Cats on raw still have stool everyday?

[space1101]

Is it possible for a cat on raw to pass stool everyday?  I noice that when my cats are on raw, the stool volumes are much smaller and a bit harder, but one younger cat (10 year old) still passes thin-shaped stool everyday.  Is that normal?  I heard cats on raw should pass stool every 2 or 3 days.  Is the stool supposed to be hard?

 

[carolina]

Is it possible for a cat on raw to pass stool everyday?  I noice that when my cats are on raw, the stool volumes are much smaller and a bit harder, but one younger cat (10 year old) still passes thin-shaped stool everyday.  Is that normal?  I heard cats on raw should pass stool every 2 or 3 days.  Is the stool supposed to be hard?

They can poop every day, or every other day, even every 2-3 days..... mine usually every day. The Consistency will depend on the bone percentage you are giving. If you give more organs, the stools will be loser too....
It is way way smaller than the regular kibble/canned stool, and it is firmer too. Too much bone will make it hard...
The color can vary also depending with the meat you are giving - for example: lamb, beef, darker meats, will make the stools darker, while poultry - chicken, turkey, will give you light stools....
What are you feeding them? Are they too hard?
Here are some pictures of what you are looking at - http://catinfo.org/?link=makingcatfood#Constipation

 

[space1101]

Thanks Carolina.  I gave them Stella & Chewy chicken, raw beef, raw turkey with bone in the past few days, just to see how they do with it.

The stools are hard, and the color is partially white like that picture but not completely.  

I wonder if giving beef everyday is a good idea.  I'm having a headache when giving raw food.  I constantly observe their reactions and energy level and keep thinking I might be doing something wrong.  

 

[carolina]

Thanks Carolina.  I gave them Stella & Chewy chicken, raw beef, raw turkey with bone in the past few days, just to see how they do with it.
The stools are hard, and the color is partially white like that picture but not completely.  
I wonder if giving beef everyday is a good idea.  I'm having a headache when giving raw food.  I constantly observe their reactions and energy level and keep thinking I might be doing something wrong.  

You are probably not doing anything wrong..... and the poop sounds right..... hang in there and don't stress too much!

 

[ldg]

I have to agree with Carolina! Sounds like things are just fine!

My kitties seem to be pooping every day to every 1.5 days. :nod: The poop LOOKS like it's very hard. I check every once in a while by crushing it in the bag when I scoop, and it usually crumbles apart. But everything I've read says it will be harder (and drier) compared to kibble/canned poop.

 

[feralvr]

Agree with above !!!!! Poops are much smaller, harder - almost like petrified wood . I also will check poop by crushing it in the poop bag. BUT I never discuss kitty poop other than here on TCS We are all in the same "crazy poopie checking boat" together

 

[furryfriends50]

Mine pass a stool every 2-3 days.  I don't feed premade but feed prey model/frankenprey instead, that I balance out over a week.

I can tell what section of the stool is from what meal - brown from meat, dark brown from organ, light brown/grey from bone-in meals.  LOL, yes my cats have multi-colored stools

 

[carolina]

Maybe we should just open a poop-o-meter thread

 

[space1101]

Thank god, I'm not the only one crazy about cat poops. 

 Their poops are quite firm, I have to apply a bit force to crush it.   Should I add some pumpkin in the food?

 

[carolina]

Thank god, I'm not the only one crazy about cat poops.   Their poops are quite firm, I have to apply a bit force to crush it.   Should I add some pumpkin in the food?

Look at this link: http://catinfo.org/?link=makingcatfood#Constipation

If they are not straining, or crying..... if they are not constipated.... IMHO there is no need for pumpkin. The raw poop is firmer and smaller than the regular poop.... The food is used so much more effectively, much less is left in the poop!

 

[furryfriends50]

Maybe we should just open a poop-o-meter thread

On a raw feeding group I am part of on facebook, there is a photo album with pictures of various stools:  A guide to what the poop should look like after various meat proteins.  Us raw feeders are crazy

 

[jemma lucy]

Thank god i found this thread ! Hi guys im new to the site, Im from Sydney, Australia. Ive just adopted 2 ragdoll adult cats sisters both 4 years old. They live indoors with me in a small apartment. The diet they were on was Iams dry kibble and man their poop stunk out the place. They also pooped 2-3 times daily and if it was not removed immediatley they would do their business outside the litter box. I pretty much spent all my spare time cleaning up poop, and seeing im a nurse for a living, thats a lot of poop cleaning !  Ive been reading up on various diets for cats to change the odour, frequency and consistancy of their stools. Is it true that a lot of pet foods contain mainly fillers/cereals ? I read that if the diet is high in meat (as cats are carnivores) they will not produce as much waste and it is more natural. from what i have seen in this thread this looks promising ! however, I tried one of my cats on minced steak and she had diarrhoa all day. perhaps i made the switch too quick? Ive also been slowly introducing a new kibble and more meat based canned food, however this dosnt seem to be helping and the stools are still mushy and smelly. 
does anyone have any suggestions on how/what to start with when trying my kittys on a raw food diet ? 

thankyou !! 

 

[ldg]

Welcome to TCS!

Yes, it is true that most commercial canned food and kibble has a lot of cereal and fillers in it. :nod: It is also true that cats are carnivores, and have ZERO nutritional requirement for carbohydrates. Their digestive systems are designed to get all of the nutrition they need from eating the flesh, bones, and organs of other animals. :nod: One example I love to use is carrots. So many cat foods have pictures of carrots on them - to us people, looks healthy! Yet cats are SO designed to get their nutrition from MEAT that they don't even have the digestive enzymes necessary to convert beta carotene into Vitamin A!

And yes, when eating a 100% raw diet, their breath does not smell, their poop does not smell AT ALL - and there is very little of it. Really - apart from increased energy, behavior changes (happy kitties that feel good inside!), and incredibly silky, soft coats, the "proof" that raw food is what they were designed to eat is in the poop. Literally. They absorb so much of the nutrition that there is just very little waste left over!

And your kitty likely had diarrhea from the beef because it was beef - or just because it was new.

When you think about a diet of raw food, think kibble transition, not wet food transition. When they're on wet food, you can just switch up brands and protein sources. With kibble, if you just give a new brand with different ingredients, they often throw up, get diarrhea, or generally have upset tummies or systems for a few days at least. It's like this with raw at first - a LOT of digestive adaptations have to take place. :nod: When they're new to raw, it's really best to take it slow. Their systems need to produce all kinds of things they haven't been when eating kibble or canned mush. And one of my cats absolutely cannot tolerate beef. It's usually best to start with poultry: though pork (if it's safe in Australia) and lamb also seem to be well tolerated and liked. :nod:

When feeding raw, if you're going to be making home made, you do need to make sure you balance out meat with organs and bones - or a calcium source. But if you're feeding kibble and canned now, it doesn't hurt to start offering raw, incorporating it. It's only when it becomes more than 15-20% of what you're feeding that you need to worry about ensuring they're getting balanced nutrition.

A lot of us when making the transition give probiotics and digestive enzymes. I just give probiotics to help ensure healthy gut flora. :nod: But digestive enzymes can help during those initial weeks, while their systems "gear up" for digesting all that meat.

This resource thread has lots of great links I'm sure you'll find helpful! http://www.thecatsite.com/t/240809/raw-feeding-resource-thread

 

[jemma lucy]

thankyou laurie for your helpful and informative advice!!! I have tried discussing this idea with couple of colleges from work (nurses also) and was met with a few blank looks.

I totally agree with you on the fact that cats only need meat and do not need things like carrots, potatoes and rice !! It is only so humans feel like they are feeding their cats a 'balanced diet' from all 5 food groups !! except they only eat from one!!

as for the loose stools lucy had on minced beef, its good to know beef can upset their tummys more and hear that your cat did not agree well with beef either - I will try poultry next time. do you think starting with just a small piece of chicken neck mixed with their regular dry food is a good idea ? or should i start with just some chicken breast or lamb/pork pieces ? also is it safe to feed cats raw chicken wings?

as for the probiotics, i will see if I can get locally here or maybe online. never thought of that either but it makes sense !

 

[ldg]

Most of us start with chicken breast or thigh meat. :nod: It's usually well tolerated. Chicken necks are too difficult for cats to eat - not good bones for them. Works for dogs, not for cats. The wings are good bones - but only the two smaller pieces, not that big one that attaches to the skeleton. ...Actually, here's a great article addressing this! http://catcentric.org/2012/03/19/a-smorgasbord-of-getting-started-tips-for-frankenprey-feeding/

 

[carmina piranha]

Hi, Jemma Lucy! We came to raw feeding as a solution to stinky litterboxes too! Our kittens had perennial pudding-poop, and life was just pretty gross; sometimes I would light candles or incense to relieve the stench, although thank goodness the kittens would always use the litter box (cleaned 2x/day, that's it). Once we stopped feeding them kibble, and only canned, things improved, and now on raw everything is perfect. The canned food we fed them had some grain, as well as other possible problem foods like fish and guar gum. Now, we only know it's real poop by getting reallllly close to it!  

Some cats will take to raw easily, including big chunks of meat and bone.  Some have to be introduced gradually.  Our 8-month old kittens, and 2-year old cat, were sooo easy.  (We're still on ground, including ground bone, with some chunks of boneless meat)  But you'll see that some others have quite a struggle.  Ultimately it's the healthiest thing for the cats, (our cats would perhaps have developed Irritable Bowel Syndrome if we'd kept them on the wrong food), so it's worth a bit of effort!

 

[jemma lucy]

hi carmina, thanks for your reply. Its good to know others have gone through the same thing. it dosnt seem normal for poop to stink so much! you mentioned ground bone, do you buy that made up from the butcher or is there a pre made mix you can buy somewhere ? also how much and how often do you feed them ? jemma is 5kg and lucy is 4kg. is there a % of bone/meat ratio ?

thanks again !

 

[ldg]

In the States, there are a number of companies and local places that grind whole animals. That's the best ratio. :lol3: The Raw Resources thread (stickied at the top of the forum) has links to sites that provide recipes for homemade raw ground food, and they'll have the right proportions (but you need a grinder). Some butchers will prepare ground for you if you give them the instructions for the meat/bone/organ ratio. The best guideline is 80% meat (including heart and gizzard as part of "meat," not organs), 10% bone, 5% liver, and 5% "other secreting organ" - being kidney and/or spleen and/or pancreas, etc.

This commercially prepared food (made in NZ) may be available in Australia? :dk: http://www.countrypet.com/catfood/lambChicken.html It is a mix of lamb and chicken, uses bone, heart, lung, and liver. The nutrients that would be "missing" from the "other secreting organ" are taken care of with the supplements added. But there is nothing in there but meat, bones, organs, and supplements!

I googled "raw cat food Sydney, Australia" and came up with these on the first page:

http://justfood4dogs.com.au/site/
http://www.petandgarden.com.au/support/sitepage.asp?Page=Fresh^Pet^Meat


Now - the raw movement has taken off with dogs more than cats (though cats are catching up!). Some of the ground mixes marketed for dogs can be appropriate for cats IF they are just ground raw meat/organs/bones. You have to check ingredients. The raw food movement for dogs is called B.A.R.F - Bones and Raw Food. But dogs are omnivores, so many of the formulas will have up to 60% veggies in them. For cats, IF you're going with a commercially prepared mix, you really ought to try to limit it to 95% meat/5% "other stuff." And you'll probably find that over time, your cats just want the meat, bones and organs. :lol3:

 

[jemma lucy]

Yes i have seen BARF at my local petbarn ! it comes in frozen patties. it is made for dogs and cats howver it does contain some 'other stuff'. I have also seen raw
meat commercially prepared for dogs there. I am going to check it out as I didnt know you can feed it to cats as well. I have also seen a 'meat loaf roll'
type of thing for dogs. it looks a bit like spam or lunch meat. (it was in the link you sent me what do you think of those ? http://www.petandgarden.com.au/support/sitepage.asp?Page=Fresh^Pet^Meat
Ive started lucy on a bit chicken neck 'hidden' in with her normal wet food. she'll either give it a good go and eat most of it or lick all the gravy off and not touch it. i think all the chewing and crunching is not what shes used to and she dosnt like the flavour on its own (i guess its not as junky smelling as regular cat food). jemma on the other hand will not even touch it. she sniffs and walks away or just licks all the gravy off! Im also slowly reducing the amount of dry food I give them.

 

[jemma lucy]

Also I forgot to add , I kinda feel guilty if i dont put out some dry kibble for them while im at work.. do you let your cats graze on any type of food while your not there?