Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My kitten has been having diahrerra? and also has a red butt looks swollen . I feed her Iams kitten hard food , and i mix it with frieskies kitten soft food .

One bowl of mix and one bowl of hard food to choose from and his water.

I did use adult cat food at first but switched to the kitten formula today ...

any other reason?

Hi,

There are several reasons why a kitten may have diarrhea. A diet change alone can do it, although with a sore, red, butt, I would think that it has been going on more than one day. This is important because young kittens with diarrhea bad enough can become dehydrated in a short period of time.

I would take the kitten to the vet, along with a stool sample to be tested for worms and other parasites. If the kitten hasn't yet been vaccinated, and your vet thinks it is healthy enough go ahead and start vaccines. Please discuss diet with your vet and be sure and make any changes slow and gradual. Mix the old food with the new, gradually decreasing the old food and increasing the new one. Canned food is best, for both cats and kittens. I feed mostly canned with some dry for a treat.

How long have you has this baby? Even the stress of being in a new enviornment can cause diarrhea in sensitive kittens.

Take care, and please keep us updated.

Regards,
PHKitkat

having rescued over 1600 kittens, treating them medically for countless common and uncommon illnesses, rehabilitating them and eventually finding homes for them, i can tell you that kitkat is right.

diaherra in a kitten is life threatening and your little kitten needs to see a vet right away.

kitkat was also right about diet change, etc.

please do not drag your feet, the kitten will not get better on it's own, it definately needs proper evaluation and without a doubt, medication...please don't wait, your little kitten is depending on you for help, health, love and life.

Wow! Two great posts with excellent advice. Kittens do get the "runs" a lot, but due to their small size they need to be checked by a vet when this happens. Good luck. Let us know what that vet says!
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Smile, it will make them wonder what you are up to!

Brought " Ozzy " to the VET today. Tested negative for parasites but , i have to return in 2 weeks for a second testing and to see if he is healthy enough for the other vaccs.

They gave me heart worm antibiotics that i have to squirt in his mouth once a day for 2 weeks also.

They gave me this special science diet they sell at the vets to feed him also. Not sure if its any different then the "IAMS" .

Question : The human society i got him at was mixxing the wet food with the dry . Currently in the mourning i mix him a bowl of soft and hard . Then after he finishes it i leave him to hard food the rest of the day.

Is that a proper way of feeding?

Given his current problems I would not feed him dry food right now, or only very little. Soft and moist food will make sure he gets adequate fluid intake. When he's alright you can give him more dry food, but never exclusively.

Did your vet put him on antibiotics for the diarrhea? Did he address this at all? Did he determine Ozzy's hydration status?

Does Ozzy still have diarrhea?

He still has the runs yes .

He didnt give me a antibiotic for the runs though . Just the heart worm .

She asked me if Ozzy has been drinking alot of water and i replied yes.

And that was about all that was said about dehydration

it's doubtful that your vet gave you "heartworm" medication for a kitten...hopefully, it's just a broad spectrum antibiotic which will help his diaherra.

the most important thing right now is to avoid changing foods. kittens have very sensitive systems and even a slight change in diet will screw them up badly and often critically.

as another poster said, wet food is definately the way to go, not just now but for his entire life...i would also avoid all fish flavored food throughout his life.

when his poops become normal again (and you should definately start to see improvement within 2 to 2 1/2 days on the meds or you need to immediately bring him back to the doctor) you will probably need to start weaning him onto a regular, non prescription high quality canned food...it is imperative that you do this very slowly. start by mixing one half teaspoon into the prescription food for a couple of days...if his poops are still okay, add another teaspoonful for a couple of days, etc. until he is weaned off of the current food (hill's id, im guessing).

his poops will immediately tell you if youre going too fast. btw, even if his poops become normal again, make sure you finish his antibiotics for the duration it was recommended.

good luck, and one more thing...alot of kittens cannot handle "kitten" food. it very frequently gives them diaherra because it's so high in fat...you may have to start him off on a natural (no preservatives, no by-products), adult formula food if his system is very sensitive.

Uhh I am pretty sure this medication is for the heart worm. Its yellow and i have to squirt it into his mouth.

His poop is still runny and now he is starting to do his deed in not only the litterbox.

The Vet gave me food to give him . Im going to give him the food the VET gave me . I have been since yesterday when i got it and today. Like I said still runny watery .

They also said its important to feed kittens - kitten foods for thier first year . I have a stool cup I have to take a sample of in about another 10 days and bring it to him on his next visit which will be the same day as the stool.

Still has the runs today ...

I dunno even though he has the runs he seems constapated too ... like i notice him trying to squeeze I dunno...

This is getting out of control ..

I just wanna see some normal poops other than that hes cute as a button .

I notice him trying to nurse off my neck somtimes though a funny lil quirk...

It is possible that loose stools and some constipation might be found at the same time. The kitten may have a problem with whatever gut flora is needed to form proper stools. Hopefully you'll get this cleared up when you see the vet again. Good luck!
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Smile, it will make them wonder what you are up to!

Honestly, I would bring the poor guy to another vet asap! I can not believe your vet didn't give him anything for the diarrhea. Diarrhea is nothing to be taken lightly in a kitten! A stool sample should have been examined for bacteria and parasites the first time you brought him in, not after 10 days. Doesn't make sense to me.

Today is Monday, 17th. If he's still not better, PLEASE see another vet TODAY! As another poster said, with the appropriate antibiotic your vet should have prescribed the FIRST time you went to see him, your kitten should have been alright within 3 days, a week max.

There is no need he suffers (and your carpets as well) and prolonged diarrhea can be dangerous in a kitten.