Loose stools?

Hi,

So a week ago today, I took in a homeless 4-month-old kitten that had been returned to my vet (who adopts out homeless kittens durning kitten season) because he "played too much." I was there with the girl I rescued a bit over a month ago, saw him and felt so bad for him that I went back for him that day. He is nueteted, up to date on all shots, and has been dewormed.

He is a great little guy, super sweet, playful, great with my other cat, my dogs and my kids...he's all around perfect, that said, I've biticed that he's been having loose stools. I know its him because he doesn't really cover his poop. His first day in the litterbox (that I saw him do) his poop was soft but formed but dice that it's pretty much thick but not formed. It is brown in color and I do not see and noticeable worms or anything in it (and he has been dewormed. He has plenty of energy and is not acting sick in any form.

I know sudden food change can cause these symptoms, but would they last this long? I do not know what his old owner had him on or what the vet had him on. I have a mix of natural balance and whole earth farms grain free kitten food (mostly the latter) that I am mixing with a small amount of natural balance ultra canned food twice daily. I am also leaving out that mix of hard food in case he's hungry between meals.

I am sure that he had not had canned food when he first came into my house… Because he seemed very unsure of what to do with it. He quickly caught on and is happily eating it now.

He is not dehydrated (going by skin) and gums look good and like I said, lots of energy.

Do you guys think the loose stools could be from the food change? Or leftover reaction from being dewormed? What can I try before spending money at the vet?

Thanks!!!

Laura

Since it's only been a week it could be from the food change and a new home.  If it doesn't clear up soon he may need to be dewormed again.  It isn't at all uncommon for kittens to need multiple dewormings.

I suspect the food. You can try adding some canned pumpkin (not the pie filling) to his food to help this. 1/2 to 1 tsp per feeding 3 times per day. Some cats seem to really like the pumpkin and will eat it by itself, others you have to put it in their food.

I'm glad that you adopted this little guy, he's lucky to have you.

Is he on kitten food?

Thanks for the replies guys! I will try the pumpkin tonight! Also, anyone know if it's okay to give him a human probiotic that contain multiple probiotic strains besides the ones cat probiotics contain? Or plain greek yogurt? I read that was okay, is that true? If so how much per day? (I figure getting probiotics into him could help?)

hexiesfriend- he gets a mix of natural balance hard food (all ages) and whole earth's grain free kitten (there is much more of that than the other) plus natural balance ultra canned food (says cat or kitten on can) twice a day plus I leave out the hard food mix for him so he can eat inbetween if hungry.

I think it may be too early to come to this conclusion but for some kittens the kitten food is too rich for them and they get diarrhea. I chased around my kitten with pet wipes for 6 months and after test after test a vet told me to change his food to adult cat food and l once I did that no diarrhea. I would check into the deworming as Denice suggested and if that doesn't work you may consider its the kitten food. Worms and kittens are a common cause for the this problem. I just adopted a different kitten with diarrhea and I dewormed him and the next day his stool was normal.

hexiesfriend said:

I think it may be too early to come to this conclusion but for some kittens the kitten food is too rich for them and they get diarrhea. I chased around my kitten with pet wipes for 6 months and after test after test a vet told me to change his food to adult cat food and l once I did that no diarrhea. I would check into the deworming as Denice suggested and if that doesn't work you may consider its the kitten food. Worms and kittens are a common cause for the this problem. I just adopted a different kitten with diarrhea and I dewormed him and the next day his stool was normal.

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Thanks for the reply! Geez I hope it's not the kitten food cause I just bought a 10 lb bag! Lol.

The office staff said he had been wormed twice. If worms are still causing the issue, is there something I can pick up over the counter or do I need to take him in?

I'm gonna try the pumpkin in a bit- everyone cross your fingers for me!! Lol

Sending positive vibes

Fingers Crossed !!!

My cat had crazy diarrhea when I first got him. He couldn't even make it to his litter box sometimes. I tried everything and he was dewormed at the vet and was totally worm free. Finally I researched food and started feeding him Natures Variety Instinct Raw Boost dry food. Kind of pricey but it has a probiotic in it and within a day he had formed stools again. He's almost a year now and I haven't given him anything else cause I'm afraid of diarrhea again. That food worked so well! I highly recommend it!

If his tummy doesn't significantly improve with pumpkin and greek yogurt added, I will def try that food! He's not too keen on the pumpkin but ate a bit today and last night. I've started giving him greek yogurt too cause I found a lot of info online about it being safe and helpful. He only ate a little of his food this morning with the pumpkin in it, but I just made him a dish of greek yogurt mixed with a tiny bit of pumpkin and some plain chicken and he ate some of that. This morning, his stool is mostly still thick but loose BUT there was a tiny bit of firmed poop in the middle of it so I'm very hopeful!!!

The yogurt is great! Great idea w/ sneaking a little pumpkin in with yogurt and chicken

Sounds like it may be moving in the right direction!

I tried the pumpkin thing before I switched his food and it worked a little but not fully and he ended up with an orange nose

Hopefully it works better for your fur baby and at least you know about that food if you need another alternative! Good luck!

Just wondering if you've contacted the vet? I think building a good relationship will enable them to support you and your kitty better.

I noticed that you hadn't received a reply about the probiotics... I would not recommend using anything like that without consulting the vet first.

I'm not saying kitty needs to be rushed in... You will just know that you are not doing anything that could potentially harm.

The yogurt and pumpkin are safe and it's a conservative, good place to start when there aren't other symptoms, in my opinion.

Again looking forward to the update where there is a formed poo

I actually left a message for her yesterday and just missed her call a few minutes ago. .

She said in her message that I should drop off a stool sample and they would call with the results. That said, and with money being an issue (im still recovering from multiple vet bills from the other cat), what would be the alternative? Could I buy a safe and effective de wormer over the counter and de worm him myself? If not, Can I request to just purchase dewormer from the vet and skip the stool sample? Or do I need to do the stool sample and then deworm as needed? The stool sample is $35 and I believe the wormer they gave sassy when I first took her in sad $15 or $20 so it adds up for sure :/

I totally get it.

I, personally, don't know of any OTC dewormers. Those are excellent questions I'd ask while at the vets prepared to drop of the sample... Maybe they could try giving another dose of dewormer without the stool testing... But each vet is different...

Have you heard of Care Credit?

If he's already been dewormed, try that food I suggested before paying a fortune on vet bills. Kitty might just have a sensitive stomach like mine. The food worked like a charm after the vet couldn't find out what was wrong

I would hold off on feeding them for 12 hours or so in other words skip one meal for them. You may also want to hold off on water during that time as well, only give them about 4 tablespoons of water in their dish. Then don't feed them the same regular amount after the skipped meal, give them about half and give them about 8 tablespoons of water this time. if the poop looks okay let them start eating normally again and let them have access to lots of water and observe them.  Also the All life stages food might have something your kitten isn't agreeing to. I always like to look at the size of the kibble, if you watch your cat/kitten eat you will notice with dry they don't chew much, so sometimes the larger all life stages food can cause irritation I've noticed. 

I don't agree with not feeding them ... My vet told me never to do that cause their blood sugar can drop and if they have loose stools they can get dehydrated.. Definitely don't hold off on water...

So, I ended up bringing in a stool sample for testing. My other kitty's (sassy) stools are a bit softer than normal which I find concerning as hers are always perfectly formed. More concerning, she didn't eat much this am (I thought because I put a smidge of pumpkin in her food that was left on the spoon from feeding Severus… And I thought she didn't like the taste… She can be finicky) and then tonight refused to eat. It was super strange actually… She was begging for food following me around meowing as I got it ready… she seemed excited, but I put it down, she sniffed it, took a little taste, and then walked away from it. I put her in front of it a few times, even tried a different room to see if it helped. I was using a different flavor of canned food that I normally use… So I even went as far as to open a flavor she usually eats no problem and offer it to her… But she refused that as well. So odd, caus she was really acting hungry.

She's acting normally otherwise...playing nicely with Severus at the moment. Any thoughts?


Hopefully I'll get some answers from severus's stool sample tomorrow. This is stressful for sure. Lol