Himy With A Bad Butt

[patterson964]

So this is an ongoing issue that we are desperate to resolve. My husband and I have our 4 year old Himalayan cant keep her back end clean. It is going on about a 2 1/2 year problem that just seems to have plateaued. Its not really the area around her anus that gets bad but more lower and in her "crevice." We have to rodeo her to wipe her with the special wipes we have but it doesn't do much by way of really cleaning since she can only stand so much as well as how deep in there it is. Due to this, she's been banned from the bedroom after the 4th time we had to bleach skid marks from the sheets, as well as daily clorox wipes on all the upholstered furniture, plus not being able to love on her like we used to, due to the smell, is hard for us too.
She's been on a vet prescribed and over counter probiotic, food changes, as well as a "starvation diet" (going from having a full bowl to graze from 24/7, to 1/4 cup in the morning and 1/4 cup at night total ) to shrink her belly for the duration of this but nothing seems to be working. She does have a long coat so she gets the sanitary trim and cut but no such luck there either. We even had her completely shaved last summer in a hail mary attempt. Trying to bathe her at home was a bust as well as the professional baths at the groomer and vet that did literally nothing. The biggest thing I can think of is she can't get over her "pouch" of skin from her being fixed,to reach but that was never an issue before. She is 13lbs but by no means obese and rolly.
We love her but this is getting to be a serious health issue for her, us and any potential baby in the next few years. It just feels like this came out of nowhere and nothing seems to work. PLEASE PLEASE HELP!

 

[Columbine]

Hi, and welcome to TCS

I have a slight inkling of how difficult this must be for you, as my DSH girl has occasional problems in this area.

My first suggestion would be to keep the affected area shaved, alongside the sanitary clip. I understand that this hasn't helped things much in terms of prevention, but at least it will make the area somewhat easier to clean.

Despite her still being pretty young, I do wonder whether there are any pain or skeletal related mobility issues here. Some cats do have a rather pronounced primordial pouch (which is the skin flap you're talking about, and is perfectly normal), but it doesn't usually cause cleanliness issues of this type. Pain related issues do need ruling out before you go any further.

Something else to look at would be the type of litter you're using. Some litters work better than others with long haired cats, so it may be worth experimenting to see if a different litter at least helps with this issue. I'd also try and keep the box(es) really well scooped and clean, to minimise the amount of waste to get caught up on her belly.

Whilst you're working on sorting this issue out, I'd suggest using easily washable blankets or throws on the furniture, and the same (or even a plastic sheet) over your bed during the day. I use cheap fleece throws on my sofas, as they're easy to put through the wash when they get soiled. I know it's not a solution to the main problem, but at least your furniture will be protected.

I know bathing cats is far from easy. When my girl's bum gets bad, I find a washcloth and warm water is more effective than any wipes. Just being able to get more moisture than the wipes provide really helps. I might be tempted to look into cat-safe no rinse shampoos too, to help get the area that bit fresher.

I really hope you can pinpoint and treat the root cause of this very soon, and that you find a workable solution for both you and your girl
Be Kind To Your Cats' Behinds! Dirty Cat Butts Prevention And Treatment
How To Safely Bathe A Cat: The Complete Guide
How To Choose The Right Cat Litter
When And How To Switch To A New Type Of Litter
35 Signs That Your Cat May Be In Pain

 

[duckpond]

I have a long hair male cat. He really only has a problem when something else, such as diet is affecting him and giving him a loose stool. Most of the time no problems. But when he does have an issue i have found the best thing is a booty bath. I run enough warm water in the bathtub to come up to his but, then with a mild cat shampoo i gently wash his backside and rinse well. I have found this does a much better job than wipes.

If the food she is eating is causing loose stool i would keep working until i find one that does not. And maybe a booty bath once a week or so will help her keep up with her grooming?

 

[Tobermory]

Is her stool normal or is it soft and/or runny?

Also, did the vet say anything about her weight? One of my long-haired cats reached 13 and then 14 pounds, and she had trouble keeping herself clean. I had to put her on a diet.

 

[patterson964]

Sorry for the delay
A reply to everyone in the thread with their ideas and suggestions thus far. Her movements are not soft and runny at all, changed food several times to be sure it wasn't the culprit, and the type shes on is a high probiotic, Nulo brand. The type of litter we use is is one she prefers over all others so it's what we have been using long term after several others over the course of her 4 1/2 years as well as being scooped as she uses it, unless we aren't home in which case it is scooped as soon as we get back. We keep her in a sanitary clip that also goes to the base of her belly, along with her pantaloons. Daily she gets a wipedown with a specialty cat-butt cleaning wipe, or a warm, wet, cheap washcloth that gets tossed when it's especially bad. 4 different vets now have not even addressed the issue with a solution besides pitching their grooming service, their comments about her weight were about a probiotic diet, which has been implemented as well as the strict portion control.

 

[Columbine]

I hope the extended clip and dietary changes do the trick Poopy butts are no fun to deal with.

 

[maggiedemi]

Hi. When my cats get these problems, it's usually their diet. Is she eating only dry food? What kind?

 

[patterson964]

Hi. When my cats get these problems, it's usually their diet. Is she eating only dry food? What kind?

She's on exclusively dry food, canned gave her the runs really bad when we tried that as a kitten. Food has been changed 4 times, probiotic powder poured overtop. Currently on day 3 of Nulo brand prodiotic and weight specialty.
Has been on a strict portion control for going on 2 years now, to not much change.

 

[maggiedemi]

What canned foods did you try? In my experience, wet food really helps these poop problems. What dry food are you using?

 

[FeebysOwner]

patterson964 - when you spoke of a 'specialty cat-butt cleaning wipe' - what is it?

My cat is approx. 14 years old, weighs in at almost 18 pounds, and probably has some arthritis. She just doesn't clean her back-end the way she used to. She has had a number of UTIs over the past year, and the vet thinks they are being caused by her lack of cleanliness. He recommended a 1-part alcohol/1-part white vinegar solution as a cleaner because it is cheaper than anti-microbial/anti-bacterial wipes, but serves the same purpose. I am a little leery to use alcohol like that on her, so I am looking for other options.

I am also reducing her dry food and increasing her wet food intake - to see if that will help with weight and better flush out her urinary tract in the hopes that helps with eliminating the UTIs.

Any suggestions about wipes would be helpful.

Thanks.

 

[patterson964]

patterson964 - when you spoke of a 'specialty cat-butt cleaning wipe' - what is it?

My cat is approx. 14 years old, weighs in at almost 18 pounds, and probably has some arthritis. She just doesn't clean her back-end the way she used to. She has had a number of UTIs over the past year, and the vet thinks they are being caused by her lack of cleanliness. He recommended a 1-part alcohol/1-part white vinegar solution as a cleaner because it is cheaper than anti-microbial/anti-bacterial wipes, but serves the same purpose. I am a little leery to use alcohol like that on her, so I am looking for other options.

I am also reducing her dry food and increasing her wet food intake - to see if that will help with weight and better flush out her urinary tract in the hopes that helps with eliminating the UTIs.

Any suggestions about wipes would be helpful.

Thanks.

The wipes are just grooming wipes, that are usually just used to wipe down a pet in place of a bath. They're not for a specific use or area of the body, they're just what we use in our given situation. The brand is called POGI's Grooming Wipes in a big green and white pack we got from amazon.

 

[patterson964]

What canned foods did you try? In my experience, wet food really helps these poop problems. What dry food are you using?

I believe the wet food she tried was fancy feast, unsure of which kind, 2x to be sure the massive case of the runs the first time she had was not an anomaly. Then 8 months later at family's Christmas and she ate my parent's cat's wet food, unsure of brand,the result was the same within 30 min of eating. So she is a strictly dry food cat to avoid making the problem worse. Her movements are solid but soft enough to be easily passable.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Do they still make "Tender Vittles"? I believe they contain less carbs and more water than dry food - although, obviously, not as much as canned. I used to feed my first cat exclusively with Tender Vittles. He could even open up the packets by himself! If not that, then isn't there some more 'natural' types of food that would be better than strictly dry food?

 

[mani]

Do they still make "Tender Vittles"? I believe they contain less carbs and more water than dry food - although, obviously, not as much as canned. I used to feed my first cat exclusively with Tender Vittles. He could even open up the packets by himself! If not that, then isn't there some more 'natural' types of food that would be better than strictly dry food?

FeebysOwner I think patterson968 feels the food is not the issue, since the stool is not overly soft.
It doesn't sound like a diet issue, if the stool is normal. It's hard to know without knowing how it looks, but it does sound 'structural' as if it's being caught there. Is that the case? If so, is there any surgery that could be done to alleviate it?

 

[silkenpaw]

I can’t tell whether your cat is overweight or not. This happened to a cat of mine who had two problems: she was obese and she had infected, painful anal glands. I think the latter was more of a factor in her poor hygiene.

If you are trying to slim your cat down with portion control for two years then either she’s getting food from somewhere else or you are still giving her too much. If the latter, try a further decrease or increase your cat’s activity with games such as DaBird, which will make her move more.

If your cat is not obese, you need to figure out why she’s not cleaning her behind. Is the area painful? Does she have a condition that makes it difficult for her to reach her behind?

Good luck, it’s a frustrating problem.

 

[patterson964]

She's definitely only getting food from us, she's a strictly indoor cat and has never given any inkling that she is in pain when she cleans. The conclusion I keep circling back to is that A. she is just lazy and won't do it anymore or what I really think is the problem B.That her primordial flap getting in the way, like Columbine suggested. From what research I have done, the only solution is surgery, basically a cat tummy-tuck, and that is if you can even find a vet willing to do so.

Exhibits A and B:
A. Her fur is very misleading, when she all fluffed out, she definitely looks bigger than she is, Himy's are up there with Mane Coons where they are naturally a larger breed of cat.
B. After the dirty butt thing became a real consistent problem, last summer we decided to see if it was really the fur in the way being the problem and had her shaved bald. The result being a mad, bald cat with a dirty butt that was just more visible.

 

[MRG2018]

She's definitely only getting food from us, she's a strictly indoor cat and has never given any inkling that she is in pain when she cleans. The conclusion I keep circling back to is that A. she is just lazy and won't do it anymore or what I really think is the problem B.That her primordial flap getting in the way, like Columbine suggested. From what research I have done, the only solution is surgery, basically a cat tummy-tuck, and that is if you can even find a vet willing to do so.

Exhibits A and B:
A. Her fur is very misleading, when she all fluffed out, she definitely looks bigger than she is, Himy's are up there with Mane Coons where they are naturally a larger breed of cat.
B. After the dirty butt thing became a real consistent problem, last summer we decided to see if it was really the fur in the way being the problem and had her shaved bald. The result being a mad, bald cat with a dirty butt that was just more visible.
View attachment 241748 View attachment 241749

The second pictures feels he is plotting revenge against you for shaving off his fur lol.