Cat constipation or discoloration of feces. Dark feces from a cat and an unpleasant smell. Why do cats have dark stool

White stool in a cat is a warning sign that any responsible owner will spot. Daily cleaning of the tray will not only help keep it clean, but will also allow you to identify pet health problems in the shortest possible time.

Normally, cat feces are dark brown in color. A change in the color and consistency of feces indicates a malfunction of the digestive system or some organ. Light-colored stool in a cat often indicates problems with the liver, more precisely, with the gallbladder. The fact is that bile stains feces brown. When food enters the small intestine, a catalyst is needed for its full digestion, which is bile. If there is not enough bile, its consistency is changed or broken, the food is not digested as expected, and the bowel movements look abnormal.

White stool in a cat is a sign of illness. It is important to understand that the outcome of treatment may depend on your efficiency and attentiveness. Lack of bile in the intestines is not only a symptom, but also a guarantee that the cat will not digest food properly. As you know, it is from the small intestine that the body takes the main amount of nutrients and vitamins. You need to see a doctor, even if the feces seem to you just light (not white). Colorless feces are often dry, resulting in injury to the intestines. As a result, the owner observes mucous with blood, but as you understand, this is already a consequence, not a cause.

The owner's response time is very important, since almost all of the underlying causes that lead to bile stasis are very serious. Having discovered that the cat's feces have become white, you need to establish strict observation for 1-2 days. Your task is to understand whether the pet eats and if the answer is yes, then whether he has a sharp reaction to high-fat food. It is necessary to monitor the amount of water consumed and the frequency of stools. During bowel movements, the cat should not push, and if you observe this, you need to check the moisture content of the feces. Dryness can indicate improper feeding or dehydration.

Important! and their fragments, consumed by a cat, often turn into a loss of stool color. From the experience of owners actively discussing the health of their pets on the forums, it has been established that the consumption of bones leads to problems with the liver and digestion of food.

Try to analyze the behavior of the pet, observe his mood and well-being. When a cat is not feeling well, it is lethargic or irritable. If such changes are observed, this should be reported to the veterinarian. The fact is that at the time of the examination, cats try not to prescribe medications, but if the animal is in pain, then this rule is not entirely relevant. Gallbladder problems can be obvious if you pay attention to the right things. When a cat can't digest certain foods, you'll see decreased appetite and weight loss.. Aversion from junk food is a reflex to which the cat unquestioningly obeys.

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Under certain events, a small amount of bile and, accordingly, a decrease in its outflow can be considered normal. When dehydrated, all available moisture goes to the formation of blood and protection of the mucous membranes. After suffering, treatment, and other conditions that adversely affect the liver, a decrease in the activity of the gallbladder is also predictable.

The owner should not treat the cat himself, but a detailed history never hurts the diagnosis. Write down all your observations and assumptions, even if they seem insignificant to you.

Read also: Hematuria in cats - a hidden threat to the urinary tract

With discoloration of feces, oncology can also be the root cause of the condition. If the disease is not in a severe stage, the diagnosis is difficult to confirm. A small tumor, especially if it is in intestinal loops, may not be visible during examination even with modern equipment. It should be understood that an oncological tumor does not need to reach a gigantic size in order to metastasize. Metastases, in turn, can affect all organs and not only those nearby.

Diagnostics

They begin to look for oncology if none of the above diagnoses is confirmed. If the case is not complicated, the tumor is found in the liver, gallbladder or ducts. Secondly, the stomach, small and large intestines are examined. In the absence of results, that is, in the most extreme case, the doctor may suggest a diagnostic operation. It is worth noting that in this way it is possible to detect oncology even in the early stages.

Before agreeing to such drastic measures, you must make sure that all alternatives have been used:

• deployed- violation of the norms may indicate the development of ailments of any organ or system of life.

• Blood chemistry- Abnormal liver tests indicate that the problem is in the liver or gallbladder.

• Fecal analysis- is one of the first to be carried out, since the excrement may contain tissue remnants (inflammation), sand (cholelithiasis), bone fragments (a cat can steal a bone from a bin), atypical toxins (poisoning with liver damage), etc.

• Analysis of urine- shows the general condition of the body.

• examination of the abdominal organs- if the cat constantly has white feces, several ultrasound examinations are performed (on an empty stomach, after drinking water, after eating, etc.). With the help of ultrasound, cysts, neoplasms, degeneration of cells into fibrous tissue, obstruction of the bile ducts, stones and sand in the gallbladder can be detected.

• Radiography- allows you to identify tumors, cysts, changes in the shape of the liver, etc.

• Biopsy affected tissues (most often the liver).

Digestive disorders in cats are quite common. Especially in cases where pets have the opportunity to walk on the street. There they can pick up and eat anything, and therefore it is not necessary to be surprised at possible diarrhea. As a rule, all signs of indigestion disappear on their own within a couple of days, but sometimes it is necessary to urgently call a veterinarian. A particularly “good” reason is black diarrhea in a cat.

Such a phenomenon is called "melena". In most cases, it indicates the presence of a large amount of digested blood in the stool. And she, as it is easy to understand, in a healthy cat should run only through the vessels of the circulatory system. It should be understood that melena and in feces are not the same thing. If the stool is black, then the source of bleeding is somewhere in the upper parts of the digestive system.. For example, this may be a perforated ulcer of the stomach or duodenum. Whatever it was, you need to urgently take the pet to a specialist.

Many causes of this phenomenon are so serious that your cat may bleed to death if he is not treated in time by a veterinarian.

It is not at all good when clots of pure blood are clearly visible in black feces. This indicates either very intense bleeding in the upper digestive tract (the blood simply does not have time to be digested), or structural damage to the intestines along their entire length. Here the account can go on hours.

Predisposing factors

The causes of melena are very numerous, but we will list the most typical cases often encountered in the practice of veterinarians:

• Infectious diseases. Especially dangerous are viral infections that affect kittens and old pets.
• Certain drugs. For example, if you "treat" a cat with aspirin, the appearance of black feces is almost guaranteed.
• Crayfish. Malignant tumors in the process of growth destroy the tissues surrounding them, so bleeding in such cases is common.
• Foreign bodies in the stomach or intestines. Often there are situations when the owners feed their pets with "goodies" like chicken and beef bones (which is strictly prohibited). They split with the formation of sharp and long fragments resembling stilettos. The latter constantly scratch and cut the lining of the intestines.
• Infiltrative and inflammatory gastrointestinal diseases. This should also include autoimmune diseases, with Crohn's disease considered one of the most dangerous.
• swallowing blood. And this happens - if the cat has some kind of injury to the throat or esophagus, he will constantly swallow the incoming blood.
• coagulopathy. These are blood clotting disorders. An animal may be perfectly healthy in other respects, but its intestinal mucosa (and not only) will bleed at every opportunity.
• Hormonal pathologies accompanied by the formation of poorly healing and bleeding ulcers. For example, the notorious diabetes mellitus.
• Postoperative bleeding. Perhaps this is one of the most "harmless" causes of melena, but only if the feces are not blue-black. The latter indicates very heavy bleeding, which cannot be normal by definition.
• Gastrointestinal ischemia(lack of blood supply). Often occurs with volvulus.
• Poisoning with salts of heavy metals.
• Finally, everyone's "beloved" helminths. Some of their species “eat away” the intestines so much (hookworms, for example) that its mucosa begins to bleed constantly.

Diagnostics and therapy

So we found out why there is black diarrhea in a cat. If you observe, in addition to melena itself, the following signs, you should immediately run to the veterinarian:

• Diarrhea.
• Vomit.
• Pale gums.
• Presence of bruising or other areas of bleeding (indicates coagulopathy).
• Weight loss.
• Bad appetite.
• Excessive drinking and "exorbitant" volumes of urine.

To find the root cause of what is happening to the cat, the veterinarian will resort to various diagnostic techniques, including radiography, ultrasound, blood and urine tests, as well as in other ways. How is it produced? Since melena is not a disease, but only its symptom, the primary pathology is treated, which directly leads to intestinal bleeding.

But in any case, the first thing the veterinarian will do is to solve the problem with blood loss. Of course, ideally, a sick pet needs a transfusion, but in a veterinary clinic, this is almost impossible. We do not have centralized "animal" blood banks, and only the largest veterinary centers are engaged in purposeful collection of blood. So blood loss is partially replaced by plasma or even saline. The main thing is to prevent collapse and reduce the load on the body's blood depots.

The color of normal feces in pets is usually brown (of varying shades). And too dark feces in a cat may well be a symptom of some kind of ailment. But sometimes a cat has black stools for quite harmless reasons, for example, due to the peculiarities of the diet.

It will be useful for every owner of the representatives of the cat family to know what a normal chair should be for his pet. Usually it is a fairly thick homogeneous gruel, which has different shades of brown - from light to very dark.

Before you go to the veterinarian, worrying about the color of the animal's feces, you should carefully consider them. Perhaps due to a change in diet, their shade has simply become very dark. In this case, there is no cause for concern, the situation will return to normal soon. It is necessary to run to the veterinary clinic as soon as possible if the pet's feces turned out to be saturated black, liquid, and especially if there are blood blotches in it. The latter may indicate that bleeding has opened in the upper or lower parts of the gastrointestinal tract of the animal. In this case, the cat should not be pulled with medical help. Otherwise, a quick death is possible.

It is also very dangerous if the cat's black feces are accompanied by abdominal pain (this can be seen when feeling this area), diarrhea, vomiting, feeling unwell, lethargy and lack of appetite. In all these cases, it is very dangerous to self-treat the animal. This may further worsen his condition. Therapy should be started only after the pet has been examined by an experienced specialist under his guidance.

The safest way to change the color of the feces in an animal to black is due to the large amount of natural meat ingredients in the diet, such as raw meat and blood meal. In this case, you should not worry about such a phenomenon. Of course, if the pet is not worried about anything.

If we consider black feces in a cat or cat as a symptom of some disease, then it may indicate the development of an animal, for example, traumatic gastritis or colitis. Most often this occurs due to damage to the walls of the gastrointestinal tract, for example, sharp bones or other foreign objects.

Ulcerative gastritis, gastroenteritis, tumors of the intestine and stomach lead to the same result. All these dangerous diseases cause bleeding, the result of which is blackening of the stool. To get rid of such ailments, a long-term complex treatment under the supervision of a specialist is required.

Also, helminthic invasion can lead to the appearance of black stool in a cat or cat. In this case, the presence of blood, which, after digestion, stains the feces in a dark color, leads to the activity of helminths, which, living on the back wall of the intestine, damage it.

To diagnose the animal, the specialist will most likely prescribe an analysis to determine the occult blood in the feces. If it is found, then the reason for such a phenomenon will be clarified further. For example, with the help of ultrasound examinations of various organs, as well as with the help of additional laboratory tests. It will be necessary to constantly take them to control the progress of treatment by a veterinarian during the entire therapy. Home treatment in this case will not bring any positive result.

Most often, to solve the problem, an animal whose feces are black in color will be prescribed special drugs that stop the blood. For example, Vikasol or Aminocaproic acid. Sometimes a cat or a cat may even need to be in the hospital all the time.

If you notice the problem in time, then almost any disease in your pet can be eliminated. Therefore, it is very important to evaluate the color and structure of his feces from time to time, and always carefully monitor the condition of the pet.

- this is the result of a violation in the activity of the gastrointestinal tract, while the main symptom in a cat is loose stools. In a healthy cat, the stool is usually formed, dark brown in color, soft in texture, and should be moist. During the day, a healthy cat goes to the toilet 1-2 times.

With diarrhea, the cat begins to defecate much more often, while the volume of liquid feces in the cat's toilet becomes smaller each time, the feces become from mushy to watery, the color of the feces varies from black to red (with bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract).

Diarrhea in a cat may be accompanied by vomiting, appetite disappears, the general condition of the cat is depressed, while the cat is hunched over. Most of the time, the cat tends to lie down, licks the left side of the abdominal wall. Intestinal peristalsis is increased at the beginning of the disease, then weakens, flatulence and muscle tremors appear. Due to prolonged diarrhea, the cat becomes dehydrated.

Causes of diarrhea in cats

Of non-contagious diseases, diarrhea can lead to diseases of the kidneys, liver, acute intestinal obstruction, various oncological diseases, poisoning with salts of heavy metals, poisonous plants.

Viral infectious diseases (, leukemia, infectious peritonitis).

Bacterial infections (salmonellosis, clostridia).

- toxascariasis, ankylostomatosis, dipilidosis, diphyllobothriasis, paragonimiasis, opistarchosis, coccidiosis, giardiasis.

Types of diarrhea and diagnosis of the causes of diarrhea in a cat

Due to the fact that the causes of diarrhea in a cat, as can be seen from the above, are a large number, it will first be necessary to determine which part of the cat's gastrointestinal tract is affected. This is primarily indicated by the color and consistency of diarrhea in a cat:

In the event that a cat has bowel movements more than 5 times a day, stools of an uncharacteristic color (black, white, green, bright yellow, a fetid odor comes from the feces), vomiting appears, signs of an infectious disease, there is a sharp dehydration of the body, it is necessary urgently contact a veterinarian.

In the veterinary clinic of your cat, the veterinarian will conduct a clinical examination, carefully check the condition of the gastrointestinal tract. At the same time, when diagnosing your cat's disease, he will send feces to the veterinary laboratory to exclude helminthic invasion, and a study for bacterial diseases. If necessary, they will conduct a biochemical blood test, check the blood for feline leukemia and feline immunodeficiency virus. If a tumor is suspected, the presence of a foreign body will make an x-ray. When other tests are required, ultrasound, endoscopy, and colonoscopy are performed.

Cat diarrhea treatment

Due to the large number of causes that can lead to diarrhea in a cat, the treatment of diarrhea, of course, must be carried out in different ways.

The owner of a cat with minor diarrhea at home should remember whether he gave his cat raw fish, milk, fatty pork, liver and other foods that can cause indigestion in a cat. If you think that your cat's diarrhea is due to improper feeding, then you should stop feeding her food that is harmful to the cat.

In many cases, with simple diarrhea, it is enough not to feed an adult cat for 12-24 hours, but at the same time to water it often and little by little. After that, the cat is transferred to a light diet, we give small portions of boiled rice, a boiled chicken egg - preferably bought on the market from the owners of household plots, boiled chicken meat. In veterinary pharmacies there is a special therapeutic diet food. During the diet, the cat should be given a drink of crushed activated charcoal mixed with boiled water twice a day. In the event that your diet did not give a positive result, and the cat’s diarrhea continues, you must urgently contact a veterinary clinic, where a veterinarian will make an appropriate diagnosis, determine the cause of your cat’s diarrhea and prescribe appropriate treatment.

To eliminate dehydration in the clinic, intravenous administration of appropriate saline solutions will be performed.

With diarrhea caused by a particular bacterial infection, appropriate antibiotics are prescribed. To normalize the activity of the gastrointestinal tract, sorbents (enterosgel, smecta and others) will be prescribed. With helminthic invasion, treatment with anthelmintic drugs will be prescribed.

Prevention diarrhea in a cat should be based on proper feeding with good-quality feed, preventive treatment twice a year against helminthic diseases, vaccination of a cat against infectious diseases, in which diarrhea is one of the symptoms of the disease.

The greatest concern for cat owners is the appearance of bloody diarrhea in them.

Bloody diarrhea in cats

Bloody diarrhea (diarrhea) is a very alarming symptom, which is why the owners have to immediately contact the veterinary clinic. The presence of blood in the feces of a cat indicates the presence of severe inflammation in the intestines, in which the intestinal mucosa detaches and bleeding occurs.

Causes of bloody diarrhea in cats

The appearance of loose stools with blood in cats can be due to a number of reasons:

• Hemorrhagic gastroenteritis appearing in a cat when eating poor-quality food, the result of complications of a number of infectious diseases (plague, salmonellosis, leptospirosis, colibacillosis), the use of certain drugs, the ingress of heavy metal salts into food.
• Cat disease with viral infections (, coronavirus and other chronic viral infections).
• Entry into the gastrointestinal tract of foreign bodies (needles, buttons, etc.).
• Bowel obstruction ().
• Tumors of the digestive system.

With diarrhea with blood in cats, in addition to the main symptom - the presence of blood in the feces, vomiting appears, body temperature rises, as well as the characteristic symptoms of the disease that led to the appearance of bloody diarrhea. With bloody diarrhea caused by internal bleeding, the cat develops anemia (), prolonged diarrhea with blood leads to general weakness of the body and the development of dehydration. If a cat is infected with worms in the feces, the owner can detect one or another helminth.

Establishing diagnosis.

With bloody diarrhea in a cat, pet owners should immediately contact a veterinary clinic. Where veterinary specialists will conduct a clinical examination of a sick cat, ultrasound of the abdominal organs (liver, kidneys, stomach, intestines). chain reaction. Conduct a blood test for hemoglobin and red blood cells, etc.

If a foreign body is suspected, an x-ray will be taken to determine the location of the foreign object.

Treatment for diarrhea with blood in a cat.

With the appearance of diarrhea with blood, the cat is stopped feeding, while not limiting the supply of water. At home, it is not a feasible task to treat a cat with bloody diarrhea, since such a cat, especially when dehydrated in a clinic, can be given intravenous administration of appropriate saline solutions or a dropper will be given to the cat. The veterinarian will prescribe hemostatic drugs for the cat, drugs that relieve spasms and pain in the intestines, and prescribe appropriate antibacterial drugs. In the presence of helminths, they will recommend the use of one or another anthelmintic.

Timely contacting the veterinary clinic with your sick pet will allow you to avoid dangerous complications and speed up the recovery of your kitty.

Prevention.

Prevention of bloody diarrhea in a cat should be aimed at preventing the causes that lead to the appearance of bloody diarrhea in a cat. Twice a year it is necessary to treat the cat from worms. Timely vaccinate against infectious diseases of cats in your area. Feed your cat only good quality food.

Diarrhea is called frequent bowel movements of a liquid consistency. This condition can be caused by various reasons: overeating, helminthic invasions, intestinal disorders, infectious diseases and other problems. Loose stools in a cat can occur suddenly and disappear just as quickly, or it can last for several days or even months. With a one-time attack of diarrhea, there is no particular cause for concern, but if the diarrhea persists in the animal for more than a day, then this can lead to dehydration, so in this case it is worth visiting a specialist. Also contact the veterinarian if various impurities appear in the feces: blood, pus, mucus, and other things.

Loose stools in a cat: causes

The most common causes of loose stools in cats are intestinal disorders. They, in turn, can be caused by eating spoiled or poor-quality food, carrion, spices, inedible objects (pieces of paper, rags, plastic, etc.), poisonous and toxic substances, sick rodents. Also, the cause of diarrhea in an animal can be too fatty foods or severe overeating.

Sometimes diarrhea can be caused by inappropriate food for the cat. Often people feed their pet the same food they eat. Many vegetables, fruits, and even meats can cause loose stools in an animal. Another cause of diarrhea in a cat is stressful situations. Loose stools can be observed with a sharp change in the usual diet, a strong fright, a change of residence, and in other similar situations.

Loose stool with blood in a cat

The appearance of a small amount of blood in the feces of an animal, if this happens once in most cases, is not dangerous. This condition can occur with constipation or intestinal disorders. But if a loose stool with blood in a cat repeats several times or the volume of blood is large enough, then this most likely indicates the presence of a serious illness.

If you find a large amount of blood in the stool, severe diarrhea with an admixture of blood, or the reappearance of loose stools with blood, you should seek help from a veterinarian.

The cat has loose stools with mucus

In addition to helminthic invasions, other causes of watery stools with mucus are possible, these can be inflammatory and infectious diseases. Therefore, before starting treatment, it is worth visiting a specialist and consulting about the causes of defecation disorders.

Loose stools, cat vomiting

If diarrhea and vomiting occur, the animal should be limited in access to food and given more water. If the condition of the pet does not improve after this, then it should be shown to the veterinarian.

Black loose stools in a cat

The causes of black loose stools in a cat can be quite harmless. This phenomenon is observed when the animal is fed mainly raw meat or blood meal, as well as when taking iron supplements or vitamins with a high content of this substance.

If a pet has black stools, it should be taken to the veterinarian. In such cases, a stool test is usually prescribed, which reveals the hidden presence of blood. Other diagnostic measures can also be carried out: tests, X-ray or ultrasound examination of the abdominal cavity, gastroscopy, and so on.

My cat has loose stools, what should I do?

Isolated cases of diarrhea in an animal are not a cause for concern. If the cat has loose stools for two days or more, vomiting, loss of appetite, noticeable weight loss, fever, black feces or the presence of impurities in it, you should definitely contact a specialist. The veterinarian will conduct the necessary diagnostics and prescribe the appropriate treatment.

It is recommended that you do not feed the animal before taking it to the veterinarian. With diarrhea, the cat is left hungry for about a day, while it should be fed frequently in small portions. After a day of hunger, light food is introduced into the animal's diet: boiled rice and boiled chicken. If diarrhea does not occur again, then you can gradually transfer the cat to the usual diet.

Treatment of loose stools in a young cat

In cases where loose stools in a cat are caused by bacterial diseases, the animal is prescribed a course of antibiotics. A similar treatment is prescribed for damage to the intestinal wall, to prevent blood poisoning.

Also, the animal may be prescribed drugs that slow down intestinal motility. In severe dehydration, subcutaneous or intravenous fluids may be administered. Such methods of treatment should be selected only by a veterinarian.