Feline Flatulation

Hello all. My 5 year old indoor cat has horrid, frequent gas I mean the kind that can peel paint off walls. I thought it might be the flourine in the water here, which is a bit strong. So, I put him on store bought water. The gas persists.
He eats good brand cat food, mostly dry. In fact I totally took him off canned food for a month to no avail.
I do smoke, and wonder if the toxins are causing it.
Does anyone have any recommendations before taking him to the Vet? Or, any store bought remedies?

Thanks ,

robster72

My first guess would be the food. Both my cats and dogs have had terrible horrible gas with the following pet foods:

Puppy chow/Kitten chow
Science Diet
Iams

I'm not really sure what ingredient is in all of them that made them do this, but once I switched over to better quality foods the problem went away completely.

HTH!

If he's on a high quality food and still has this horrid gas, I'd make a vet appointment to rule out any gastrointestinal problems... the occasional toot isn't bad, but if it's frequent, there could be a problem.... better safe than sorry, I say, and until you figure it out, I'd pick up some clothes pins for your nose!

Oliver has the occasional kitty fart and it's like he knows he's gonna do it.... he'll come up all purring and cuddly, get his bum right at your face, let it rip and run away like "hahahaha, I just farted in your face!" What a monster...

People also have differing opinions of what a "high quality" food is. And even if it truly IS high quality, it may not agree with this particular cat. I'd try a few different brands and see if one helps.

Originally Posted by fatkitties

People also have differing opinions of what a "high quality" food is. And even if it truly IS high quality, it may not agree with this particular cat. I'd try a few different brands and see if one helps.

Click to expand...

I agree.

Gas comes from poorly digested food that is moved into the large intestine instead of being broken down into an assimilable form and absorbed in the small intestine like it should have been. If it is excessive, i.e. noticeable daily, then IMO the food is not agreeing with the cat, no matter what quality it is.

Common kitty gas ingrediants.... Corn Wheat SOY chicken

When we adopted Abby from the shelter, she had horrible gas. It was a combination of the low quality food at the shelter, and worms. After treatment for the worms, and a switch to a higher quality food, thankfully it went away. what are you currently feeding her?

It's a he and he's been on Iams dry, Purina One and Meow Mix just to try something different. He is really finicky and won't eat many brands. He doesn't even like Iams all that much. Any suggestions for a better brand or is it time to visit the Vet. They would probably want a stool sample, arggh. Sounds like a big bill.
Thanks

Hi. Which brands did you have success with? Houdini is pretty finicky. I'm thinking it's time for a trip to the Vet.

Thanks

I posted about this recently and luckily, as my cat has continued the switch over to a better quality food (in this case Wellness) the gas seems to have stopped and the poo is not as stinky as it was. It was horrible.

I would have him checked for worms as well, since Astrid was treated for roundworm the gas really died down. I am still going to have her re-checked in case the second dose (which I got more of than she did) didn't finish the job.

Hello. How much did the worm treatment run you? I'm thinking it is a internal problem.

Thanks

robster...
I used to feed my cats Kit "N" Kaboodle and Meow Mix until I stated coming here and also got some coaching from a wonderfully helpful lady at the pet supply store.

I had an awful time getting them switched to a better food as the cheap foods are sprayed with animal fat or something which kind of makes it like a bag of potato chips that they are being fes as their meals.

Research some of the food threads here and look at ingredients. Then go to a pet supply store with a list of the more premium quality foods and see what they have available.

To do the switch, you will have to start mixing a little of the better stuff in with the old junk food. Each couple three days, add a little more of the good stuff and take away more of the junk till you have finally made the complete change.

It is a good idea to try a few different brands to see what goes over best so buy in small portions till you know which is the way you and your kit want to go.

It is also a good idea to have your cat checked by a vet for worms and just general health.

Be warned about store bought remedies. Many of them can do great harm to our beloved pets while touting how wonderful they will be.

Good luck with making changes for your Houdini.