blood in stool :-(

Hey everyone,

For about a week I have noticed that one of my cats Higgins, stool was really soft. I thought about what food i have been feeding them, and it is the purina hairball formula. I always feed that to them, so I thought maybe i was feeding them to much of that. And I also noticed that when he does use the rest room, he has some that kinda of hangs on his fur. So i always have to get a rag and wipe it off. Again was relating this to the hairball formula. So i cut back on it, well just like 5 mins ago, i went to change the litter box, and there it was. Higgins stool really soft with blood. And he didnt cover it up at all. (so i guess that was his way of telling me he is not feeling well, huh). I plan on calling he vet in the morning to make a appointment to see what is going on. But i'm really worried. Has anyone had something like this before.

Worried mom
Nicole

How much blood is present???

if its soft, and diahreah like...the blood may be from busted capularies which is common with diareah......if its a LOT of blood he may be bleeding from somewhere...colon, intestines...ect......

either way you may want to bring him to the vet with a fresh stool sample (within 8 hours old, and not dehydrated by kit liter)....the vet will beable to tell you exactly where the blood is coming from......

Blood in the stool can be due to food, parasites, or infection. It is always a good idea to get it checked out by the vet, even if it is just a matter of running a fecal in to the vet. To obtain a clean fecal sample, simply fill your litter pan with dry beans instead of litter. Scoop the fecal into a plastic ziplock bag and seal it, place it in the fridge until morning.

Thanks guys

It is not to much blood, but it is enough to keep me really concerned. I will take a sample of his stool to the vet in the morning. When i try and hold up his tail he starts whining alot, like he doesnt want me to go anywhere near his bottom. but i cant blame him because i dont want anyone near my bottom. I have the stool in fridge now, it is like 9:30, i wont be able to get him to the vet until like 10:30, do you think the stool will be dried out?

Originally Posted by gemini52880

Thanks guys

It is not to much blood, but it is enough to keep me really concerned. I will take a sample of his stool to the vet in the morning. When i try and hold up his tail he starts whining alot, like he doesnt want me to go anywhere near his bottom. but i cant blame him because i dont want anyone near my bottom. I have the stool in fridge now, it is like 9:30, i wont be able to get him to the vet until like 10:30, do you think the stool will be dried out?

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I'd say go with it...and if you get a fresher sample you get a fresher sample.....
if your refrigerate it, it should be fine either way......

the reason they want fresh samples is so the vet can look for worm, worm frags and eggs before they hatch or the worm dies.....refrigerating the eggs with stunt the egg hatching process........

good luck...and please keep us updated

Definitely do not panic. Bright red blood comes from low in the GI tract and a few drops are not indicative of a serious problem.

You're doing the right thing by taking him to the vet and he will almost certainly be just fine.

It will be better to take a fresh stool sample from tomorrow morning. If you cannot get a fresh sample then the vet can take one from inside his intestines. It's not super fun for the cat but it's not a very big deal - the vet just inserts a flexible plastic stick in his rectum, as if taking his temperature, and this will give a fresh stool sample.

This has happened to my cat before but it was due to a change in his food. I slowly tried to switch him over from Purina Happy Cat - which I know is like junk food for cats - but everytime I try he ends up with blood in his stool. I would like to have him on a good food- like Nutra or a vet brand, but don't want him to encounter blood in his stool again. So I always stick to Happy Cat.
Any other suggestions to switching brands?

Kareemsbuddy

My two fosters had blood in their stools due to parasites.