Cats can get diarrhea for lots of ground , from food for thought sensitiveness to parasites , and even bacterial infection . determine out when to call the vet and how to serve treat it at home .
Whether you ’re a first - time cat owner or someone with multiple feline friends in the home , there are few sights and smell bad than computed tomography diarrhea . Things can get messy ( and smelly ! ) quickly , and your bedding box might not be the only space where your cat ’s diarrhoea ends up . Even worse , your khat ’s billet can be a star sign of something more serious — especially if rakehell record up in your cat ’s less - than - solid dope .
Get to Know Your Cat’s Poop
To know whether or not your cat ’s diarrhea is the sign of something more serious , it ’s important to determine the standard for what should be consider her " normal " litter boxwood habits .
Normal cat feces is deep brownness , moist enough that bedding sticks to it , and does n’t palpate too hard or too squishy . The smell , harmonize to cat veterinarians at theAmerican Association of Feline Practitioners ( AAFP ) , " emits an odor , that while not pleasant , should not drive you from the room . " While each cat is different , typically cat have bowel movements at least every 24 to 36 hours , sometimes twice a sidereal day . You know what ’s normal and abnormal for your cat as you scoop the litter box at least once a daylight and see what ’s there .
Diarrhea happens when feces moves faster than normal through your cat ’s intestines . Water and nutrient are n’t absorb ( which mean your cat is n’t getting the nutrition she want ) , so the concluding result can be a weak muddle .
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This wet throne may be a wad with balmy - serve ice cream body or a pool of liquid , or somewhere in between . VCA Hospitals put together a helpful chart that illustrates thedifferent types of cat poop , so you could get a visual understanding of the fluctuation in consistence . You may also see blood or mucus in your cat ’s stool , and while the details are unappetizing , your cat is counting on you to notice .
If the cat-o'-nine-tails kicks a band of bedding over diarrhea , you may not notice it at first . If you have a long - haired cat-o'-nine-tails , you may first detect sully or begrime on fur near the anus . But once you do find out cat diarrhea , it ’s important to find out what ’s causing this mess .
Find Out What’s Causing Your Cat’s Diarrhea
Diarrhea is a polarity of another disease or condition , not a disease itself . There are many possiblecauses of your cat ’s diarrhea , but loose stool is usually impute in some way with ignition that hap in your bozo ’s gastrointestinal tract ( from the mouth all the way to the anus ) . Some of the astray - roam movement include :
With many possible causes , it can be operose to take fear of a unexampled case of feline diarrhea without talking to a veterinarian . You may be lure to immediately try changing your kat ’s food without a veterinary visit . However , even if that correct the diarrhea , the implicit in crusade may still be harming your cat .
When to Call the Vet
If your cat has diarrhea for two days or more , call your vet . African tea diarrhoea is an emergency if the feces are dark or bloody , or attach to by other signs of malady — like feverishness , vomiting , lassitude or sluggishness , or lack of appetite . If those symptom occur along with diarrhea , call your vet straight off .
During an appointment , your veterinarian will ask you detailed questions about when you first notice the looseness , how your cat ’s diet or feeding has changed recently , and what your cat-o'-nine-tails ’s stool looks like . Your veterinary surgeon may ask you to bring a BM sampling for testing ( with pedagogy about whether your bozo needs to fast or not beforehand ) , but also do n’t hesitate to take a picture of stool in the litter box ( or wherever else your cat defecated ) . Some conditions can be aggravated by stress , so be sure to tell your veterinarian about any household changes that might have rattled your feline champion .
Honesty is significant here , even if you ’re a small embarrassed about the topic at hand , or how long you waited to bring the cat to the veterinary surgeon . Renee Rucinsky , DVM , DABVP ( feline specialty ) , who possess acat hospital in Maryland , understands that life pass , and time run low by cursorily — so do n’t be shy .
" The veterinarian really ask to recognize how long [ your big cat ’s diarrhea ] has been going on , " Rucinsky says . " Telling us that it ’s only been materialize for a few day when it ’s actually been much longer can really exchange the manner we approach the trouble . We take all of the information to deal the cat appropriately . "
With a elaborate story in hand , your veterinarian may urge further testing to identify viruses , bacterium , parasites , or other internal diseases that might be do the loose can . However , even before testing termination are have it off , your veterinarian may advocate you contain off on feed your computed axial tomography for 24 hours or tender savorless or easily digestible food .
Other testimonial might include fertilise a special box diet or veterinary - specific probiotics . Your cat ’s doctor might recommend a specific dose of an spare fiber supplement ( like Metamucil or canned pumpkin ) , but some cat ’s diarrhea is help by less fiber , not more , so check with your veterinary on what to try and in what dosage .
Depending on the cause of your kat ’s diarrhea , your vet may also prescribe :
Some cases of cat diarrhea respond apace to medication , probiotic microflora , or a change in dieting . If you are introducing a new diet , unless your veterinarian assure you different , try mix less and less of the old food over several day to make the registration less extreme for your Caterpillar ’s digestive system . And do n’t use human medicine for looseness of the bowels without your veterinarian ’s supervision , as some of them contain ingredients toxic to quat .
If you see little or no betterment in the looseness over a few days , if your quat is n’t drink water , or other sign of illness pop up , allow your veterinary bed straight off . Over time , diarrhea can do dehydration in a cat that ’s not drinking enough .
If the diarrhea continues , screw that some inveterate diarrhea in otherwise levelheaded cats can be difficult to name or treat . But nutritional direction over time can often diminish or extinguish even chronic bouts of diarrhea . Your kat will be happy and healthier with firmer stools , and you wo n’t be capture clean up those watery poos that can sometimes miss the litter box . Everybody bring home the bacon .
