Many cat owners have encountered their cats pulling soft stools, and the phenomenon of cats pulling soft stools will continue for a long time. Sometimes cats will have diarrhea, but their mental state is good and their food intake has not decreased. This situation is often caused by the cat’s gastrointestinal sensitivity. So how should cats with sensitive stomachs be taken care of? Is it useful to feed cats with probiotics? To deal with cats’ gastrointestinal problems, we need to start with a daily diet.
4 symptoms of a cat’s stomach sensitivity
- Eat a lot but very thin
- Hair appears dry
- Like lying down
- Symptoms such as loose stools, diarrhea, and watery stools often occur
1.Eat a lot but very thin
The digestive function of cats with sensitive stomachs is weaker than that of normal cats, which causes the food they eat cannot be absorbed normally, causing nutrient loss. Therefore, cats with sensitive stomachs eat a lot but are still very thin.
2.Hair appears dry
The inability of the cat’s intestines and stomach to absorb nutrients will not only show symptoms in the body, but also in the hair. The hair of cats with normal nutritional intake will feel smoother, while the hair of cats with poor gastrointestinal function tends to be dry and rough to the touch, and their hair looks distinctly layered.
3.Like lying down
Because cats may have stomach pains when their intestines and stomach are sensitive, the cat will lie on the ground at this time and refuse the owner to touch its stomach.
4.Symptoms such as loose stools, diarrhea, and watery stools often occur
Frequently discharge of soft stools is one of the main symptoms of a cat’s stomach sensitivity, while diarrhea and watery stools will appear less frequently. The reason for the formation of soft stools is that the intestines and stomach have not completely absorbed the water in the food residue; while symptoms such as diarrhea and watery stools are caused by the fact that most of the water in the food is not absorbed.
Precantions: If the kitten has diarrhea, please send it to the hospital for medical treatment in time.
In addition to stomach sensitivity, there are the following types that may cause cats to have diarrhea, which needs to be judged according to the situation.
6 causes of cat diarrhea
- Sudden change of food
- Excessive psychological pressure
- Food is not fresh or spoiled
- Bacterial proliferation of daily necessities such as food bowls and water basins
- Gastroenteritis
- Parasites
1.Sudden change of food
Most people raise cats by feeding only one type of cat food, but when they suddenly switch to another type of cat food, the cat’s stomach and intestines may suffer diarrhea due to the inability to adapt.
2.Excessive psychological pressure
Although a cat is just an animal, it also has psychological pressure. For example, moving house, changing owners, having strangers visiting the house, being frightened, etc. will cause the cat’s psychological pressure, and too much pressure will cause the cat to discharge soft stools.
3.Food is not fresh or spoiled
Stale food and spoiled food will contain a lot of bacteria, cats eating these foods will affect their gastrointestinal function and cause symptoms such as diarrhea.
4.Bacterial proliferation of daily necessities such as food bowls and water bowl
Our dishes and chopsticks need to be cleaned, and the cat’s food bowl and water bowl also need to be cleaned. If it is not cleaned for a long time, it will breed a lot of bacteria and have a strange smell.
5.Gastroenteritis
Gastroenteritis is not the same as stomach sensitivity, gastroenteritis is a disease, and stomach sensitivity is a defect of the body. When a cat is diagnosed with gastroenteritis, please treat it in time.
6.Parasites
Some parasites that live in the cat’s intestines and stomach will take in nutrients inside, causing cats to have diarrhea and other conditions.
How to take care of cats with a stomach sensitivity
1.Go to the hospital for diagnosis
Many reasons can cause cats to have diarrhea, soft stools, and other symptoms, so you have to take the cat to the hospital for a diagnosis before taking the next step.
2.Replace cat food with stomach sensitive prescription food
This type of prescription cat food is aimed at cats with sensitive stomachs. Compared with general staple foods, the nutrition of stomach-sensitive prescription foods is easier to absorb, and feeding can be done by increasing the number of times and reducing the amount. This can reduce the cat’s gastrointestinal burden and prevent them from discharging soft stools.
3.Feed probiotics for cats
There are many brands of probiotics for cats, and the methods of use are also different. You only need to feed the cat according to the instructions or the veterinarian’s advice. Generally, the price of a box of probiotics is not too expensive, the average price is between HK$28.9～198, you can buy it according to your judgment.
4.Use fresh ingredients
When making cat food for cats, choose fresh ingredients. Cats are more willing to eat fresh ingredients, and these ingredients can also prevent cats from diarrhea.
5.Frequently clean cat daily necessities
Daily necessities such as food bowls, water basins, litter boxes, and mats used by cats should be cleaned frequently to prevent bacterial growth due to long periods of non-cleaning.
6.Avoid sudden changes of cat food
There are special methods for changing cat food. For cats with sensitive stomachs, changing the food should give it a slow transition period. When the cat’s stomach adapts to the new cat food, it will no longer pass soft stools.
7.Avoid feeding allergenic foods
Before feeding a cat, you need to know what foods can cause cat allergies. If you don’t know, try to avoid mixing multiple foods to reduce the probability of allergies.
8.Pay attention to nutritional balance
Owners of homemade cat food often overlook balanced nutrition. This may lead to a situation in which one nutrient element is very high, while the other nutrient element is relatively small. This is not only bad for the cat’s stomach, but also causes malnutrition. If you are worried that your pet will be malnourished, you can add some probiotics and vitamins to homemade cat food to avoid cat malnutrition.
9.Deworming regularly
Deworming is very simple now. You can deworm your cat at home just by buying a deworming medicine. Deworming cats can drive away parasites from cats. Even domestic cats should be dewormed regularly.
10.Avoid feeding dairy products
Cats with sensitive stomachs cannot be fed dairy products, nor can cats with normal stomachs. Adult cats have lactose intolerance and cannot digest dairy products such as milk, yogurt, cheese, etc. Cats will have diarrhea after eating dairy products.
When the cat has soft stools, if you are sure that the cat is not sick, then the main way to treat the cat is to give it a little probiotic. The first feeding dose should be lower than the normal feeding dose to prevent the cat from having gastrointestinal discomfort. The cat’s intestines and stomach are very fragile. In your daily life, you have to observe the cat’s living habits, diet and excretion, so that you can more easily find whether the cat’s body is experiencing problems.