stuff is expensive beyond belief...Ill be looking on Amazon or Ebay for that....Good news is that Hercules has his neutering appt on the 26th..

Originally Posted by 3CatsN1Dog

They have been checked out and are not sick no worms nothing like that...They just have runny poo....It doesnt even smell really bad. Actually aside from GiGis gas malfunctions Fatman with the normal poop is the smelly one....I just went to Petsmart looking for a probiotic and they had one there but it didnt seem to fit the description of what I was looking for so I didnt buy it. There were other slots there but they were empty so I asked an employee and they said they will have more by Monday and to stop back and check. I also was checking out Feliway but holy potatoes that stuff is expensive beyond belief...Ill be looking on Amazon or Ebay for that....Good news is that Hercules has his neutering appt on the 26th..

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What do you want the Feliway for???

^Since neutering was mentioned, I'm guessing the household is a little "unbalanced" at the moment due to either the intact cat's behavior or the other cats.

Something in their food doesn't work well for them. What are you feeding? I have one that can't have corn (vomits), one that has occasional soft to runny stools eating chicken, and another that I never really pinned down the offending ingredient (didn't feel like wasting time on it).

Whenever one has multiple cats trying to find a food that works for all of them gets more difficult so I switched them all Natural Balance and everyone has perfectly firm stools.

You may need to look at what you're feeding and start eliminating ingredients - start with the ones that are well known allergens and work back.

Originally Posted by AddieBee

IF there are no worms involved or other parasites, it may be food related. I have all of my fosters on probiotics. It's called Animal Essentials. Other people here have used other products like Prozyme and Holistic solutions. Give one of these a try and see if it helps. You will know in a few days.

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It can be many things..... First you got to rules out parasites; including giardia... Then it could be food problems, IBS, or just the way the kitty is, in which cases you can do a lot by adding probiotics an enzymes into their diets.

I use Bene-bac and nZyme for Bugsy... Talk to your vet about it!!

I feed them Purina Indoor currently I was at Petsmart looking for a new food (took Franklin with hes not the most patient puppy) but I was looking for all the names that everyone seems to be popping up with alot. And this weekend when I get off work Im going to get them new food. And Hercules is getting ready to turn 2 and is getting fixed at the end of the month now that I found a low cost clinic kind of near by. Everyone gets along good except when Herc has a PMS moment and goes after Fatman but other than that everyone lives very well together Herc and GiGi sleep in the bay window together and we all sleep in bed together.

Try using Petsmart's site. It's easier than standing around in the store reading labels and there are less distractions. Plus you can compare food ingredients by simply having an extra tab open in your browser, verses trying to hold two bags.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

Try using Petsmart's site. It's easier than standing around in the store reading labels and there are less distractions. Plus you can compare food ingredients by simply having an extra tab open in your browser, verses trying to hold two bags.

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You rock, answered a question before I even had time to post it! The print on the bags is so small that I have the devil of a time reading it, and if there is a colred background forget it. I knwe there had to be a site where ingredients could be compared the easy way.

sharky on here is a good source of info on that subject. Many manufacturers are now making sensitive stomach or digestion formulas. The stuff the vet sells is $$$$$ so maybe sharky has a reco.

I am pretty much stuck using Authority - PS's house brand. The "Sensitive Solutions" version w/o corn, wheat or beef.

It's not bad food - midgrade by sharky's estimation. And the boys seem to like it.

One of my boys with the loose stools ... vet couldn't find a "bug" causing the problem, but put him on an extended course of metronidizole... and a week of panacur just in case it was another parasite like whipworms that just didn't present. he has been on it almost three weeks - I hide it in smelly tuna and salmon and he thinks he's getting a treat! I am looking after six cats that live communally and after about 10 days on metro - NO runny, slushy, watery, bloody or otherwise abnormal poo to be found. Yaaayyyy!!!!!!

What kind of cat food should I get Im going to Wal-Mart today so I can make a pit stop at a pet store but what would you reccommend that isnt going to break the bank Im squeezing out a couple bucks to get some cleaner and food at the store and since I need cat food soon anyways I can get it now and try and switch it out and see if they like it. But Ive got to buy in like 18lb size bags so Im not running to the store 50 million times a week to buy food...They are free fed but they never eat all their food and Fatman is the only porker Ive got and since Ive gotten him he has actually started losing weight which is good...

Originally Posted by 3CatsN1Dog

What kind of cat food should I get Im going to Wal-Mart today so I can make a pit stop at a pet store but what would you reccommend that isnt going to break the bank Im squeezing out a couple bucks to get some cleaner and food at the store and since I need cat food soon anyways I can get it now and try and switch it out and see if they like it. But Ive got to buy in like 18lb size bags so Im not running to the store 50 million times a week to buy food...They are free fed but they never eat all their food and Fatman is the only porker Ive got and since Ive gotten him he has actually started losing weight which is good...

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I don't feel comfortable making cat food reco's.. I leave that to sharky. However, if you bounce over to the nutrition page I think there are some stick posts with general suggestions.

Is petsmart your only option? (personally I like petco a little better). Petsmarts better brands are Authority, AvoDerm, Nutro, By Nature, Royal Canin, and Blue Buffalo foods. Off the top of my head - Royal Canin, Nutro, Avoderm, and Authority have corn - that may or may not be your cats problem. By Nature had barley and oats, iirc. And Blue Buffalo's spa select is so so from the ingredient list - too many extras in it.

About the only thing I can honestly suggest to you is that you don't buy the largest bag right now that you can. You may end up with something they cannot tolerate or just don't like.

If you read up in the nutrition section and any of the foods honestly get your attention you should check the brands sites and see if they offer trial sized samples or coupons.

Petsmart Super Pets and Walmart are the only places to get pet food around here. There are 2 pet stores but I wouldnt offer them money if someone held a gun to my head one is aknown puppy mill in the area and the other keeps a monkey in a cement room with a shelf in it and a lemur in another room...IMO HORRIBLE conditions for these animals...Id rather get shot than supports those animal stores in any way shape or form!!! So yea its pretty much PetSmart or Super Pets for any food brands other than Purina Pedigree and Beneful which I can find at WalMart..I always stuck with Purina because my BFs step mother said it came HIGHLY reccommended by her vet...Now I just wanna kick myself for even listening to her because Ive been feeding Purina to the dogs and cats since then

Originally Posted by 3CatsN1Dog

What kind of cat food should I get Im going to Wal-Mart today so I can make a pit stop at a pet store but what would you reccommend that isnt going to break the bank Im squeezing out a couple bucks to get some cleaner and food at the store and since I need cat food soon anyways I can get it now and try and switch it out and see if they like it. But Ive got to buy in like 18lb size bags so Im not running to the store 50 million times a week to buy food...They are free fed but they never eat all their food and Fatman is the only porker Ive got and since Ive gotten him he has actually started losing weight which is good...

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Finding a food that helps with loose stools is a *very* hit and miss proposition, heavy on the miss. I was never able to find one that helped Coco and I tried over 100 (literally) but I looked at wets only.

In drys I found California Chicken and Rice helped a little. Others have had some success with Eukanuba or Iams Hairball formulas. The hairball formulas tend to be higher in fiber and that is probably why they sometimes help with loose stools. Still others have said grain free drys help. I'm not sure what is available at PetsMart since it's been a while since I looked at drys.

Good luck!