How many bowel movements a day is regular??

Hi there!

I have a 7 month old big and healthy cat, as far as I'm concerned... he's not overweight, just really big boned (even vet was shocked my cat was only 7 months) haha. I'm feeding him Blue Buffalo Salmon.

And yes, it is an Adult one but I remember reading on one bag for the kitten food (from blue as well I think) that it was 0-6mths so we started feeding him Adult bags. He is having I think 3-5 bowel movements a day.. I only see him a couple times, but there's always poop in the litter box.  I'm wondering what is normal for a daily basis, as I'm wondering if I need to take him to the vet or not to get looked at... ?  His stools aren't "hard" but they aren't loose either, they're solid form.

Any suggestions, or tips?? Should I be changing to a different brand of cat food?? We've had him on the chicken one as well as  a grain free product...and slowly introduced the new foods.

I think kittens tend to go more than adults? My adult cats will poop 1-2 times a day, on a mostly wet food diet.
If your cat's stools are normal looking and he's healthy, I wouldn't worry too much personally.

pushylady said:

I think kittens tend to go more than adults? My adult cats will poop 1-2 times a day, on a mostly wet food diet.
If your cat's stools are normal looking and he's healthy, I wouldn't worry too much personally.

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Thanks for the reassurance! =) It's just this is the 4th cat I've owned from kitten to adult, and I don't ever recall them having this many bowel movements.  I free fed them all as well while only giving them the daily limit recommended on the bag of food.  And I've only given wet food as a treat, after reading up on this site it looks like wet food is more recommended than dry? Should I maybe try introducing some wet food into his diet every few days or something?

He sounds normal to me.   A cat should poop after every time he eats normally but some cats only go 1-2 times a day, or once every other day.  Kind of like humans   Pooping 9 times a day or something extreme is excessive and would need a vet opinion, but 3-5 times seems pretty okay. 

Good luck with the little guy!  Sending positive vibes. 

Kittens have higher metabolisms than adult cats, so they generally will eliminate more frequently than adult cats.  That's also why they have ravenous appetites.  He sounds normal to me.

Thanks guys! I just never had that with my prevoius cats so I wasn't sure if that was a "red flag" or not =) 

Mikki is 10 and all wet food and only poos 1x a day.

Peaches is 7 years old and she goes once every other day on mostly canned food.

Some dry food is mainly cereal/carbohydrates and not so much protein, although from what little I know about dry food, Blue Buffalo is a decent brand. Cats excrete what they can't use, to some degree. Cats have no need for carbohydrates.
I fed Ritz prey model raw (almost no carbs, almost all protein and fat), and she poops about three times a week. It has to do with how efficiently the cat metabolizes protein/fat (versus carbs).
But I mainly agree with the other posters: 3 to 5 times a day seems to me a bit high BUT if she's always pooped that often, then I guess it's okay. Do watch for any change in the consistency and frequency of the poop. If either changes, then a vet visit might be in order.

Ritz said:

3 to 5 times a day seems to me a bit high BUT if she's always pooped that often, then I guess it's okay. Do watch for any change in the consistency and frequency of the poop. If either changes, then a vet visit might be in order.

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Thanks for the tips, great ones! I'll look into getting some more protein in him.  He has always had the same consistency, the only time it was ever different was during the transition to the new foods but then became solid after the adjustments.

I agree with Ritz. I noticed when our adult male was being fed dry, and worse yet, a corn-based dry food, he would poop 2-4 times a day. When we switched him to a high meat-based protein dry, it dropped to 2 times a day. When we got him on all wet, he started going once a day, sometimes every other day. High levels of activity may also help move things along faster in an active kitten than in a lazier cat too.

Glad to hear this: very normal for a cat's bowel movements to change when transitioning to a different food, then return to your cat's normal.

pinkdagger said:

 
High levels of activity may also help move things along faster in an active kitten than in a lazier cat too.

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My cat... is an energizer bunny, no word of a lie...He doesn't stop. I know cats that the prey, eat, groom, sleep schedule... his preying lasts up to 4 hours at times. I can't keep up with this furrball!!!!