Help - cats with dirty bottoms!

I have two mixed-breed cats, both with rather long hair. I have had to give each of them a bath recently (and will have to bathe the male again as soon as he comes out of hiding) becuase they come into the house with feces stuck in the fur around their tails and back legs. They then go around the house trying to wipe it off on the floors, rugs, beds, etc. It doesn't happen often but even once is too much! The vet said they might have worms and this is making their feces very sticky; he gave me some worm medication but the male has only gotten worse since. He shaved their bottoms and legs. He also suggested not feeding canned food and giving only high-quality dry food instead. Has anyone had this problem and do you have any advice? I know it's not the cats' fault but I'm ready to kill them! Thank you!

Please don't even joke about killing your cats for something they cannot help. Did the vet express the anal glands? And it might be that a follow up vet visit will be necessary to get more worming pills for a second dose in a few weeks. You can dust their behinds with cornstarch and comb them out. Why is your one cat hiding? I hope you didn't yell at him and scare him, or worse? If they are scooting their rumps on the carpet, they could very well still have worms, or as mentioned, need their glands expressed. Make sure and wash your litter pans out well with warm water and bleach mixture to kill any parasites that might be lurking. Also make sure that each cat has Advantage or Frontline applied, because if they are going outside this time of year, they will be attacked by fleas (which cause worms)

Good luck, and please if you are losing your cool with your cats, just take a deep breath and count to 10. They can't help their discomfort.

Hissy, thanks for your reply! Don't worry, I won't yell at the cats or hit them. Jimmy's hiding because the doorbell rang -- which he hates -- when I was trying to clean him up. Thanks for mentioning the possible anal gland problem. That was something I didn't know about, but I just did a google search and found an article that describes just what they are doing, ie, "scooting" , in cats with impacted glands. So I guess it's back to the vet to have that checked out.

Are there any other reasons for scooting other than those two reasons? My male had his glands expelled and was wormed but he is still doing it...actually, it never stopped. The vet said not to worry unless he seems to be in pain but I would still like to know what it is.

Christl, you can also use pet wipes to clean them up.

Hi,
Another possible reason is being a fat cat and can't clean themselves sufficiently. I have one that used to do that, now she's on a diet. She lost 1 1/2 lbs. so far and quit wiping her butt on the rugs.

He is a bit chubby but can reach back there. Do you think he's just being lazy now?