Does wet food cause wet poop in cats

Vet Approved Cat Stool Chart: Decoding Your Cats Poop

Why use a cat stool chart? Because your cats feces is one of the biggest indicators of their health.

Put simply, a healthy cat should have healthy stools. While there are many specific health issues that can cause signs from constipation to diarrhea, its a simple rule that normal feces (or stools) are a good sign that your cat is thriving.

When you visit your veterinarian, its likely that you will be asked to describe your cats stools, as part of the general gathering of information about your cats health, and in particular, information about the gastrointestinal tract.

Cat Stool Chart

The cat stool chart infographic below is a simple, clear way of giving you information to help you decode the appearance of your cats feces.

The image on the left-hand column is the starting point: choose whichever one most closely resembles your cats stool. The second column is a written description of the appearance of the stool, and the third column is an explanation of the most likely reason for that appearance. Finally, the fourth column gives you advice on what action you need to take as a consequence of that particular stool appearance.

Breakdown Of Cat Stool Health Indicators Based On Color And Consistency

Fecal abnormalities may point to a wide variety of issues affecting the digestive tract and beyond.

It can be difficult to observe your cats bowel movements if they are outdoor pets, but if they use a litter box, you should take advantage of the daily task of scooping their poop to observe it in detail.

A normal cat stool should be brown or dark brown in color, with a reasonably firm consistency. The idea is that it should be formed, but should not be too hard.

There should be no sign of mucus or blood. It is possible to carry out fecal scoring based on a cats poop look, but there may be no need to get into such a detailed, formal way of carrying out an assessment.

Abnormalities that should be noted include:

• Extraneous matter, like hairballs.Soft feces (formed, but mushy) can be caused simply by a sudden change of diet (e.g. from Purina to a different brand). Other possible causes include mild or early cases of diseases listed below that can cause more significant diarrhea.
• Loose feces (diarrhea) can be caused by a number of factors, including intestinal irritation (e.g. by intestinal parasites such as tapeworm), bacterial infections, liver disease, kidney disease, or inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), food allergy, and food intolerances. Some health problems, like hyperthyroidism, can cause this type of diarrhea as well as a range of other signs of illness.

Broadly, There Are Two Sub-types Of Cat Diarrhea

First, small intestinal diarrhea tends to be larger pools of loose feces, passed less frequently. If blood is present, it may be darker, sometimes described as tarry (because it has been digested as it has passed through the digestive tract).

Second, large intestinal diarrhea (e.g. associated with colitis) tends to be smaller amounts of loose feces, passed more frequently, often with a sense of urgency. Streaks of mucus and fresh blood may be seen.

Read More: Best Cat Food for Diarrhea

Hard stool is the opposite of diarrhea, and this can indicate a range of other possible problems, You should also note the process of defecation: if your cat is straining when pooping (so-called fecal tenesmus) this can indicate constipation (e.g. megacolon or a blockage of some kind) or alternatively, this can be caused by irritation of the lower bowel.

You may notice your cat over-grooming around the same time as passing feces: this can suggest discomfort or abdominal pain.

Frequently Asked Questions:

What does a normal cat poop look like?

As mentioned above, a healthy cat poop should be brown or deep brown in color (not yellow, not pale, not black), and it should be well formed, like an uncooked sausage. There should be no blood, and no streaks of mucus.

How can I tell if my cat's poop is healthy?

You should monitor your cats poops in the litter box every day, so that you are familiar with the normal appearance and consistency of your cats poo. The answer to whats the scoop about my cats poop is a useful indicator of your cats overall health.

How much should a cat poop in one day?

There are no absolute rules about frequency and quantities of cat poops, but most cats in good general health pass stools once or twice daily, with lengths of four to six inches (10 -15cm) on each occasion.

Why is my cat's poop jelly-like with blood?

This is a sign that your cat's digestive system is inflamed for some reason: the jelly-like appearance means that the wall of the intestine is producing too much mucus, while the blood indicates that blood is oozing from the intestinal wall. These are both events that occur following inflammation of the wall of the intestine. A cat with this type of poop needs to be taken to the veterinarian as soon as possible.

Why is my cat's poop mucus?

If there is copious mucus in your cat's poop, this indicates that the wall of the wall of the intestine is inflamed, causing increased production of mucus. There are many possible causes, including parasites and inflammatory bowel disease, and you do need to take your cat to your local veterinarian for this to be investigated further.

Why is my cat's poop yellow?

This is an abnormal finding, and it may indicate a number of different conditions, including coccidiosis, or a bacterial infection or imbalance. You should take your cat to your local veterinarian for this to be investigated further.

Why Is My Cats Poop Watery? 8 Vet-Approved Reasons

The information is current and up-to-date in accordance with the latest veterinarian research.

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Changes in bathroom habits are one of cat parents biggest causes of worry. Though diarrhea in cats isnt the most unusual phenomenon, its crucial to figure out what may be causing it, especially if its regularly affecting your cat.Watery poop can be caused by a range of situations and health conditions, and it can be difficult to pinpoint precisely whats going on.

If your cat is otherwise healthy and the diarrhea clears up on its own within 24 to 48 hours, it could just be a one-time event. If the situation doesnt improve, its time to chat with your vet. For now, here are some potential causes of watery poop in cats.

The 8 Likely Reasons for Watery Cat Poop

1. Dietary Changes

What may seem like a simple food change can cause havoc in your cats digestive system. Cats are incredibly sensitive to sudden changes in food, which can affect the balance in their intestines and cause diarrhea, vomiting, and a lack of appetite.

Its recommended to gradually introduce a new type of food to your cat by offering small amounts of the new food along with the current food. This allows you to gradually increase the amount you give them while phasing out the previous food.

2. Food Allergies

Like humans, cats can also be allergic to certain foods; some cats are allergic to the meats commonly found in cat foods, like beef, fish, or poultry. Food allergies can also cause cats to become itchy, which leads to overgrooming to try and soothe themselves. Diarrhea and other gastrointestinal issues can also occur with food allergies.

3. Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Inflammatory Bowel Disease occurs when inflammatory cells attack the gastrointestinal wall, causing it to thicken and struggle to function properly. In short, it is the chronic irritation and inflammation of the bowel or stomach caused by bacteria, parasites, or food allergies. The signs include chronic diarrhea or vomiting.

4. Parasites

Gastrointestinal parasites are another condition that causes diarrhea in cats. Parasites can be worms or one-celled organisms transmitted by bites, eating spoiled meat, or infected feces. There are several types of intestinal parasites.

These are:

• Roundworms
• Tapeworms
• Hookworms
• Whipworms
• Giardia
• Toxoplasma
• Coccidia

Along with diarrhea, parasites can also cause bloodied or mucousy stools, vomiting, and bloating in some cases. Parasites are usually treated with medication prescribed by your vet.

5. Cat Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency

Cat Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency is a condition in which cats lack properly functioning digestive enzymes to break down fats and proteins and produce insulin. It is caused by pancreatitis, cancer, birth defects, or obstruction in some cases. The signs include watery diarrhea, lethargy, weight loss, and unformed feces.

6. Cancer

Cancers of the gastrointestinal tract can sometimes cause diarrhea and vomiting. Cancer is not as common in cats as it is in dogs, but it tends to be more aggressive in cats. Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV) can also cause persistent diarrhea.

Cancer can be especially difficult to spot in cats since they tend to hide when theyre feeling unwell, even if theyre suffering from a serious illness. For that reason, its important to watch out for other signs as well as watery poop, which include:

• A dull coat that looks more run-down than usual
• Weight loss
• Fever
• Lumps that can be seen or felt through the skin
• Breathing difficulties
• Pale gums
• Swollen lymph nodes
• Seizures
• Lethargy
• Refusal to eat
• Oral inflammation

7. Hyperthyroidism

Hyperthyroidism occurs when the thyroid gland produces more thyroid hormones than is normal, causing the cats metabolism to speed up to abnormal levels. This condition most commonly occurs in cats over the age of eight. Diarrhea is one of the signs, but the others include poor coat condition, hyperactivity, vomiting, weight loss, and frequent urination.

8. Stress

Like humans, stress and anxiety can send a cats digestive system into a tailspin. Cats are sensitive to changes in their routine, so if youve moved your furniture around, the smell in your home has changed, or youve recently moved or adopted a new cat, it can make your cat stressed out. Even moving their litterbox can cause them to have jitters!

Whats Considered Normal for Cat Poop?

A healthy bowel movement should be deep brown, not too hard or soft, and not too foul-smelling. Of course, cat poop isnt going to smell like a bouquet of roses, but you shouldnt be heaving or running out of the room when you dispose of it, either.

On the other hand, abnormal cat poop is poop that is:

• Black or tarry
• Bloody
• Contains mucus
• Frothy
• Greasy
• Watery
• Frothy
• Hard and dry
• Infrequent or too frequent

Final Thoughts

Though watery cat poop isnt uncommon, it isnt normal either. That doesnt mean that something serious is causing your cats diarrheacauses can be minor or serious but you certainly shouldnt rule out health conditions, especially if the diarrhea doesnt clear up on its own after a short time. If youre worried about your cats bathroom habits for any reason, contact your vet.

Featured Image Credit: topimages, Shutterstock

Does Wet Cat Food Make Poop Smell Worse?

If you want to change the bad smell of your furry pals litter box by changing his diet, then you came to the right place. The bed food for a cats smelly poop is the one thats free of irritants and easy to digest. Its ingredients should be species-appropriate and high-quality, with items such as organs, muscle meat, and fat derived from animal sources making up most of the food.

Wet cat food gives smelly poop

There is some wet cat food you might want to avoid since it might give your cat smelly poop. That said its not that much about dry vs. wet food, but more about whats in the food. Be aware that stinky poop often comes from other reasons.

What Causes Foul Smelling Stool in Cats?

In young cats, foul-smelling stools are usually because of the introduction of the new cat foods or with parasite inflammation. But in most cases, the fecal abnormalities in adult cats if not attributable to a certain dietary issue is likely to be associated with the GI tract and usually becomes the result of an infectious or inflammatory disease or even 2nd degree of feline cancer. Having said that, no study points out wet cat food as the reason for smelly cat poop. Your vet can be able to help in finding the cause so that the right treatment and specialized diet can be undertaken.

You should also read this:

Diet as the Main Cause of Foul-Smelling Stool in Cats

Since a cats diet vary, its always difficult to identify what certain ingredient is the culprit. Sometimes, a diet elimination (avoiding one particular ingredient at a time for one week or so), might help in narrowing down the causes. Aside from that, some cats are also hunters and their prey could also result in smelly stools.

What Should You Look for a Cat Food Thats Best for Smelly Poop?

With several health problems potentially contributing to foul poop odor, ruling out possible infections as well as other health problems is very important prior to starting an odor management diet. Once you have already established that diet is the right solution for your cats smelly poop, prioritize these two things efficiency and simplicity.

All poop smells, however, it will smell even worse when there is more to it more bacteria, more digestive by-products, and more sulfur. Time can also play a big part. Cat foods that usually take much longer to digest often spend time in the GI tract, which gives digestive gases some time to develop and make the litter box session of your cat all the smellier.

To sum it all up, the best food for a cats smelly poop helps in minimizing the amount of work that the body of your cat does to process the food, which makes the digestion process even more efficient.

Cats poop smells horrible: This is what you can put in the litter box

The Best Food for a Cats Smelly Poop

What to look for in a best cat food to avoid stinky poop.

Cat Food Free of Irritating or Allergenic Ingredients

Aside from other symptoms, there are also allergenic cat foods that might cause flatulence as well as reeking stool. As a matter of fact, cats can easily develop allergies to any protein. The most common food allergens in cats include seafood, chicken, dairy, beef, corn, wheat, and soy. Even though the idea of allergic pets is hot right now, the real food allergies, which is an inappropriate dietary protein immune reaction, are very rare among feline species.

Cat Food Free of Lactose

Most adult felines are lactose-intolerant, which potentially leads to smelly poop and digestive distress. To avoid health issues concerning lactose intolerance, avoid giving your feline friend cows milk and make sure to avoid foods that contain it as well.

Common Questions About What Cat Food Makes A Cats Poop Smell Worse

Does Wet Cat Food Cause Soft Stool?

Wet Cat Food cancause some soft stool, vomiting, and even diarrhea might occur. Theirs reasons why you might still not abandon the wet canned food and go back to dry. Wet canned food can give your cat a lot of benefits because of its moisture content. In fact, if your cat is overweight and you switch from dry to wet canned food, youll likely notice a healthy weight loss.

How Often Should Cats Poop on Wet Food?

As a cat owner, its important to remember the general rule of thumb in a cats bowel movement and that is to poop at least once a day. Furthermore, that poop should be normally formed in brown color, and not too hard. They should also be able to pass stool without discomfort or difficulty. Wet canned food can especially help cats pass stool daily because of their high moisture level.

Does Wet Food Give Cats Gas?

Assessing the diets, you give to your cat is very important. Some felines have less gas on dry or wet food or do better with a particular ingredient than others. Cat foods that contain large amounts of cruciferous vegetables or legumes, which are common gas-producing foods, might also be the reason why your cat farts too much and produces a very foul poop odor.

Do cats poop less on wet food

Cats might poop less when it is eating wet food. The reason is, that wet cat food has less fiber and is more digestible. That is totally fine. Cats dont have the same need for fibers as us. If the cat is used to dry food, it might become constipated.

Why does my cats poop smell so bad

Poop is first of all not meant to smell nice, and the same goes for cat poop. Some explainations why your cats poop might be extra stinky could be digestrive disorder, its diet or the if has some kind of parasite.

Conclusion

You cannot expect the stools of your cat to smell pleasant. The moment they begin to pass a really foul, strong odor, it can be an indication of an underlying health issue. Most health issues in cats are often accompanied by stool changes including foul-smelling stools and diarrhea.

Thus, the first thing you need to do if your feline friend develops severely smelling stool is to visit your vet.