Kitten with black, tarry poop

This month has been a nightmare trying to figure out my kitten's poop and get her diet and metabolism situated. I posted a thread on here a little while ago, about her having constant soft poop and diarrhea since the day my fiance and I adopted her. Last Friday we took her to the vet to discuss what was wrong. Since she has had some itching, sneezing, a dry crusty nose, and constant soft poop, the vet suspected she had a food intolerance/allergy. (Fecal testing has come back negative and she ruled out tritrichomonas.) She recommended we take out fish and chicken, try a limited ingredient food, and also add in some probiotic to help with her pooping. This would be about the third time we're trying her on new food in the course of a month.

On Saturday we started her probiotic (Purina FortiFlora) and got her Nature's Variety Instinct Limited Ingredient Rabbit Formula. We also got her a can of Wellness CORE Turkey and Duck canned cat food, which we give her about 1 - 2 tsp. twice a day with the probiotic. Thankfully she is not picky and has made trying new things a breeze. Yesterday, I already noticed a difference in her itching and sneezing (it was gone!), and her fur and nose were already softer. However she also has been pooping black, soft feces that stink worse than before. She seems to be going to the bathroom more, sometimes aiming towards the edge of the litter box (but not out of it), and she seems to be straining more now too. Her back end is messier now where I always have to wipe her.

I know her metabolism isn't going to turn around over night, and her poops are not going to be firm right away, I don't expect that. I'm just trying really hard not to freak out about her black stool. I keep reading that it's an indicator of internal bleeding. The thing is though, she still does not act sick and there are no changes in her personality. When I wipe her rear, there is no blood on the toilet paper, it's dark brown. Should I be freaking out about this and taking her back to the vet? Or is it just the change in food changing the pigment of her feces? This rabbit formula is almost black in color, which is identical to her poop color.

I was really concerned when I read your post until I came to the last line. If the food is black that almost certainly explains the poop. Hopefully the consistency will sort itself out. So long as she's acting herself I wouldn't be too worried. Keep a close eye though, and if anything changes do at least speak to the vet.

Columbine said:

I was really concerned when I read your post until I came to the last line. If the food is black that almost certainly explains the poop. Hopefully the consistency will sort itself out. So long as she's acting herself I wouldn't be too worried. Keep a close eye though, and if anything changes do at least speak to the vet.

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   Is the consistency really different from before, or just the color?  You said she has always had  soft poop since you got her, but your post title says "tarry", so if it IS truly tarry and wasn't before, then it could indeed mean she is bleeding somewhere, but it could even be from a cut in her mouth.  If she is bleeding somewhere to cause black tarry stools, there would not be any red blood when you clean her up.  Red blood on her stools would indicate bleeding near her anus and is usually caused from straining too much...normally nothing to worry about unless it's copious amounts. 

The new stench may simply be the change in foods along with the Forti Flora.  My cats won't touch canned rabbit, so I can't say whether or not it causes extra stinking poops.

If she starts itching again, I'd cut out the Wellness Core Turkey and Duck and stick strictly with the Rabbit.  Sometimes with food allergies it's best to go with ONE protein for a really accurate "test". 

mrsgreenjeens said:

 

   Is the consistency really different from before, or just the color?  You said she has always had  soft poop since you got her, but your post title says "tarry", so if it IS truly tarry and wasn't before, then it could indeed mean she is bleeding somewhere, but it could even be from a cut in her mouth.  If she is bleeding somewhere to cause black tarry stools, there would not be any red blood when you clean her up.  Red blood on her stools would indicate bleeding near her anus and is usually caused from straining too much...normally nothing to worry about unless it's copious amounts. 

The new stench may simply be the change in foods along with the Forti Flora.  My cats won't touch canned rabbit, so I can't say whether or not it causes extra stinking poops.

If she starts itching again, I'd cut out the Wellness Core Turkey and Duck and stick strictly with the Rabbit.  Sometimes with food allergies it's best to go with ONE protein for a really accurate "test". 

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Tarry was probably a strong term. I should've emphasized the consistency is the same as before, with it being soft and goopy. I found this feces chart and she is about a 5. 

When I typed this up, I was thinking tarry as in color-wise. I apologize for the confusion.

I did google tarry poop as well, just to see a comparison. (Heh, I know, gross. But I felt I had to.) Her stool is definitely not the sticky consistency I came across. She also has a slightly reddish brownish tinge to hers. It's an odd color. Looks black from far away, but up close looks very, very dark brown with slight red tint.

So far she has continued with absolutely no itching or sneezing. I did notice a little crust on her nose today, but otherwise it's still fairly soft. As far as those small physical things, they're looking better.