Cat Poop Talk
Guest Post by Julie Lesser
Like most new kitten “moms” (I won’t say “owner” because we all know who really “owns” who!) when I first got my Ragdoll, Mooshu, I ran out and bought the best food money and (LOTS of research) could buy! I was determined to do this right! It was going to be dry food for healthy teeth…and for my sanity…or so I thought.
What my research didn’t tell me is about is the poop! Yes, I said it…Poop! Turns out the “best” dry food was not so “best” for Mooshu. He had what I call, “poopy butt”…I won’t go into great detail…but let’s just say that every morning at 6am…in the dead of my sleep…he alerted me that his butt needed my immediate attention! And to the sink we would go!
I was at a loss…I called my vet and she told me that sometimes the higher quality dry foods are too rich for cats sensitive tummy’s and I would not be a horrible mom for feeding a lesser quality brand…that I should feed him what he likes and what works for him. Great! All set! 12 pound bag of Purina One here we come! Since that’s what the breeder had him on to start with. I mean afterall, breeders know everything right? WRONG!
A year later and here I was…still cleaning “poopy butt”! HELP! I turned to my favorite facebook page and blog: www.floppycats.com. I sent Jenny a desperate email for help. “Help!”, I said, “my kitty has poopy butt!” I explained in great detail what was going on and she said two words that changed our lives!! “WET FOOD”.
I thought the transition would be a futile attempt. It was not. Mooshu is clueless!! I am blissful…and thankful!
Here’s what I did:
First, I started a food (and poop) diary. I was worried about over feeding him. Truth is…he is eating about three or four cans in a 24 hour period which seems to be doing perfect for him. He is not very “piglike” with his feeding.
Day One:
- Friday 6:00pm (remove dry food)
- 1 small can upstairs (where kibble was kept for free feeding) and 1 small can downstairs as a “sit down” meal
Friday 11pm
- 1 small can downstairs
Saturday 6am – no poops at all!
- 1 small can down stairs
Saturday 2:30pm
- 1 small can upstairs
Saturday 7pm
- 1 small can downstairs
Saturday 11:30 pm
- 1 small can upstairs
Sunday – Today (Tuesday) was very similar…Sounds haphazard timing wise…but it’s working for us and the best part…NO POOPY BUTT! (ask Jenny…I sent her a gorgeous picture of his perfect poop!)
Besides the many other benefits of wet food feeding (as Floppycats said) this is a HUGE one!
Thank you Floppycats!!
Hi, I’m Jenny Dean, creator of Floppycats! Ever since my Aunt got the first Ragdoll cat in our family, I have loved the breed. Inspired by my childhood Ragdoll cat, Rags, I created Floppycats to connect, share and inspire other Ragdoll cat lovers around the world,
You guys are FABULOUS and FUNNY!! So wonderful to have a “safe” place to talk about cat poop!
OMG this is so helpful. We brought now 7 month old Hawkeye home on new years eve, and he had been fed an expensive dry diet also. Poopy butt every day. After doing research and reading floppycats etc, I just bought my first case of canned food. My problem is, how much to give him? I’m afraid I wont’ give him enough, or too much. I currently have the little 3 oz cans. I still have dry food down in case he is hungry. I started giving him half a can in the evening, but now it sounds like he could eat a lot more. He is 9 lbs currently. Is there any kind of guideline? I could sure use the advice. thanks!!!!!
Hi Paula –
Its hard to know how much to feed. I always fed as much as they wanted – but that has not worked for Andy, as now he has to lose weight. The dry food was his undoing; he loved it to the point of over-indulgence. Anyway, he is on the path to health now (note: the dry food also caused a barrel-like shape on him that was not fat. I think it must have been bloat). The guideline the vet told me and then was reinforced on the catinfo.org site, is “feed to the targeted weight”. I know that is hard with a kitten because how does one know what the target weight is. Keep asking questions & looking. Contact his breeder – or find a reputable one open to questions. Remember, what works for one does not work for all. You need to find what works for you and Hawkeye. Best of luck – kittens are so much fun.
The Forti Flora is kind of the pet version of Activia. It corrects the flora in the intestines – and makes things work the way God designed them to 🙂
Is the fortiflora for constipation? Andy’s poopy butt was large poos smushed onto his back end – not loose though (sorry).
Julie – I know that Andy was trying too long to pee and then, because it was quiet, I could hear it and then not. He should have stood up when I no longer heard it but he did not. The box is not covered. He goes into a trance when he takes his position and it seems he is unaware of me tucking a 3 oz Dixie cup under him. I can’t see where it is going. I sort of center it under his tail and wait to hear the stream hit the paper cup! It’s hit or miss – mostly hit. Luckily, hands are washable!
Carrie – Pork chops?! I can just see it too! So funny – but glad it was not my pillow! 🙂 Thanks for the laughter.
Good to know!! THANK YOU!!
If you go on Amazon.com – there are a bunch of places that sell it. I paid $22.00 for a box of 30 packets. You do it for 10 days – and I usually do Morgan with a full pack, and the other 4 cats get a pack on their food.
Thanks for the tip Donna & Morgan! Mooshu & I will research it for sure!!
If poopy butts continue – you can always try adding FortiFlora. Morgan has been on ProZyme his whole life and Fancy Feast. He still gets Poopy Butt at times. But then again he is Morgan – and always proving he is unique. When he gets it I do 10 days of the FortiFlora and it gets him back to tootsie rolls. Plus he LOVES the taste!
We may just start giving him a sprinkle on all of his food – since he’s been eating picky, and his blood sugar is wacky again.
Hahahaha! He DOES let me get away with some crazy stuff! He loves chewing on the stick end of a few toys…so maybe a bone is a good idea…it’s mostly the back teeth I worry about reaching while brushing…but you’re right…I should at least attempt it!
Sorry! My last comment posted before i saw Jenny’s! I think i will try the brushing as suggested…wish me luck!!
some people also feed raw or let them gnaw on a bone or something as a supplement to the wet food. good luck, julie! based on how Mooshu puts up with your tongue holds, he’ll probably be fantastic.
Carrie!!! The whole visual of “on your pillow” just made me giggle…sorry!! I too worry about Mooshu’s teeth!! Dental cleanings costs a fortune too! Would love to hear any advice on this!!
I would love to feed my cats wet food. We fed the raw diet for a while, but they really mostly liked pork chops and they dragged meaty bones all over the house. I’m talking on my pillow all over the house. They did have super clean teeth and almost odorless poos, but I just couldn’t keep that up. I worry about their teeth if they only eat soft food. What cleans them?
Carrie, it’s my understanding that dry food cleaning teeth is a myth. Raw food, however, with bones and everything is known to drastically improve cat teeth – as you can see images of on http://www.catinfo.org. I brush Charlie and Trigg’s teeth – https://www.floppycats.com/how-to-brush-cat-teeth.html
dry food is a myth. If you see a cat eat dry food they do one of two things, they either inhale it whole, or they shatter it with their sharp pointy teeth. There is very minimal if any “scraping’ of teeth. Wet food is no more apt to make teeth ‘bad’ than a steak is yours.
Letting their teeth rip flesh from bones and crack those bones for marrow will help keep teeth cleaner, but brushing is really the only sure way to keep those teeth healthy.
How could you tell with all his fur? Mooshu takes up the whole inside of his box…I have a large hooded one too!
Ohhhhhhh! Ok! Phew! I feel better! I figured since I am giving him only wet now there was a lot more water in his diet naturally…so what you say makes sense. Just makes me nervous to come home & see a full bowl of water…unless of course he knocked it over to play with it! Hahaha! Thank you for explaining…and for loving your Andy the way you do! And the way I love my Mooshu! Sounds like you got him all straightened out! That’s GREAT news! Thanks for the tip on catinfo.org I will go check it out! I LOVE this floppy cats forum…I learn something every day!
syringe not string.
I watched Andy in the littler box. He stayed in his position long after he stopped passing urine – like the feeling was still there. That is what made me put a little cup under him to catch some urine to see the color. And yes, Andy pees a river!
Oh no. I think I was not clear. I am sorry. They all drink less when on wet food & that is fine. Andy stopped drinking enough while he was still on kibble with wet food 2x a day. He loved the kibble and was not drinking. That set him up. Then the ph balance in the wet food diet put him over the top At least that is what I believe happened. Of course the vet said he needed a script diet for the rest of his life. The ingredient list on that food (and the price & inconvenience) put me off though. Jenny sent me to cat info.org and it was very empowering. Andy is currently having his Fancy Feast chicken mixed with Weruva cat food (chicken). I add a probiotic enzyme powder and sprinkle in Liv-a-Littles (by Halo) crumbs to entice him. I mix up enough food for 1 – 2 days and warm it up before each feeding. When the blood was still showing in his urine, I mixed a little cider vinegar with water and used a string to quirt it into his mouth – twice. The blood is gone. Now its actually how he gets some water every night. He does not mind it one bit – I chase it with a Liv-a-Little snack! He is such a prince! I sit him, like a child, on my lap and he just flops there till he’s had his treat. Check out cat info.org. There is hours of info there, all very digestible. Yes, Andy poops once a day, unless he is constipated. The wet food, probiotic and water should help with that too.
Hi Betty…Ok..now I am freaked out!! Mooshu is TOTALLY drinking less water! I didn’t even think that switching to wet could have a downside! Like your Andy…he is mostly on Fancy Fest along with some ProPlan to mix it up! What research & recommendations put you guys on the right track? How can I get him to drink more? I don’t think he has any urinary issues… He pees like 4-5 times in a 24 hour period…good size pees too!
Oh…and yes…Mooshu’s poops are also rather large sometimes for a cat…in my opinion…but he only poops like twice a day.
Hi Julie – So good to see one of my first Andy issues being addressed! The daily bath we both endured because of his poopy butt resulted in his aversion to the basement bathroom – and all faucets. So now he drinks much less water – which is now a urinary health problem for him. Jenny helped me with my struggle to find the right wet food for Andy to address the crystals forming in his urine. Changing to wet food (mostly Fancy Feast) stopped Andy’s poopy butt; however, the ph balance must have been too alkaline for his system. Research & recommendations put us on the right track. Andy now has beautiful urine, does not linger in litter box and is losing some weight gained while indulging his dry food addiction. I am grateful everyday for floppy cats, Jenny and the community because even when there are no pressing issues, there are smiles shared. Thank you. BTW, since the window for poo commentary is open, I would like to add that Andy’s poops are sized more like a medium sized puppy than any cat I have ever seen! Is this everyone’s experience? His first poop in the litter box was a shocker!
Hi Betty, my Milly’s poos are the biggest I’ve ever seen to come out of a cats bum, and they rival any small dogs poo. LOL
Hi Michelle – Thanks for your response. You know, I don’t know anyone, other than those on Floppy Cats with a rag doll to cop are notes to. And really, what Andy leaves in the litter box is so far beyond what my other guys leave, it was disconcerting. Could the anatomy be so different? Now I know – it is not just Andy. It is the breed. Thank you!
Hi Michelle!
Milly coulda taught Mooshu a thing or two about bum cleaning! Haha! But happy to report that “poopy butt” is all gone…two weeks later and we have beautiful, perfect poops!! I so wish all kittens started on wet food! What a difference! Kisses to Milly!
Thanks Julie, I’ll pass on the kisses to Milly for you and a belly rub too. Good to hear the poopy butt days are over.
Hi Julie, I’ve never had that problem with my Milly. The breeder I got her from was giving her from day one biscuits to graze on and wet food in the morning and at night so I kept doing that. But Milly cleans her bum after she goes to the potty anyway, thank goodness. The litter box smells bad enough when she’s done let alone having to clean her bum as well, yuck.