To be really irritated by how much our kittens are pooing?

[RUOKHon]

I have two kittens. They are about five months old and each do about five shits a day. The first thing they do when they wake up from a snooze is go and have a shit. After each meal they go and have a shit. I’m sick and tired of them shitting so much and having to clear it up. I change the litter tray twice a day and I am still convinced I can smell poo. I feed them the recommended amount of ludicrously expensive special food that I got from the vet. They are fine and healthy, they just won’t stop pooing! Is this normal?

Thanks for all the raw food advice. Will do some more research. I’m confused that it conflicts with the vet nurse’s advice! But am glad to hear it’s within the margins of normal for such young cats.

We got our last DCats as adult rescues and I haven’t had kittens since I was a child (and not responsible for the litter tray!), so I’ve never done this stage with kitties before.

Also try changing your litter. I find catsan sticks of wee - without even having had a cat near it. Much prefer sanicat which does seem to absorb smells. Failing that the £1 cat litter from the garage is better.

@RUOKHon

Thanks for all the raw food advice. Will do some more research. I’m confused that it conflicts with the vet nurse’s advice! But am glad to hear it’s within the margins of normal for such young cats.

We got our last DCats as adult rescues and I haven’t had kittens since I was a child (and not responsible for the litter tray!), so I’ve never done this stage with kitties before.

Are they climbing the curtains yet?

Also, can we have a picture of the little monsters?

Also, petforums has a fantastic cat area for literally everything cat, including a fantastic vet.

Shittens

They have a cat tower palace which reaches the ceiling and they play fight each other up and down it all day long (in between napping and shitting of course).

I would love to post a photo but I really don’t want to out myself on here. They’re gorgeous, obviously. Black boy, calico girl

Natures Menu sell direct - no need to go via Pets At Home. They deliver their frozen stuff for raw food, and their pouches, free delivery over a certain spend. I frequently get money off offers as well.

What is the vet food? If its something like royal canin then its full of crap with hardly any meat.

Look for high meat and no grains. Cats are carnivores and don't need grain/cereals.

@Toilenstripes

“Shittens”

Brilliant 🙊

Catsan is pretty shit cat litter and stinks.

Try Cat's Best Original Organic Wood

My most recent two were not so frequent at pooing but extremely stinky til they changed to adult food (and still stinkier than my previous cats even then) Agree Catsan is not much use for stinky cats. I use clay - Thomas or Sanikat, it dries the poo out which helps.

Absolutely bizarre that any vet ever and er, so-called veterinary nurses suggest dry food that is mostly made of grain for an animal that is a carnivore. It makes cats shit like billy-o because the bulk of it is indigestible. It causes teeth issues such as decay.

The stuff they sell at the vets is generally the worst of the worst (Hills and Royal Canin etc etc) - the vet practice gets a kickback for selling it. Immoral imo.

Take advise from proper animal nutritionists, not vet nurses who did a 2 hour course from Royal Canin.

I raw feed my cats. As kittens they shat maybe once a day and their poo simply did not smell at all. At all. Their poos were tiny as well.

You can buy good quality raw food frozen in pet shops, or you can research on the internet and make your own. No, you can't give them mince or chicken breast - they need a mix that either is the whole animal or is nutritionally similar similar to the whole animal, bones skin and all.

@CrazyCatLazy

Ex vet nurse here, it’s quite common whilst they’re young and growing. I’d recommend dry food over wet food in all cases where possible. Mine agave always been on purina proplan junior which has colostrum boosters in it, when neutered if put them on the same but sterilised (neutered) version to aid weight control and renal stability. I buy a huge 10/12kg sack from zooplus for about £45 with free delivery. If you so change food ideally switch over a few days it avoids diarrhoea and vomiting. A good quality dry food will help keep them healthy from the inside out. Happy kitties 🐱

Why would you, as a pet professional, recommend a poor quality dry food that's only 20% chicken?

@dementedpixie

What is the vet food? If its something like royal canin then its full of crap with hardly any meat.

Look for high meat and no grains. Cats are carnivores and don't need grain/cereals.

Agree with this. Arden Grange from the vet did not agree with our Dcat.

If you can't face raw meat (I couldn't), look on an online site (there are suggestions in this thread or amazon) for a high-meat food without cereals or potatoes. I say online because then you can actually read the ingredients as it will be in normal sized type unlike the packs in the shops, and you can take your time online too. Order a small amount to start with so you don't waste too much, but bear in mind it will take a few days to see a difference.

I raw feed my two cats as they were raw fed by their breeder. It is true that their poo is firm and barely smells.
I feed mine frozen ready made complete food with bone and offal from Purrform. www.purrform.co.uk/product-category/age/kitten/
I buy it at a local pet store which specialises in raw food for cats and dogs.

Have you tried the wood pellet type of litter op? I find it's so much better smell wise. Plus if it's solid poos (sorry) I just use poo bags with my hand inside to scoop it, then it's easily bagged up & disposed of. No need to clean whole tray every time.

That’s made me remember that mum’s cat had wood pellets and she swore by them. Will try them out.

I can’t do the poo bag scoop thing because DBoyCat has a really annoying habit of breaking up the poo and sort of grinding it into the litter so that it becomes like poo breadcrumbs. It’s easier just to ditch the whole trayful and replace the litter. I have to keep wiping his paws as well. He’s so messy. Messy pooer, messy eater. I already have two human boys like that, now I have a third male making my life harder.

I wonder if he has quite soft poo and that's why its spreading through the litter. It should ideally be formed and not too soft

If you go for wood pellet litter (its very cheap), make sure you get trays that are specifically for wood litter, otherwise you have to change the entire tray after every wee. The pellet trays have an insert which sieves the little to remove soiled litter from clean litter.

Mine used to deliberately wait until I’d cleaned it and then hop in.

“Clean tray? I must shit in that immediately.”

@Grittlelayrabbit

Mine used to deliberately wait until I’d cleaned it and then hop in.

“Clean tray? I must shit in that immediately.”

Mine does this, or even worse she will wee in the empty tray.

I thought she was ill a while ago as she wasn’t weeing much, I then discovered she had got into the bag of litter and was going in there. Good job the little bugger is so cute.

@RUOKHon

That’s made me remember that mum’s cat had wood pellets and she swore by them. Will try them out.

I can’t do the poo bag scoop thing because DBoyCat has a really annoying habit of breaking up the poo and sort of grinding it into the litter so that it becomes like poo breadcrumbs. It’s easier just to ditch the whole trayful and replace the litter. I have to keep wiping his paws as well. He’s so messy. Messy pooer, messy eater. I already have two human boys like that, now I have a third male making my life harder.

They shouldn't be able to do that.

It sounds like you're (unintentionally) feeding a poor quality food and this is impacting on the quality of their poo. Cat poo should be firm and shouldn't be offensively smelly either.

What is their poo like? Soft? Too hard? Crumbly? Do they struggle to go or is "too easy"?

Mine enjoys James Wellbeloved. Stupid name, but I overlook that because Catty does well with it. Only one poo per day, on average :)

That's what cats do. And personally you should encourage them to keep going in the litter tray even when they roam. Speaking as someone who dislikes cleaning other peoples pets shit up from my garden

When we first got Dcat and he was going multiple times a day before we finally found some food that he could tolerate, I remember the desperation of the mess and smell and constantly changing the litter. I assume you are using plastic litter tray liners - that really helps with clearing up, and get good thick ones so they don't rip them - drawstring tops.
You have my sympathy, persist with trying a different food for them.