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Old January 15th, 2011, 06:33 PM
IceMountain04 IceMountain04 is offline
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Stinky poos for a little kitten!

Hi everyone,

I'm a long-time reader but first time poster. I'm hoping that someone can help me deal w/ my kitten and her horrible poos!

In August, I adopted a medium/long haired tortie named Layla. She's approx 8 months old now. She's a bit sassy, but completely loveable. Since October/November, she's developed a horrible smelling poo. They've always been soft poos. When I originally got Layla, I took her to the vet and she was dewormed at that time. She was a feral kitten, but since she was rescued, has not been outdoors. She was originally eating Meow Mix dry food and Friskies wet food each day. I've discussed this problem w/ the vet, and she suggested switching the food to Wellness. She now eats only Wellness wet and dry food. The smell keeps getting worse. B/c she has longer fur, the litter/wet poo clings to her back end, and she ends up smelling pretty bad, too. She'll let me brush her out for a minute so I can at least get some of the litter/poo off of her. Layla is quite the talker, but has been meowing a bit more lately. I discussed this w/ the vet too, thinking that maybe she's have stomach pain and is vocalizing it, but the vet thinks it's b/c Layla's in her *teenage* years, lol. I palpated her abdomen yesterday, and it felt a bit gassy and very slightly protruded. She did meow a few times when I did this, however, she was being held and she could have just been her sassy-self. Besides having smelly poos, she's a happy-go-lucky kitten, who enjoys playing and cuddling. She does tend to drink a good amount of water as well.

I'm really at a loss w/ how to handle this. I was hoping switching her to Wellness would work. My other kitten (an 18 month old short haired tuxedo kitten who is just as loveable) does not have this problem at all, but I've switched her to an all Wellness food diet b/c there are no boundaries b/n kittens and their food, lol. If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know. I will be contacting her vet this coming week about an issue w/ my dog (my pets sure know how to run up vet bills!) so I'll mention Layla's issue to her as well.

Thanks!
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Old January 15th, 2011, 11:10 PM
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14+kitties 14+kitties is offline
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Have you thought about allergies? There may be something in the food that is disagreeing with her. Is there a way you could drop the dry and just feed the canned? See if that makes a difference. I know with my gang if they get too much dry stuff I deal with stinky poos for a while.
You mentioned she was dewormed back in August. What product was used? How often was it used? Sometimes a worm medication needs to be repeated at least once more in order to work properly. Also, if the worm medication was not a good, all round one it is possible she still has worms. Not all worming meds work for all types of worms. Maybe take a sample into your vet and have them run a fecal. Sometimes the vets are not equipped to check for all types of worms so it may be a good idea to have it sent out. You can ask your vet if they are able to check for all types of worms. Coccidia and Giardia are a couple of worms that may be particularily hard to banish. Getting rid of the kitty's stinky poo may be as simple as having her checked for worms again.

And if you have been a long time reader you know we require pics. Please.
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Old January 16th, 2011, 09:27 AM
IceMountain04 IceMountain04 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 14+kitties View Post
Have you thought about allergies? There may be something in the food that is disagreeing with her. Is there a way you could drop the dry and just feed the canned? See if that makes a difference.
Layla's actually been refusing the wet food for the last 2-3 days...she'll meow for it like she usually does, but as soon as I set the bowls down, she walks away w/out eating any, which is VERY unlike her. She typically eats her share plus more, lol. She is eating the dry food though. I have considered allergies...how could I discern what she's potentially allergic to? Feeding only wet food? Or, is there a brand of dry food that I could try?

You mentioned she was dewormed back in August. What product was used? How often was it used? I was told by the rescue that she was dewormed at least once, but I'm not sure what product was used. She was dewormed by the vet once as well, but again, I don't know the product. I tend to remember that it was a creamy white liquid, but that probably doesn't help. Maybe take a sample into your vet and have them run a fecal. Sometimes the vets are not equipped to check for all types of worms so it may be a good idea to have it sent out. You can ask your vet if they are able to check for all types of worms. Coccidia and Giardia are a couple of worms that may be particularily hard to banish. Getting rid of the kitty's stinky poo may be as simple as having her checked for worms again. If it is worms that are causing the problem, wouldn't my other kitten (Lola) also potentially have worms since they share a litter box? Lola doesn't seem to have any of the issues that Layla has.

And if you have been a long time reader you know we require pics. Please.
It isn't the best picture of Layla, but here she is, being her sassy self, sleeping in the sink, lol.
Thanks for your help!
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Old January 15th, 2011, 11:23 PM
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sugarcatmom sugarcatmom is offline
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You might consider trying a course of probiotics (capsules from a health food store). They can be mixed with her wet food, just a little pinch. Look for something that has a variety of organisms and is fairly high potency (like Natural Factors Ultimate Multi or MegaFood Mega Flora).

Could also be that the Wellness is too high in fat. Merrick has some decent canned foods that have a better protein to fat ratio (Grammy's Pot Pie and Cowboy Cookout, in particular).

And lastly, eliminating all dry food from Layla's diet could help. Seeing as cats are carnivores with no need for the high amounts of carbohydrates found in kibble, many will see their intestinal issues resolve after they stop eating it.
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Old January 16th, 2011, 09:34 AM
IceMountain04 IceMountain04 is offline
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Originally Posted by sugarcatmom View Post
You might consider trying a course of probiotics (capsules from a health food store). They can be mixed with her wet food, just a little pinch. Look for something that has a variety of organisms and is fairly high potency (like Natural Factors Ultimate Multi or MegaFood Mega Flora). How long is a typical course of probiotics? Is it something that she would stay on for life should it work for her? Is it safe to give my other kitten who doesn't seem to have these intestinal issues?

Could also be that the Wellness is too high in fat. Merrick has some decent canned foods that have a better protein to fat ratio (Grammy's Pot Pie and Cowboy Cookout, in particular). Where can I buy the Merrick food? I found the Wellness at PetSmart.

And lastly, eliminating all dry food from Layla's diet could help. Seeing as cats are carnivores with no need for the high amounts of carbohydrates found in kibble, many will see their intestinal issues resolve after they stop eating it. This may be a dumb question, but how much wet food should Layla eat each day if she's only eating wet food? Right now, she gets approx 1/2 can of wet food each day, as well as free feeds w/ dry food.
Thanks for the suggestions!!
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Old January 16th, 2011, 11:11 AM
IceMountain04 IceMountain04 is offline
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Also, what would be a good litter to use in this situation? I currently use a clumping scoopable litter (Fresh Step Mulit Cat), but b/c she has soft poos, the litter and poo seem to just cling to poor Layla, and the apt can smell something horrible after she uses the litter box.
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Old January 16th, 2011, 01:06 PM
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sugarcatmom sugarcatmom is offline
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I would try the probiotics for about a month. Not necessary to keep her on them for life, just maybe intermittently if you change foods or something else upsets the bacteria balance of her intestinal tract (like medications or stress). Perfectly safe for the other kitten to ingest them as well.

Not sure where you live, so here is the store locator for Merrick: http://www.merrickpetcare.com/locator/

Not a dumb question at all regarding how much to feed her. There is no set-in-stone guideline, it depends on how active she is, her weight, age, and her own individual metabolism. A rough calculation of about 20-30 calories per pound of ideal body weight is often used, with active kittens being at the higher range (and possibly even as high as 35-40 cal/lb). You might want to start by feeding her at least 1 of the 5.5oz cans a day, and if you find Merrick, perhaps a bit more than that because it's a little lower in calories than Wellness. Adjust the amount up or down if you find her to be licking her bowl clean and crying for more food, of if she leaves some in the bowl after several hours (and just so you know, it's okay to leave canned food out for half a day for free-feeding). If you'd like help doing a more precise calculation based on her weight, let me know.

As for the litter, I'd be inclined to use something like World's Best Cat litter or Shweat Scoop in case she's ingesting the stuff that clings to her (these are corn and wheat based litters that aren't as harmful as clay if inadvertently eaten). If you don't mind that it isn't clumping (those 2 are), then Yesterday's News in the softer textured pellet are another option, although some cats find it strange on their little paws if they've never used it before. Probably good to introduce a new litter slowly anyway, by sprinkling the old one on top of the new for a while, or giving her the option to choose with a couple side-by-side boxes containing different types.
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Old January 17th, 2011, 11:26 AM
IceMountain04 IceMountain04 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sugarcatmom View Post
Not a dumb question at all regarding how much to feed her. There is no set-in-stone guideline, it depends on how active she is, her weight, age, and her own individual metabolism. A rough calculation of about 20-30 calories per pound of ideal body weight is often used, with active kittens being at the higher range (and possibly even as high as 35-40 cal/lb). You might want to start by feeding her at least 1 of the 5.5oz cans a day, and if you find Merrick, perhaps a bit more than that because it's a little lower in calories than Wellness. Adjust the amount up or down if you find her to be licking her bowl clean and crying for more food, of if she leaves some in the bowl after several hours (and just so you know, it's okay to leave canned food out for half a day for free-feeding). If you'd like help doing a more precise calculation based on her weight, let me know. Thank-you! What great information. I did find where I can buy Merrick and will try to free feed wet food only. I'm just concerned that both kittens won't like only eating the canned food. Any suggestions how to switch them to canned only?

As for the litter, I'd be inclined to use something like World's Best Cat litter or Shweat Scoop in case she's ingesting the stuff that clings to her (these are corn and wheat based litters that aren't as harmful as clay if inadvertently eaten). What about Feline Fresh? I've read good reviews about it. Would that help w/ the smell and clinging?
Besides allergies, worms, or intolerance to certain products in the food, are there any serious health issues I should be concerned about? I can't help but be concerned that it's something life-threatening.
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Old January 20th, 2011, 08:19 PM
IceMountain04 IceMountain04 is offline
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Update!

So, Miss Layla went to the vet tonight to get checked out. She progressed to having horrible, stinky diarrhea. Layla was dehydrated...she was given subq fluids. I had noticed that her water/wet food intake had decreased somewhat, but didn't expect her to be so dehydrated she'd need fluids. The vet gave us a trial sample of Hills I/D food to try as well as an anti-diarrheal pill. She said that if the diarrhea doesn't subside w/in the next few days, then we're obviously missing something. I asked if she could have auto-immune/inflammatory issues, but the vet thinks she's a bit too young to develop that (Layla is 8 months old). I also provided a nice stool sample that they'll send out, so we'll see if she has any parasites.

Has anyone dealt w/ having a cat who has chronic diarrhea or inflammatory stomach issues? I don't want to get ahead of myself, but I just want to possibly be prepared.

Thanks!
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Old January 21st, 2011, 08:36 AM
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Yes, I changed his food to Nature's Variety Instinct canned/Wellness grainfree mixed with homemade raw. Cut out kibble except for the odd treat and that eliminated his diarrhea and very, very, very stinky poops.

The key was to limit carbs .
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