Cat pooping in bathtub. I can't think of anything else to do.

[lokiandsmokey]

I have tried putting water in the tub. Kitty poops beside the tub. Put the litter box in the tub kitty poops on the other side of the tub. Two litter boxes kitty poops between them. Vet says nothing is wrong. I tried putting it's food bowl in the tub, he still pooped in the tub.

My husband is practically foaming at the mouth and I am completely at a loss for what to do????????

 

[sugarcatmom]

What kind of cat litter do you use? Have you ever tried Dr. Elsey's Cat Attract?

 

[otto]

How about a litter box with no litter in it? Seems like he doesn't like the litter when he poops....

 

[lokiandsmokey]

What kind of cat litter do you use? Have you ever tried Dr. Elsey's Cat Attract?

So far I have tried pine litter, what they were using at the shelter and scoop away also used at the shelter. I was thinking of trying a new litter but was unsure if that would bother him more. He goes in the litter box but at least once a night it is always at night and in the hall way bathroom he goes and poops in the tub.

 

[lokiandsmokey]

How about a litter box with no litter in it? Seems like he doesn't like the litter when he poops....

He uses the litter boxes with litter in them this is a once a day thing. Maybe he is marking but with poop instead of pee since he is neutered??????

 

[otto]

He uses the litter boxes with litter in them this is a once a day thing. Maybe he is marking but with poop instead of pee since he is neutered??????

Are you saying he poops more than once a day? Unless this is a young kitten, that is not normal. A cat should be pooping every 24-36 hours.

I suggested the litter box with no litter, since he appears to dislike pooping in litter. But if he is pooping in the litter once a day and pooping outside of the litter once a day, something is wrong with him physically.

It could be as simple as a diet change.

What are you feeding them?

 

[lokiandsmokey]

Are you saying he poops more than once a day? Unless this is a young kitten, that is not normal. A cat should be pooping every 24-36 hours.
I suggested the litter box with no litter, since he appears to dislike pooping in litter. But if he is pooping in the litter once a day and pooping outside of the litter once a day, something is wrong with him physically.
It could be as simple as a diet change.
What are you feeding them?

They get a cup each of dry food a day and they both poop more than once a day. (I'd say they both poop about 3 times a day, they are both about 6-7 months old) The vet I saw didn't seem concerned though when I said they both eat and poop all the time? I have a free bag of food from their first vet visit they are eating it is called ivet kitten formula. I tried giving them some wet food but it made their poop really soft and smelly. I though it was supposed to be kind of not hard but not come out in little piles either. They do both have ear mites but they got Advantage-multi at the vet for that.

 

[lokiandsmokey]

Oh I am trying deeper litter tonight too. They have really deep boxes and about 3 1/2 inches of litter so upped it an inch to see if that helps?

 

[faye11]

close the bathroom door? i know this sounds silly and obvious but its the only way to get mine to not poo or pee in bathtub

 

[lokiandsmokey]

close the bathroom door? i know this sounds silly and obvious but its the only way to get mine to not poo or pee in bathtub

I hate to do that though. They practically live in there. Loki loves to curl up and sleep in the sink and Smokey likes to jump up onto the bottom shelf of the medicine cabinet and just hang out. It is a conveinent place to keep there food in a drawer and their toys in another drawer. Sometimes they even leave my bed to go sleep in there early in the AM when the kids are running around getting ready for school and I am up making coffee and getting things ready for the day.

 

[lokiandsmokey]

I wish I could get in Smokey's head and see figure out why he does it. I hate to punish them for it by banishing them from their hangout.

 

[carolina]

Pine litter was the reason why Lucky started peeing in the living roon rug - she HATED that thing. Changed back to Dr. Elsey's and solved that issue (after a LOT of cleaning with enzyme cleaners - it takes a minute to mess up their habits, and forever to correct it )

I a agree that they are pooping too much..... Once a day should be their normal :nod:
Mu cats poop every 2 days or so, but they eat raw, so they poop less.....

 

[lokiandsmokey]

Pine litter was the reason why Lucky started peeing in the living roon rug - she HATED that thing. Changed back to Dr. Elsey's and solved that issue (after a LOT of cleaning with enzyme cleaners - it takes a minute to mess up their habits, and forever to correct it

)
I a agree that they are pooping too much..... Once a day should be their normal

Mu cats poop every 2 days or so, but they eat raw, so they poop less.....

I wonder why my kittens poop so much?

The vet said it was fine and they are both healthy.  But they both poop a lot about 3 times a day. They eat ivet dry kitten formula from the vets office, it was what the vet sold, they also have some greenies chew things for dental health. They get plenty of water and I give them each 1 cup of food a day 1/2 in the AM and 1/2 in the PM. I had to separate them to eat because Loki tries to take Smokey's food 

, so I know neither kitty is getting more than the other one. I just can't bring myself to lock them out of the bathroom so I went to walmart and got some puppy pads. Maybe he will poop on those instead?  I put them in the bathtub where he seems to like to poop.

 

[otto]

Puppy pads in the bathtub are a good idea, until you can figure out the problem. Or a litter box with no litter in it.

Have they been de-wormed? Often excessive pooping can be caused by a parasite problem.

In addition your kittens are eating a diet that is full of grains and carbohydrates and not enough moisture. They poop a lot because they aren't getting much nutrition from the food. Cats don't really digest grains, they just poop most of them back out again.

Many vets don't seem to know or understand much about nutrition and how the feline digestion works, sad to say.

I recommend you transition them to a canned diet, low in carbohydrates. I think you will be very happy with the results.

Here is a list of wet foods and their carb content:

http://catinfo.org/docs/Food Chart Public 9-22-12.pdf

The list is part of this website written and maintained by a vet who is a feline nutrition specialist. You may get some help here, too.

http://catinfo.org/

 

[lokiandsmokey]

Puppy pads in the bathtub are a good idea, until you can figure out the problem. Or a litter box with no litter in it.
Have they been de-wormed? Often excessive pooping can be caused by a parasite problem.
In addition your kittens are eating a diet that is full of grains and carbohydrates and not enough moisture. They poop a lot because they aren't getting much nutrition from the food. Cats don't really digest grains, they just poop most of them back out again.
Many vets don't seem to know or understand much about nutrition and how the feline digestion works, sad to say.
I recommend you transition them to a canned diet, low in carbohydrates. I think you will be very happy with the results.
Here is a list of wet foods and their carb content:
http://catinfo.org/docs/Food Chart Public 9-22-12.pdf
The list is part of this website written and maintained by a vet who is a feline nutrition specialist. You may get some help here, too.
http://catinfo.org/

 They have both been dewormed, Smokey had his last vax almost 2 weeks ago and they both got Advantage-Multi for earmites,fleas, and 3 kinds of worms. How many cans of food a day do they need to get? Won't the wet food make their poop runny? Loki has firmer poop but smokey makes little piles of really soft poop. I
'll go check out those links now. Thank you

 

[otto]

Canned food does not make poop runny, in general. You have to do the transition slowly is all. Starting with just a little bit of canned each day, and increasing the amounts as you go along.

Also, always use a probiotic when changing a cat's diet.

I use a probiotic for all cats all the time, anyway. It's good for them.

My Queen Eva had a nutrient absorption problem until I added a probiotic. She was on a high quality canned diet, but was eating enormous amounts, and never gaining any weight, just pooping it all back out again, two or three large poops a day. She had very expensive lab tests done on her poop, and all results were negative. Once I added a daily probiotic she stopped pooping so much and gained a little weight.

So I recommend a low carb canned diet (slow transition) and a probiotic for your boys.

PS getting them on canned now will prevent several possible health issues, especially urinary tract diseases and blockages.

 

[lokiandsmokey]

Canned food does not make poop runny, in general. You have to do the transition slowly is all. Starting with just a little bit of canned each day, and increasing the amounts as you go along.
Also, always use a probiotic when changing a cat's diet.
I use a probiotic for all cats all the time, anyway. It's good for them.

My Queen Eva had a nutrient absorption problem until I added a probiotic. She was on a high quality canned diet, but was eating enormous amounts, and never gaining any weight, just pooping it all back out again, two or three large poops a day. She had very expensive lab tests done on her poop, and all results were negative. Once I added a daily probiotic she stopped pooping so much and gained a little weight.
So I recommend a low carb canned diet (slow transition) and a probiotic for your boys.

PS getting them on canned now will prevent several possible health issues, especially urinary tract diseases and blockages.

 Where can I get a probiotic? petsmart?    How many cans of food do they need to eat at one time? They each get one cup of dried food a day and the cans look so small. I have two cans of friskies the shelter gave me each can is only 5.5oz  one is Turkey & Giblets classic paté and the other is Liver & Chicken classic paté.

 

[otto]

As growing kittens they may need up to 10 ounces a day (some need less than that by the time they are the age of yours, but not always).

Once they reach their adult weight, in general a cat will need about one 5.5 ounce can a day, depending on weight and activity level and brand of cat food.

Many members here recommend this probiotic:


I have not used it (yet), but it would be less expensive than the one I am currently using which is Proviable DC, a probiotic made specifically for animals. I've been using the ProViable DC for almost 2 years and am very happy with it, but because the above costs so much less, I have ordered it to try for my cats.

If cost is a concern, you could use it mainly for the transition (one bottle of the Natural factors would last you 3 months for 2 cats), then taper off and see how they do without it, or given only two or three times a week even.

 

[lokiandsmokey]

As growing kittens they may need up to 10 ounces a day (some need less than that by the time they are the age of yours, but not always).
Once they reach their adult weight, in general a cat will need about one 5.5 ounce can a day, depending on weight and activity level and brand of cat food.
Many members here recommend this probiotic:
I have not used it (yet), but it would be less expensive than the one I am currently using which is Proviable DC, a probiotic made specifically for animals. I've been using the ProViable DC for almost 2 years and am very happy with it, but because the above costs so much less, I have ordered it to try for my cats.
If cost is a concern, you could use it mainly for the transition (one bottle of the Natural factors would last you 3 months for 2 cats), then taper off and see how they do without it, or given only two or three times a week even.

Thank you so much for all your help. I'll look into getting them the probiotic and and transitioning them to wet food. I have to be as budget friendly as possible but my kitties have to be as healthy as possible too.

 

[whollycat]

A rule of thumb with kitties is to have 1 litter box per kitty plus 1 more. So, if you have two kitties, you should use 3 litter boxes. Have you tried adding another litter box so you have three?

How about a covered litter box? I'm not fond of them, but some kitties do prefer a bit more privacy. Also, the location can play a role. Are the boxes in a private area with nothing to distract or startle them? How close together are the boxes? Maybe try moving them further apart...or closer together. I have found that sometimes even changing the direction a box faces can make a difference.

How often do you clean the litter boxes? Kitties are very scent-oriented, so although a totally spotless litter box is pleasing to us, it can cause them to go outside the box just to add their scent so other kitties know they have been there. For example, I scoop my kids' litter boxes daily, but only completely change out litter and wash their boxes once every six months. And even then, I space out the box cleaning so that only one at a time is completely cleaned at a time. E.g. 'W' box is completely cleaned one week, 'X' box is completely cleaned the next week, 'Y' box is completely cleaned the next week, and 'Z' box is completely cleaned the next week. (I have three kitties, so four boxes.)

It also might be time for a fecal examination by the vet to see if all parasites/worms are gone.

I agree with others about a grain-free canned food (maybe even balanced raw diet if you're up for it

) and using a probiotic during the transition. On a kibble (dry) food diet, kitties can not drink enough water to make up for the low moisture content of kibble. Dogs and humans have a thirst drive/mechanism, but kitties not so much, so they won't drink enough water to stay hydrated even if you have 10 bowls of water out for them (wee bit of an exaggeration

). Therefore, they will be in a perpetual state of dehydration which can lead to health issues down the road. Kitties are obligate (true) carnivores and biologically/physiologically built to get the moisture (water) they need from the foods they eat.