Blood in poop

Hey everyone,

I just got home from work and my cat had recently taken a poop (I know because she has a bad habit of not burying her poops). The poop has blood on it.

What could have caused this and should I take her to the vet ASAP or wait and see if it happens again?

Hi catzorz,

From this article- http://www.pethealthnetwork.com/cat...y-if-my-cats-poop-has-blood-or-mucus/page/0/1 - it looks like you should probably take her in. I haven't experienced this with my cats but I've had some irritable bowel issues with one and they asked to bring in his poop. I would grab a plastic ziplock bag and grab it with the bag inside out. Seal it another two/three times for smell and put it in another bag that's not see through. This will save you time at the vet by bringing a sample in. They'll dig through it for parasites and do some other testing. 

Have you changed her diet recently and how old is she?

Because it's blood I would take her in as soon as possible because you don't know how serious it could be. I hope it's just a one time thing.

Our vet is closed right now. She doesn't seem to be in pain or anything, so I don't want to go to the emergency after hours hospital. I'd rather wait until morning to call the vet.

I wonder if the first thing they'd test for is parasites and if I'd be able to just bring in some poor for a test before taking her. She really hates going to the vet and gets cystitis from stress.

That sounds like a good call.

They might, wouldn't hurt to ask. I completely understand my cats get so stressed and worked up.

Could be a variety of things, all requiring a trip to the vet. My cat suffers from IBD and poops blood when he's having a flare up.

Wah.

She went a couple of days without us noticing any more blood, but she just took another poop and it's got blood on it again. I feel so bad for her. She really, really hates going to the vet.

Just take a fecal sample in for them to test. It sounds like giardia to me. Giardia is a parasite that cats easily pick up, and the vets have meds for it that last about five days. I went through that with Mingo and the med cleared him right up.

I don't understand how she'd get a parasite though - she never goes outside?

Mingo didn't go outside, either, but he does catch mice and sometimes eats them. I attributed it to that, but the vet wasn't convinced. She just said they get parasites from the environment. 

It doesn't cost anywhere near as much to run a fecal as it does to take the cat in for an exam. The vets can't tell what it is from an exam anyway. In any case, I wouldn't let the bloody poop continue and get worse.

So we called the vet and asked if we could bring in a poop sample before bringing in the cat. Our kitty gets cystitis from stress and nothing stresses her out more than the vet. So we explained that and asked if we could do the poop test first and then if we can't figure it out, bring her in afterward (since she seems fine otherwise).

They said NO.

They said that there's no parasite or anything that we could test for in a stool sample that would cause blood on the poop, and that we need to bring her in for an exam.

I feel like it's time for a new vet. Every website online says that parasites or bacteria could cause blood on the poop. I don't understand it because this is the highest rated vet around here. They are well established and always win awards. I feel like they're just out for money now.

Sounds about right as far as the get a new vet thing except don't expect the new one to be any better... still worth trying new vets though.

Dark blood is more of an immediate concern, meaning the bleeding is higher in the digestive tract though red blood is a real concern too.

My kitties have a blood in poop problem too... The only thing that seems to help is giving them a food very low in fiber... "purely fancy feast" (not the canned food "fancy feast" this is "purely fancy feast" which is meat with no fillers in plastic trays) is the lowest fiber cat food I could find at the store and now I am feeding them a raw food that is low in fiber. After figuring out the fiber thing we are finally seeing unbloody poops when before they were scary with red blood every day.

Fiber makes the cat's poop wider in circumference and cats do not need fiber at all despite the fact that some cat foods have A LOT of it :/

Along with going to a vet, try feeding them a steady diet of the same low fiber food in even, small portioned meals and see if it helps.

First of all, the vet's office is wrong. Coccidia is one parasite that causes blood in stool. I know this because 2 of my cats had it when I got them. Your cat definitely needs to be seen to rule out digestive disorders, even cancer (which can also create blood in stool). I completely understand your concerns about her stress. I had a cat who had herpes and would get a flare every time he got stressed. But it's something you're just going to have to do. Blood in stool is not a good sign.

Could it be an effect of the Convenia shot that she got at the end of July? I know convenia can cause anemia...

catzorz said:

Could it be an effect of the Convenia shot that she got at the end of July? I know convenia can cause anemia...

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That's unlikely. Much more likely a parasite or constipation. She should see a vet.

talkingpeanut said:

That's unlikely. Much more likely a parasite or constipation. She should see a vet.

Click to expand...

Or IBD.

The vet gave some Tylosin and said we will treat first for colitis flare up and see what happens. Thoughts on Tylosin? Also called Tylan and Tyloved. I guess it's a weaker antibiotic?