Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

My three new cats have me perplexed. I've noticed some really foul smelling feces that has a pudding-like consistency. I changed them from Purina Kitten Chow (shelters fed this) to all canned foods, the two boys came off amoxicillin a week ago, so I figured the odor was caused by all of that. But nothing has changed. They are all on canned Friskies, 9 Lives, Sophistocat, and Fancy Feast; some are low carb but not all of them. Their overall health looks great, but the poop smell literally takes my breath away! I use Cat's Pride unscented scoopable/flushable litter, and I pick the boxes at least daily (usually 3-4 times daily before the paint starts peeling!). All have been neutered/spayed right after I got them, gotten kitten shots, Revolution'd, and I treated all for tapeworms (tape segment was found in the Julie's stool). Oh, the amoxicillin was for Gadget's sneezing and Mason had some pus coming from the incision site from neutering. Gadget is a 1 year old male, Mason (boy) and Julie (girl) are about 8 months now. Thoughts? I've not checked anyone's blood glucose yet, and I've not had any bloodwork done. They all tested negative for FeLV and FIV.

Should I look into probiotics? None of them liked Greek yogurt (leftover from Grey), but I haven't tried regular yogurt. Are there conditions I should be looking into? Or should I just give them a little more time to adjust (I've only had them 3 weeks)? Thoughts?

Thank you everyone, this forum has been a wealthy of information and not just for diabetics!

Suzanne

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

You could give Bene-Bac a try, it's a probiotic paste for pets. I've used it for antibiotic/illness/stress induced diarrhea in my pet rats and it works wonders.

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

Hi Suzanne! :smile:

I'm not sure if this will help or not.....

Part of the reason Poopy has his name (besides being a lil sh*t and getting into everything) is due to the cat box. Poopy came into my life as a stray, a tiny ball of fur he was so small. Every time he used the cat box, whether firm stool or loose like pudding, the fumes were noxious. Yea, we're talking paint peeling noxious fumes. Sometimes it was so bad we'd have to leave the house (after "bagging and tagging" we called it, of course).

I had a vet explain to me that many strays will have noxious smelling feces due to getting even a tiny amount of petroleum product (oil, anti-freeze, etc,) in their digestive system - even if not enough to make them sick. Given how limited a vet's knowledge truly can be, I have no idea if this is true or not. I CAN tell you this...Poopy still leaves noxious cat box gifts. Even he won't stay around to cover them! :lol:

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

I use FortiFlora to help with diarrhea.
But, if they've had runny poo for more than a few days, then maybe a vet visit is in order.

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

Try sticking with specific flavors for 2-3 days and see if that changes the smell. I had a cat years ago named 'Stinky' - yep, couldn't even stay in the HOUSE afterwards! We finally figured out it was tuna food - anything else was fine but give her tuna? RUN for the gas mask!! KT, our FD, has them fairly often too - especially when he's running high for several days.

BIG HUGS and extra scritches!!! Love babees....

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

i'd try lyresa's suggestion too - limit it to 1 food for 2-3 days, then try a different one for 2-3 days and go through your stash. hopefully it will be a particular brand or flavor that's causing problems and you can eliminate that.

my non-diabetic cat, anya, had chronic diarrhea when we got her from the shelter at about 5 months. we tried several things to clear it up, but what has worked best is for her to only eat fancy feast classic chicken feast (the low-carb kind). if i give punkin high carb food with gravy because of him dropping a little low, i've learned not to give any to anya. it blows her out and yes, it smells bad.

anytime stools are loose they smell worse. a couple of other things that help - some cats will eat plain pumpkin and the fiber in that can help regulate them. i'm assuming not all of your cats have pudding-poo, right? that would be really odd for several to have the same problem at the same time.

this is a great website with a lot about feline nutrition. Dr. Lisa is a vet that posts here sometimes - take a look here and see if anything is helpful. http://www.catinfo.org

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

The consistency also suggests taking in specimens and haveing the vet rule out giardia and campylobacter infections. They aren't as frequently diagnosed, but can be particularly hard on younger animals ... and you can catch them too!

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

worms? deworming is super easy - just one pill each. if they haven't been checked for worms that's worth doing. actually the pills are cheap enough my old vet would just let me do the pills and see if that cleared up the problem without running the tests first.

something like that might explain why you have several cats with the same problem.

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

Thanks everyone for your thoughts! Yogurt was a no-go, they all looked at me like I had two heads. I picked up some Probios since it was all I could find locally, and the polydactyl littermates are already better after only two doses. Gadget had it the worst, and there is no change in him yet. Giardia and campylobacter are definately on my mind, so I'm going to talk to the vet about getting a sample to him, or from all three. I started to limit the food, but I figured I might be better off trying only one thing at a time first to see what actually helps. I've made the mistake in the past of changing up everything all at once and left myself in the position of not knowing what was wrong exactly nor what helped!

Worms...the Revolution package said it takes care of hookworms and roundworms, and since Julie had a tape segment found in her stool I gave all three Droncit to hopefully knock it out. Would another worming treatment for hook and roundworms be a good idea? They got Revolution and Droncit about a week ago.

I LOVE the catinfo.org site!!! I need to take another look at it for sure!

Thanks again everyone!

Suzanne

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

Follow the package instructions on any of the OTC stuff, lest you inadvertantly overdose them.

The probiotics may help, but I strongly encourage getting a specimen to the vet from each ... which of course means waiting and watching for poo deposits. (Never in my wildest dreams did I ever thing feces would be of interest to me as an adult!!!)

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

Jeddie had poo like that, several times a week for quite a while. Not only did he not cover it, but he came tearing down the hallway, running from it! I told him I would run too, lol. If he pooped overnight it woke me up from down the hall and around two corners and I had to get up to scoop it into the toilet. The diarrhea was intermittent, but his stool never really got firm. I tried FortaFlora and it didn't help with that.

What I discovered from reading can labels was that a couple of foods I had introduced that seemed to have low carbs and better quality proteins also had dried egg product in then. I totally eliminated any foods with egg and within a week or so it was all cleared up - and has been for about 3 months now.

He still doesn't bury his poops, but at least they aren't so stinky now.

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

While I've never had a problem in the past while feeding horses too much probiotic, I definately followed the directions on this stuff in that more probiotic at once does not make the cat any better nor any quicker.

And oh yeah, that's how I've nailed down which ones are better, everytime I hear or see one in their litterboxes, I'm over there eyeballing them. Yet I roll my eyes at them when I go to the bathroom myself! What can I say, I'm a hypocrite. :lol:

I'm being nailed for the second semester in a row, my financial aide will not be coming in as soon as I'd hoped. But, I have a friend I can borrow from, thank goodness for that. I'm going to stop by the vet's tomorrow and get what I need to obtain stool samples at least with Gadget, if not all three.

Is anyone familiar with FIP? These guys were not tested for that, and I hope I'm just being an overly frightened/paranoid cat mom. Then again, it was only a couple of years ago that I laughed to the vet, "go ahead and do some chest x-rays, I'm The Crazy Cat Lady and would rather see x-rays even if nothing is wrong" when she had some trouble breathing one day. That's when we found the thymoma in Grey's chest that literally took up half of her chest cavity. It shocked us all, and the one breathing episode seemed to be an isolated event. Geez...I hope I've not already doomed my new children by thinking about stuff!

The Crazy Cat Lady, aka Suzanne

ETA: New symptom - Gadget has goopy eyes. He's had both kitten shots, and I've been pretty careful about changing clothes/showering after being at boyfriend's house with his new FHV+ kitten. Calling the vet in the morning.

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

How are they acting? I think if they had FIP with symptoms already, they would be very sick. How long have they been back from spay/neuter? (or any other vet stay). They can pick up URI's in a nanosecond from other cats. When I got my two youngest as 3-4 mos old kittens, Beau developed a nasty URI with cough, loss of voice and eye discharge after about a month. Those kittens had diarrhea for a few weeks after I got them home. I am guessing it was change of diet, environment, etc.

Paws crossed that it isn't anything serious.

I just lost my oldest to a probable thyroma in Sept. She had a bout of breathing difficulty and the xray showed a large mass displacing her lungs and obscuring her heart. She was gone in less than a week, but I am sure the thing was growing for months. There just weren't any symptoms until the end. I would always get an xray for breathing problems - so I don't think you were being a "crazy cat lady" about that.

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

That was in regard to the wormer medicine, not the probiotics.

I'll note, though, that when I use FortiFlora, some of my cats eat so much they get loose stools or diarrhea.

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

I called the vet this morning, he asked for samples so that will be my fun experience tomorrow! I'm 2 1/2 hours away from home at the moment, else I'd be doing that today.

No one is acting sick, actually everyone is playing their hearts out. My house is a nonstop zoo...but so much fun! LOL! I'd been reading up on so many conditions, I'm probably just being a bit paranoid when fearing the possibilities of conditions like FIP. I hate being blindsided, so I try to "prepare" myself for the worst I guess.

Again thank you everyone for the great advice! I'll update as soon as I know something, more or less for informational purposes for others that may encounter the same thing.

Suzanne

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

Thank goodness Gadget is a pretty easy going kind of guy! I hate bothering a cat while they're in the litterbox after having a cat (Grey)that came up with several reasons over the years for not using the litterbox. But thankfully, while Gadget was actually "going", I had a baggie inside out on my hand and caught it before it hit the litter. Who would have thought that catching poop would make me happy? :lol:

I should hear results tomorrow they said, the sample is being sent out. It's funny, the ladies up front asked if Gadget was on canned food and I said yes. Of course, and I don't know where this wives tale started, but I got the ole "Oh yeah, cats on canned food always have smellier poop." I disagreed politely that that has not been my experience. I wish real nutrition info would get to our vets/vet techs instead of marketing.

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

Pip (the pipsqueak of the litter), a semi-feral civvie I fostered at 4 weeks old, then adopted, had both giardia and campylobacter; she seemed fine, then I saw major stinkie, liqui-poo. She was getting dehydrated and not very energetic, so I took her in, with a specimen. Had the fun of trying to pill her times 2.

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

All of these guys will eat any treat not nailed down, and the Pill Pockets were perfect when I gave them Droncit. Maybe I'll get lucky if I have to pill for whatever Gadget has...or treat everyone, depending on how contagious whatever it is that Gadget may have. I'm kinda betting on campylobacter/giardia, but also the possibility of IBS. I haven't tried canned pumpkin yet, I figured I'd wait for results first. I've been adding quite a bit of water to their food lately, hoping to combat any dehydration. So far there aren't any signs of dehydration, and everyone is playing and happy. The polydactyls have solid/normal poop now, just poor Gadget has the runny poop that burns the eyes and nose.

I've been adding the Probios but am interested in Fortiflora...does anyone have a link to an inexpensive supplier?

BJM you mentioned in another thread about activated charcoal that can be put in the litterbox, where can I get something like that? Is it ok to scoop and inadvertantly mix with the litter?

Thanks again everyone! I'm thrilled to have a knowledgable forum to ask questions, even though I'm not dealing with diabetes anymore (Grey, GA).

Suzanne

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

Hi, Suzanne ~

We buy our FortiFlora Feline through Amazon.com with free shipping: http://www.amazon.com/FortiFlora-FELINE-Box-gram-packets/dp/B00164YL22

Lots of other places carry it, too, but I haven't checked them out: https://www.google.com/webhp?source....,cf.osb&fp=890a274ff6b690bf&biw=1920&bih=799

FortiFlora has made an amazing difference for our little cat G. I was a bit skeptical about trying it, but I'm so glad we did.

Eva

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

You would find it under aquarium supplies for filtration (it binds up chemical toxins from the fish waste and decay!).

Yes, you can mix it with litter; it may slightly impede clumping. It is safe for the cats too - activated charcoal (NOT cooking charcoal) is used in a slurry for folks who have been poisoned, intentionally or not. (drink it down ... then often barf it up - ick!)

 

Re: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consistency

Got a call from the vet's office, no parasites etc in the fecal sample. We're going to try metronidazole. Should I wait to try Fortiflora, to see what the metronidazole does first? Sorry, my head is a bit scrambled right now...been in a huge fight with the boyfriend since last night and I'm pretty upset about it.

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

Make 1 change at a time, so you can ID what helped.

{{hugs}} (looked like you needed some)

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

Hi, Suzanne ~

I agree with BJ. Go with the metronidazole first to see if it helps. You may not even need the FortiFlora. Metronidazole normalized our cat G's feces, but his diarrhea problem recurred when we discontinued the metronidazole.

So sorry about your fight with your boyfriend, Suzanne. Wishing you some calmer, more peaceful moments soon.

Take care,
Eva

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

Suzanne,
My cat, Missy has been dealing with the same issue for a while. (so foul that it stunk, even outdoors! )!she was put on metronidazole, too. It helped her for a while, but she went back to mushy, stinky poo. I had her checked for worms and parasites, including Giardia and that came back negative. I tried anti-diarrheal's , which only helped when she was actively getting them. I did some research on the web about smelly diarrhea in cat's. Of course there are multiple causes for it, but I kept coming back to Giardia, in Missy's case, because she is indoor/outdoor and loves to lick all manner of things when they are wet, including lawn chairs! We have some decorative stones in our yard and one has a bowl shape on top. Being Seattle, it is usually full of water. Even though our yard is fenced with 6 ft chain link, we still get raccoons and possums in the back.......carriers of Giardia in our area.
My research found that it is hard to dx Giardia, because they are not always throwing off the cysts. And, Giardia is becoming resistant to metronidazole. I found an old, tried and true worm remedy that also combats Giardia called Panacur. I asked my vet for a prescription. She just finished up her last dose a couple days ago, so a little too early to tell if she is "over" the diarrhea, but she has firm, non smelly stools right now. It was easy to dose, I got the powder form and just mixed it in a little bit of her food and sprinkled freeze dried chicken over it.
I can't say that's what is wrong with your kitty, but just be aware that the metronidazole might not work if she does have Giardia.
And BJM's advice on one change at a time is very good. That is what my vet wanted me to do, so we can isolate what it was that worked.
Good luck!

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

Thanks everybody, just wanted to make sure I was doing the right thing by making one change at a time. And thanks for the hugs, I really needed some.

Maresydotes, I'm interested to hear how your cat fares after some more time has passed. I hope it worked! My guy, IBS just kind of doesn't make sense. Yes, he had some smelly runny poo when I first got him, but it worsened. That just doesn't sound like IBS to me...I would think the dry Purina Kitten Chow would have caused problems too if IBS was truly the case. I don't know...

Suzanne

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

Suzanne,
I agree with you on the IBS thing. (altho, what do I know??) It has been suggested (even by the vet tech) that Missy might have IBS. But she doesn't exhibit any of the symptoms, as I understand them. No vomiting, no loss of appetite, no pulling at her adominal hair or sensitivity in the abdominal area........just mushy, stinky poo. (and a very little bit of malodorous gas passing :shock: ) My vet, tho, when I asked her about IBS, said she wouldn't do any testing (she said the only definitive test is a intestinal biospy and that is too invasive) but would use how Missy reacts to treatments to get to that diagnosis. We both agreed that treating with the Panacur was quick, cheap and easy and would pretty much rule out giardia. After that (since she has already had a course of metronidazole, which she hated BTW...I have had to take it myself and it tastes horrible!!) she wants to try Baytril as she said it is possible she has a chronic salmonella 'infection' and some other thing that I forget right now.....
Anyway, I will let you know how she fares in the next couple days. Poo-gazing is not one of my favorite pass times, but pretty important for our babies. :lol: I am not certain, but I will not be surprised if the diarrhea is affecting her BG and my vet agrees.
I will let you know how it goes....... good luck, though!!!!

PS I tried yoghurt and FortiFlora and human probiotics in addition to DiaGel and another OTC cat anti-diarrheal and none of them did anything for her diarrhea, long-term, although she sure liked the FortiFlora!!!

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

I saw Gadget have a solid poo this morning!!! And I mean a normal, not smelly, regular poo. And I didn't need to leave the room when he did it. Yay!!!

He's not liking the metronidazole. I have the liquid, and I wonder if the pill might be easier on him (Pill Pockets). I don't know, we'll see as time goes along. He's not being bad, just that I can tell he doesn't like it. With amoxicillin you literally squat t the floor, he puts his mouth on the dropper, and then you squeeze it out. Metronidazole, I'm doing the classic sitting on the floor, wrapping a leg behind the back of the cat, talking sweet, after half the dose chasing down the cat and repeat until I get the dosage into him. That kinda stinks, but the results are fabulous!

Now I have to vent for a second. So the boyfriend wasn't really talking to me yesterday, unless it was to beat me up over the same argument which was stupid to begin with. My cats do not like Fancy Feast nor the generic versions, his cat like fish, so meant as a nice gesture I left the food at his doorstep. When jumped via text about it, I explained that nothing was meant rudely by it, just that I knew his kitten liked seafood and mine don't like that food. I kid you not, hours of texting me hateful things about the food and then returning them to my doorstep, I've come to realize I've been a fool living in an abusive relationship. I'm ashamed of myself, it's hard for me to admit that I let someone abuse me.

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

actually, your description of getting the meds in doesn't sound too bad at all - and if you're seeing results, that's telling. if it weren't addressing the problem (ie, if it were IBS) you wouldn't see positive results.

re the boyfriend - life is one big old learning time, isn't it?! learn from it, move on, and don't repeat the same mistake. can't beat yourself up over the past. we all do dumb relationship things along the way. it's just a good thing you're "waking up" now. it's always better to be on your own than with the wrong person. hugs!

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

Yeah, he's not bad to medicate at all. Just wish I could make it a little easier on him. Do you think he's going to need to be on this medication forever?

The boyfriend/ex-boyfriend/whatever-we-are and the cat food...I'm floored. Who knew that canned cat food was such a perfect weapon? :lol:

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

funny what the final straw in a relationship can be, isn't it? who would ever think it would be cat food?

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

Gadget had some runny poo again...drat!

Boyfriend officially broke up VIA text. I'm ok. I mean yeah, I'm sad, bit I'm doing much better after doing a pros vs cons list. 50 cons to only 3 pros...wow. And it didn't take long, and I'm nowhere near finished.

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

Another vent: Found out I had been cheated on about 2 hours ago. With ex-BF's coworker's fiance. I'm going to call about testing for STDs Monday. To top THAT off, he said the vet (there's 3, but won't tell me which one) said that I was a pig. Really?

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

I haven't been on the board for awhile and am trying to catch up. I only skimmed the posts on this thread so forgive me if I am repeating something.

When we adopted Sadie from the shelter he had runny poo that was paint peeling. also horrible gas that smelled the same way. he was diagnosed gith a parasite. got that cleared up and he stayed the same way for a few months. he was only 10 mos old when we got hmi. Blind- eyes ruptured before they ever opened due to an untreated infection. He went from a family that didn't get him the proper care to a shelter then to us.

After he had been here several months the pooh& gas problem went away and we decided he has IBS. He will have an occaisional bout of constipation but no more gas, stinky poos, etc. We decided that he got relaxed once he settled into his forever home and that was all it took. He is fat sassy, and not gassy or smelly anymore.

So perhaps you kitty might be suffering from IBS?

I have also noticed that since we made the change to all canned food for all the cats there is much less poo in the box and less odor also.

 

Re: Update: Strong smelling feces with pudding-like consiste

Hi, Suzanne ~

How's Gadget doing now on the Metronidazole? And how are you doing?

Eva