Help! My Kitten Has Diarrhea! What Can I Do?
Recently a reader wrote in wanting to know what she could do about her Ragdoll kitten having diarrhea after getting its shots. This can be a scary cat’s health problem if you don’t see it coming, as well as just a pain to deal with. Here are a few suggestions from other cat owners for how to treat this cat health issue:
- Buy quality food. While there is a lot of debate about the best type of cat food to feed Ragdolls, Ragdoll cat owners agree that good quality food is necessary. Ragdolls have sensitive stomachs, and sometimes they can react negatively to poor quality ingredients or dry cat food, so if your cat is having diarrhea, maybe do some research on your food brand and think about switching.
- Food changes. Because of Ragdoll stomach sensitivity, sometimes abrupt changes in their diet can be the source of stomach problems. If you need to change their food, do it gradually by mixing the new food with the old food to incrementally switch.
- Test for other problems. Have your vet do a stool test for parasites like Giardia or Coccidiosis, which can be difficult to detect and can cause intestinal issues. Also have them test for pin worms or round worms.
- Keep everything sanitary. Make sure you clean out your kitty’s food and water dishes regularly so that they are not getting sick from something unsanitary.
- Probiotics. Try giving your Ragdoll probiotics to re-stabilize their gut, such as FortiFlora, Herbsmith plant enzymes with probiotics, or Animal Essentials plant enzymes and probiotic.
- Vitamin B shot. Some vets will give cats a vitamin B shot when they have diarrhea, since diarrhea depletes vitamin B, and a vitamin B deficiency causes diarrhea.
- Canned pumpkin. Mix a tablespoon of canned pumpkin into wet food to help settle your kitty’s stomach.
- Stay hydrated. Keep your cat hydrated since diarrhea can be very dehydrating. You can feed them some Pedialyte in a dropper.
- Bland diet. Just like humans, you can give cats a bland diet to settle their stomachs. Mix cooked white rice in low sodium chicken broth and mash it together. Once your cat will eat this regularly, you can add in a little boiled chicken or baby food to it and some cottage cheese if they like it. Try to feed them this for about a week.
- Coconut oil. Coconut oil can also be good for stomach issues. Mix ¼ tablespoon into their food or give it to them orally.
- Hypoallergenic cat food. It is possible that your cat is having diarrhea issues because of a food allergy. Check with your vet to see if they can test for this, and then research hypoallergenic cat food options.
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,
Wonderful topic for discussion, Jenny! Gale and Christy’s comments were very helpful, too! Thanks, ladies!!!! 🙂 <3
We have only had a few instances where Miss PSB's stools were loose as I can tell from the shape of the "deposit" when I scoop out her litterboxes. We always have lots of fresh water available for her and have used a bit of the canned pumpkin before mixed in with her food. Always keep some in the pantry. Luckily, she has not had any uncontrollable diarrhea/accidents where she couldn't get to the litterbox in time. But we keep a pretty good control over her food and she seems to thrive on it (a mix of canned and dry based on compromise between myself and my hubby).
Big hugs & lots of love!
Patti & Miss Pink Sugarbelle 🙂 <3
For me, I start with making sure the shots suggested are necessary. Does a 100% indoor, singleton cat really need the FeLV vaccine? I would first ask yourself that question for each and do plenty of research before making your decision. Also make injection site issues a part of your research.
Once a decision has been made, make sure your vet understands the course of shot(s) and has made the appropriate adjustments in the amounts due to weight and age for each. Then schedule appointments so that your cat/kitten is only getting once vaccine at a time. Yes, this is a mighty big pain but it could help reduce diarrhea or other side effects and also help you keep track of which vaccine causes a specific problem if you have one.
Slippery elm is natural and effective. Recommended by a vet whose name escapes me but wrote a book on cat care.