# Need help--Defecating/diarrhea



## fannymae (Sep 6, 2012)

First, I'd like to introduce my cats! We have two. Bella(saurus rex), a B&W DLH. She's the sweetest kitty, super mildly tempered, and just the easiest cat to have. Her 4th birthday is on Saturday! Fredriq (Freddy) is a Blue Russian. I believe he was given to me around 4-6 weeks of age. The woman I got him from said he was 8 weeks and potty trained-this was not the case! Bella helped him get potty trained, and helped serve as a surrogate mother (he tried to suckle, so I bottle fed him). He's always been skittish; it takes a long time for him to warm up to anyone.

I'll start at the beginning of my problem. My husband left for training with the Marine Corps on August 1-17. Everything was fine with the cats. Business as usual. From August 9-18 I went to visit a friend in another state and had a friend come to the house every day while I was gone and feed/water/change litter for my beasts. All was good!! August 19, we wake up and find a "present" outside our bedroom door. It's solid, we pick it up. Think nothing of it. This goes on for a few days, without fail. The location of the "present" changes though. On the stair. On the couch. On the rug. In our bedroom while we are downstairs. I figure out which cat it is based on the fact that Freddy is the only cat that goes under the couch, and we have found multiple stools under there. For some reason, I decide that changing my kitty's food in the midst of all this is a good idea... So, I mix the new stuff in with the old. Defecation is still happening, gradually becoming softer. We start putting him in the bathroom at night so we don't step on surprises in the morning. On September 10th I took Freddy to the vet. They did an exam and blood work, everything came back fine. The vet chalked it up to anxiety, gave us some anti depressants, and sent us on our way. I give Freddy one of his pills that night. He is fine, lethargic, but seems ok. The next night, one of my husband's high ranking officers needs a place to stay so my husband offers him our house. I didn't think it was a good idea with the added stress, but what can I say? At 8pm I give Freddy his meds. At 830pm, Freddy proceeds to run around the house (three stories) having diarrhea all over the place (carpet and tile, RIP throw pillow). I freak out. What is wrong with my baby? Is he going to be ok? Was it the meds? How much longer can I stand to deal with this? Being the hero that he is, my husband kicks me out of the house to my friends house and steam cleans the house and bathes the cat. The next day, the vet recommends not giving the cat and more meds. Pooping outside the box continues (in the bathroom) at night. No accidents during the day.

Fast forward to today! Freddy had no bowel movements September 16 or 17 so I thought today might be a doozey. I was hesitant to let him out of the bathroom, but I can't stand him being in there all the time. About an hour ago I thought I smelled something... so just to be safe I put him in the bathroom and inspected the house. No gifts. 10 minutes later, I go into the bathroom to use it. Freddy digs in the litter. "He's going to use it!!" I thought. False alarm, he walks around for pets. I take the lid off the domed box in case that was the problem. Take two. Freddy digs... he squats... HE SCORES! We have some major wet poop in the box... on the wall... on the floor. So, while he did do a little business in the box, it seems as though he got scared of the diarrhea and ran to his comfort zone (behind the toilet) to finish his business. The stool behind the toilet was solid(ish) with a little bit of wet stuff. After finishing his business behind the toilet, he started licking himself (he got some on him) in a frenzy. It seemed like he was going to bolt around the small bathroom. He just seemed terrified. Could it be he is scared of pooping? Could it be hurting him??

I need an answer... fast. And cheap. :/ I have a Feliway diffuser on the way to see if that helps. I feel like I am out of options.


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## fannymae (Sep 6, 2012)

I'd like to add that their old food was Iams Hairball and Weight control. They've been on it for 3+ years. The new food I am introducing them to is Newmans Own Organics. When I cleaned up his stool today, it smelled super salty. Like a fish factory on an ocean. Really salty and kinda fishy. It was really strange and not like it has been in the past.


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## kwarendorf (Oct 12, 2009)

IBD is the presence of specific inflammatory cells in the lining of the intestines. The only way to know for sure is via biopsy. Before worrying about that, maybe it's a food allergy. 

What does he eat?


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## minikin44 (Aug 25, 2012)

Could he have picked up some sort of intestinal parasite? Two of my cats have had different parasites that made their poo smell two different kinds of foul and turn to diarrhea...


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## Sara_WA (Sep 16, 2012)

This really sounds more like a medical problem than a behavioral one. Many of the digestive problems cats can have won't show up on blood work at all. It's also worth noting that even if the vet did a stool check for parasites and did not see anything, those tests are sometimes less than accurate since at some points in a parasite's life cycle it will not be visible on the types of tests that many vets use. How old is the cat now? Was he ever de-wormed? That should have been done when he was a baby kitty, but it sounds like the lady you got him from may have been less than straightforward about things.


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## catloverami (Jul 5, 2010)

Definitely a vet check should be done to rule out any parasites. Diarrhea can cause a cat to run about in a frenzy. Cats don't like to be dirty, neither do they like to have to wash off their own bum, and hiding behind a toilet is a typical behavior that they're very uncomfortable. Is he longhair? If he is you should get some blunt-nose scissors and cut as close to you can to the skin at least a 2 in. diameter around the anus. This will prevent poo clinging to his bloomers, and they may have to be trimmed a little too if he gets poo on the back of his legs. It's possible the diarrhea has made his anus sore, so this is what is "scaring" him out of the box. So I think his problem is both his diet and behavioral. If he won't eat raw meat (mine refuse tho I keep trying), feed him a good quality canned food with no grains (no rice, wheat, barley, soy).


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## fannymae (Sep 6, 2012)

*Update!*

I'd like to give an update. Since this post, I have put him back on his old food (Iam's Indoor Weight and Hairball Control). I hate that he has to eat this food, but until we can figure out what the problem is, it's better to have solid poo and not diarrhea. Which brings me to my next point. He is now producing solid stools, normal, business as usual. We are still keeping him in the bathroom at night and on September 24 he pooped in the litter box! YES!!! To be cautious, we kept him in the bathroom the past two nights as well. No poop Sept 25 and last night he pooped on the floor again. I was hoping he was reformed, but it seems like the poop in the box may have been a fluke. So, we are back to square one, but at least he doesn't have diarrhea anymore. 

Any other advice would be appreciated. On a military budget, I can't afford to spend oodles of money on tests that may yield no results. If anyone has any suggested tests or possible diagnoses, that would be appreciated as well.


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## LakotaWolf (Aug 10, 2012)

Time to compare labels! Freddy might have a food allergy. What ingredient was in the Newman's Own that isn't in the Iams?


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## fannymae (Sep 6, 2012)

I honestly don't believe the food is the issue here... at all. He's been on the same food his whole life. He just started pooping on the floor last month. I tried changing his food and it gave him diarrhea. We are not changing his food again until we solve the problem of the pooping on the floor. There is nothing else wrong with him. No vomiting, no blood in his stool, he doesn't seem to be uncomfortable or in pain.

It's behavioral, I'm almost certain. But I don't know what to do to make him more secure. Maybe time is the only thing that will make him better, which is incredibly irritating. I'm not the most patient person. But I'm also not going to just give up on my kitty.


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## minikin44 (Aug 25, 2012)

Maybe you could try a different type of litter box? For instance, some cats hate hooded litter boxes, but some love the privacy. At least you're not dealing with the diarrhea anymore (my Bear is probably going to have it on and off for the next 5-9 months... poor baby!).


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## fannymae (Sep 6, 2012)

The litter box he has been using for the past year is a square one with a roof and a swinging flap. We took the swinging flap off it... no change. The litter box we have in the bathroom with him at night is a round one with a dome top. We've taken the dome off... no change, except litter gets all over the floor. 

I'm very thankful we are no longer dealing with a diarrhea. I am sorry for you and your Bear.  It's horrible!


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## Luvmyfurbabies (Jun 25, 2012)

A few things, try changing up his litter as well as the depth of it. Also they make a litter that actually attracts cats to use the litterbox and I've heard it's been a lifesaver for many people. 
Did you try the feliway? The thing with feliway is it takes time to work. They also make a spray as well but I've only used the plug-ins.


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## fannymae (Sep 6, 2012)

I have the Feliway diffuser. I keep it in the living room when he is out of the bathroom and in the bathroom with him in there at night. I have noticed he is more mellow, less high strung, and less skittish, but still pooping. I'll look into finding the litter that attracts cats. Pretty sure I saw it at Petco.

I'm starting to think that maybe the issue started out as something else, and now he's just used to pooping outside of the box so he's gotten into the habit of it.


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## kty78 (Mar 18, 2012)

Did he start pooping outside the litter box at the same time he got diarrhea? With my cats, it seems the only time they have pooped on the floor was when they had a really hard poop and I think it hurt when they started pooping, so they ran out of the litterbox thinking the litterbox was hurting their butt, then finished their job on the floor outside the box. Diarrhea can really irritate the bum, which can cause pain when doing #2. I think that is probably why he started going outside the box and maybe now he associates the box with the pain and it has become a habit. Try a new litter box, different from the old one, different location, and maybe some of the Dr. Elsey's cat attract litter. I'd still leave the old litter box where it is for now. See if he'll use the new one. Or put him in the bathroom with the new one for a while. Good luck! Just to let you know, my cats' poop smells better since I took away the little bit of dry food they were getting at night and put them on all canned. I mean, now I can't even smell when they do #2, I just see it when I walk by the box because they don't really cover it up. Before, even though I was feeding them high quality kibble, and only at night, I could smell the poop from any room in the house as soon as they did it, and would run in and scoop it. They've never had diarreah though.


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