Unwell cat

[moirajohnnyrose]

My 1.5 year old male tabby had diarrhoea yesterday. The poo ended up matted around his bum which he won't let me near. At all. I've tried trimming it off and got some but nowhere near all. And he growls and attacks when I go anywhere near his bum now.

He is also completely off his usual food. He's running for his treats and wet food which I usually give him as a treat but not his usual dry food.

He's also slightly not in the mood, not sure if lethargic.

What do I do? Is this an emergency?

Cat also HATES the vets and attacks them whenever he needs to be treated and I hate putting him through that unnecessarily.

Have there been any changes in diet that may have triggered the diarrhoea? The fact he is eating something is good. He probably prefers the wet food.

You can check his hydration by picking up some dkun on the back of his neck, if he is well hydrated thus will pop back into place, if it creates a tent he could be dehydrated.

Is he urinating? If he isn't, especially if he is straining that is an emergency and cannot wait, he will need a vet tonight.

Otherwise I would be inclined to watch snd wait and see how he goes, if he stops eating, the dia continues or he becomes lethargic then take him to the vet when they are open. Unless of vourse the lethargy is extreme.
He'll clean his own bottom , try to leave that alone or He'll develop an aversion to having his bottom touched.

Thanks so much.

Change in diet - the only thing I can think of is I got him a new brand of treats the other day. Diarrhoea started that night. No other changes.

Drinking water as usual, urinating fine. He has history of cystitis so have watched him closely and he seems to be urinating fine.

By lethargy I think I mean he's just not his been his usual self. He's sleeping in his cat bed, which he never does as always chooses to sleep on the floor, sofa, bed etc.

The poo has matted and hardened which is why I thought it needed to come off. Especially with it being near his bum hole. Will not let me bath him.

Will watch him overnight and see how he is tomorrow.

How is cat today? 🐈

Oh so much better!!

Called the vets who had no appts for 2 days. Emergency vets is 45 mins ish away from me and didn't want to put him through that especially as he wouldn't let vet examine him. My vet has him down as an aggressive cat!

Managed to snip the matted hair off and diarrhoea seems to have sorted itself out.

I reckon I need to make sure his hair around his bum is trimmed short

Glad he is feeling better, I would never get a long haired animal again after the trauma of removing matted poo from a westie in the shower. Bravo to you for managing to sort it out on a cat

Oh god it was awful! Running after him with a trimmer, a comb, a brush, scissors and wipes!

I still don't know how I got it all out. It's definitely a mission within itself