My Kitten Has Diarrhea

[NewCatMomma]

My kitten s around 6-7 weeks old and I have only had her for a few days. The original owner told me that the kitten had been eating fancy feast canned food so I made sure I got the same brand to not make her sick. I got the pictured can for her and have begun to slowly mix and transition her to hard food. The first night she only ate the canned food and had diarrhea the next morning. She has not had solid stool since then. She has hair that is on the longer side and since she has diarrhea it has been getting in her hair. She's too young to bath in cat shampoo to clean her and I know she will groom herself but I cannot let my kitten walk around with feces on her! I took her to the vet since the previous owner had not taken her and had her tested for worms but they didn't see any parasites present. Any thoughts on what could be causing her diarrhea? Should I change her canned food to another kind? I'm at a loss!

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi! Try wiping her bum with a damp paper towel. Also, can you trim the hair under her tail and upper backs of her legs?
You could perhaps try an all life stages food but before you do that, clarify with the other owner what exact variety and flavor of fancy feast was being fed.
Hang in there!

 

[furmonster mom]

She is still a very young kitten, so her digestive system may still be making the adjustment from kitten milk to regular food. Runny poo during this phase is pretty normal.

Regular cat food often has a lot of additives that a young kittens digestive system really isn't ready for. You could try giving her a simpler diet for a little while; baby food (chicken, turkey, etc.,.) mixed with some kitten formula. Be sure to check the label on baby food to avoid the garlic or onion that some are seasoned with. Then slowly transition to more adult canned foods (try to shoot for grain and carageenan free options).

 

[NewCatMomma]

I have been wiping her clean, but I thought maybe once the diarrhea subsides the hair won't really be an issue. I'm transitions her to dry god after I got concerned that the canned may be upsetting her. I'm going to try to slowly get her switched and see if that improves. Thank you all!

 

[lacy2000]

You can use dawn dish soap on her. It’s safe for kittens at any age. I’ll even use it on my 1 week old kittens.

You also need to make sure she doesn’t get dehydrated. Pull up her scruff into a “tent” and if it stays up, she is getting dehydrated. You will need to syringe feed her pedialyte or add water to her wet food if that happens. Dehydration can be very dangerous in young kittens.

As for the food, I agree with what the other users said!

 

[Sarthur2]

What color is the diarrhea? Is she still having it today?

If so, take the wet food away altogether and give only dry kitten food and Gerber turkey baby food.