Cat Diarrhea That Won't Stop: Acute vs. Chronic and Stool Samples
๐จ Check first
If a kitten under 6 months or a super senior cat has both watery diarrhea and vomiting, severe dehydration can set in within a few hours. See a vet the same day.
๐ The answer in 3 seconds
- If there have been only 1 or 2 bouts of diarrhea and your cat is lively with a good appetite, it is likely temporary, caused by a chill, overeating, or a food change, and you can watch and wait with easily digestible food.
- Soft stools that last 3 days or more, stools with fresh blood or jelly-like mucus, and strongly foul-smelling stools suggest parasites, bacterial infection, IBD (inflammatory bowel disease), or food allergy.
- When you go to the clinic, the rule is to bring fresh stool wrapped in plastic food wrap or a plastic bag, not in tissue.
๐ Flowchart
- Step 1First, take a smartphone photo of the stool (watery, mushy, jelly-like mucus, color of any blood).
- Step 2With tweezers or disposable chopsticks, take a little stool from the center, where there is as little litter as possible, wrap it tightly in plastic food wrap to keep it from drying out, and bring it to the clinic with an ice pack.
- Step 3If your cat is lively, stop treats and fatty foods for now, and give easily digestible food softened in lukewarm water in small amounts (split into 4 to 5 meals a day), keeping the belly from getting cold.
โญ Step-by-step fix
Step 1 ยท What you can do at home right now
First, take a smartphone photo of the stool (watery, mushy, jelly-like mucus, color of any blood).
Step 2
With tweezers or disposable chopsticks, take a little stool from the center, where there is as little litter as possible, wrap it tightly in plastic food wrap to keep it from drying out, and bring it to the clinic with an ice pack.
Step 3
If your cat is lively, stop treats and fatty foods for now, and give easily digestible food softened in lukewarm water in small amounts (split into 4 to 5 meals a day), keeping the belly from getting cold.
โ Never do this
- Wrapping diarrhea in tissue, toilet paper, or paper towels to take to the clinic (the paper absorbs all the moisture, and the microscope tests for parasites and bacteria can no longer be done).
- Withholding food for a full day or longer (cats do not tolerate fasting well, so if there is no vomiting, have your cat take in water and nutrition little by little).
๐ Make notes for the vet
Your notes save automatically on this device, so they stay even without a signal at the clinic.