I'm just about done.

Pycnogonida

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My cat Pippin pretty consistently poops outside the litterbox - but sometimes he doesn't, so I think we're in the clear, only to find, like today, a huge gross puddle on and in my washing machine.

We've taken him to the vet, nothin'.
We've given anti-diarrheals.
We've given probiotics, multiple types.
We've added more litterboxes, changed the substrate, and sized the litterboxes up, thinking maybe they were too cramped for him. Nope.
My other cat, Merry, is disabled, so he at least has an excuse, but Pippin is, as far as I can tell, perfectly healthy and just a ****ing asshole.
I don't want to take him to a shelter, but neither will i lie like this anymore.
 
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Pycnogonida

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He also bites my fingers when I try to pet him and chews up my things and has caused hundreds of dollars worth of damages, and frankly he makes being a pet owner really unenjoyable.

I wanted to give them a better life, but I didn't realize that it meant making my own life unhappy in the process 🙄
 
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Pycnogonida

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Additionally, the location doesn't seem to matter much to him - he'll poop on the carpet, in the tub, on the floor, in the grass in the yard, and as mentioned, on the washing machine, apparently.
 

Sonatine

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Have you tried changing his diet? I've got a cat who will crap outside the box when a food doesn't agree with her, but otherwise is very good about using her box. He may be sensitive to something in his food if he has diarrhea that consistently.

When he does poop outside the box, how do you clean if up? You'll want to use an enzyme based cleaner if you haven't already, otherwise he's going to keep smelling it and going in the same places.
 
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Pycnogonida

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Have you tried changing his diet? I've got a cat who will crap outside the box when a food doesn't agree with her, but otherwise is very good about using her box. He may be sensitive to something in his food if he has diarrhea that consistently.

When he does poop outside the box, how do you clean if up? You'll want to use an enzyme based cleaner if you haven't already, otherwise he's going to keep smelling it and going in the same places.
Yep :/ we've tried several different foods, wet and dry, slowly transitioning the dry food, and it hasn't helped - or has even gotten worse with the change. The enzymtic cleaner hasn't helped, either.
 

rubysmama

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P Pycnogonida : How old is Pippen? Is the diarrhea a recent thing, or long-term?

Have you tried changing his diet? I've got a cat who will crap outside the box when a food doesn't agree with her, but otherwise is very good about using her box.
That was my thoughts too, as my Ruby will do the same thing. Ruby has a chicken intolerance, and from when I first adopted her would have loose stools. Changing her canned food to duck solved the problem for a long time.

Then she became intolerant to her dry food, and the accidents started again. We changed her dry food to a duck and pea one, and Ruby has not had any accidents in several weeks now. So a food change can sometimes make a difference in litter box accidents. So something to look into.

You might also want to get a 2nd opinion from another vet. If you want to look into cat only vets, here a link to search for one in your area. Just be sure you choose "Feline Only" in the Practice Type Drop Down menu.

Find a Veterinarian and Practice | The Cat Community
 
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Pycnogonida

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P Pycnogonida : How old is Pippen? Is the diarrhea a recent thing, or long-term?



That was my thoughts too, as my Ruby will do the same thing. Ruby has a chicken intolerance, and from when I first adopted her would have loose stools. Changing her canned food to duck solved the problem for a long time.

Then she became intolerant to her dry food, and the accidents started again. We changed her dry food to a duck and pea one, and Ruby has not had any accidents in several weeks now. So a food change can sometimes make a difference in litter box accidents. So something to look into.

You might also want to get a 2nd opinion from another vet. If you want to look into cat only vets, here a link to search for one in your area. Just be sure you choose "Feline Only" in the Practice Type Drop Down menu.

Find a Veterinarian and Practice | The Cat Community
It's a long-term thing, I think, though the looseness of the stools varies in intensity.

Please no judgment, but do you think that Merry would suffer if Pippin were to leave? I thought about not having both anymore, but I realized recently that it's really just Pippin who's like this. Merry is sweet as can be and usually pretty hygienic, though he does occasionally get poop on his legs because of his disability.
 

Mamanyt1953

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I would HIGHLY suggest a feline specialist. Cats' instincts to cover their poops is so strong and the fact that he has liquid stool tells me that SOMETHING IS WRONG...whether physical or stress-related, I can't say at this point. SOMETHING is going on with him, this isn't a "he's a jerk" situation, so please don't give up quite yet. And yes, I think that Merry would miss him dreadfully. His life is restricted as it is, and having his friend with him is a real positive for him.

We will work with you in any way we can to try to get to the bottom of this. Right now, his very life hangs in the balance, as I can tell you that he would stand NO chance unless you were able to get him into a permanent sanctuary situation.
 

rubysmama

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I think the fact that Pippin sometimes uses the litter box means he knows where he's supposed to go. But I think the loose stools/diarrhea is probably making him uncomfortable, thus the accidents.

So I would consider possibly trying a novel protein food, one he's never tried before, and see if it makes a difference. With my Ruby, her stools literally improved the very next day after I changed to the duck canned food.

And with the kibble that caused her problems, it wasn't every day, and like you, we'd have a run of good days, and I'd think everything was well, and then one day I'd wake up to an unwanted gift on the floor. Or carpet. :(

Changing both of Ruby's foods (canned and dry) to duck, made all the difference. So, again, maybe discuss food options with your vet, and see if they can recommend a novel protein food choice.

About Merry missing Pippin if you re-homed Pippin, how well do they get along?
 

kittenmittens84

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I think the fact that Pippin sometimes uses the litter box means he knows where he's supposed to go. But I think the loose stools/diarrhea is probably making him uncomfortable, thus the accidents.

So I would consider possibly trying a novel protein food, one he's never tried before, and see if it makes a difference. With my Ruby, her stools literally improved the very next day after I changed to the duck canned food.

And with the kibble that caused her problems, it wasn't every day, and like you, we'd have a run of good days, and I'd think everything was well, and then one day I'd wake up to an unwanted gift on the floor. Or carpet. :(

Changing both of Ruby's foods (canned and dry) to duck, made all the difference. So, again, maybe discuss food options with your vet, and see if they can recommend a novel protein food choice.

About Merry missing Pippin if you re-homed Pippin, how well do they get along?
Seconding this - we tried to get my cat’s ibd under control for years and while with him it wasn’t so much going outside the litter box, he’d frequently get poop on himself and then transfer it to other places in the house. What FINALLY worked for him was a venison limited ingredient food, which we had never tried before.
 

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Please remember that animals don't have morals.
There is no "regrets" or "revenge" or "being a jerk".
When animals act out of norm, it's because they are stressed by something or they are unwell.

You need to find the cause of the stress or illness, and you need a vet who will help you get to the bottom of it.

Get a full blood panel and urinalysis to start. Make sure there are no nutrient deficiencies (some nutrient profiles take a separate test). Make sure the kidneys and liver are not compromised. Move on to xrays and ultrasound if necessary. Ultrasound can show if there is inflammation or thick walls in the digestive system, or if (forbid) there are any growths that could be causing problems.

And yes, there are things that can develop over time, where the first tests are inconclusive, but the cat is still feeling it and acting out.
 

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Not to be gross, but sometimes you just can't help some things. It's very possible he just can't get to the litterbox in time.

I agree that trying a novel protein food, preferably one that has very limited ingredients, would be best. Try to cut out as much as possible to see if you can get things stabilized, and then slowly start introducing new things to see what works.

If you were to give this cat to a shelter I imagine he'd never get adopted. I have a friend whose sister gave one of her cats up to the shelter because she had recurring UTIs and she didn't want to pay for special food - that cat did not make it out again. Honestly, if she hadn't been in another state I would have taken her in just to prevent that from happening. :sniffle:
 

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If you solve the diarrhea, maybe he won't feel so crappy all the time.

...ok, sorry, but kind of being serious, if he is feeling better, he may be less irritable and bitey. Definitely try the suggestions above for limited proteins. The store brands tend to have many different ingredients in them, but if you try the duck or venison or whatever foods suggested above, maybe you will find yourself with basically a different cat.

Answering your other question, its very hard to predict how one cat reacts to another cat's departure. Even if you described their interactions for us, which you haven't done yet, it wouldn't help that much. Could still be no reaction, a little reaction (of various kinds) or a big reaction. The most recent death I had, no reaction. The time before that, the survivor got vastly more friendly even though he didn't really like the other cat. Which doesn't make a lot of sense, but it is was happened.
 

EricaGriswoldAuthor

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yes. strange behavior can be a sign that something is wrong. Especially if he doesn't want to be petted. I had a cat that suddenly started licking his fur off. This went on for several months. After a while, he didn't want to be petted. We went to the vet, and they thought he had OCD or something. My mom went to Google and discovered this could be a food allergy and to try to switch to Lamb and Rice formula food. We did that and the problem was solved.
 

Maria Bayote

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You have very good advices about. Please don't give up on this boy.

I currently have a rescue, his name is Oreo. The first several days he was with us he would poop everywhere, and sometimes in his litterbox! I changed his food. I gave him different brands and flavors. Aside from the fact that he was medicating due to his Calici Virus and earmites at that time, the vet said no other issues. I was also desperate and had this urge to just return him back outside where we took him, but could not in my heart bear to see him freezing outdoors. Now, just after weeks living with us his accidents are so far non-occurrence anymore. I suspect that he was just under extreme stress at that time - being very sick and all the things he had to go through while living outside.

Hence, as adviced, you do need a vet to further check what really is going on with this boy.

I know how frustrating and hard it can be, and I hope things get better for you.
 
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Pycnogonida

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Ok! So!
I don't want to start celebrating just yet, but we tried eliminating dry food and chicken from their meals by switching them to a turkey canned food and it seems to have worked!! Consistent solid stools for the first time ever. (I'm not sure if it's the elimination of chicken or the elimination of the dry food that's done it, tbh, but at this point I don't care, I'm just happy it's working)

I do still have a question though.
I'm worried that they are getting bored of the turkey food, and I've read that if cats eat the same food for long enough they can develop a sensitivity to it, which seems like the worst thing ever right now.

I found some other canned foods that are high enough in calories to meet their daily needs and chicken, grain, and other bad stuff-free.
They tried the tuna formulation yesterday, and and of them threw up (and I'm not sure who, but it seems likely that it wasn't the same one who was then eating the barf. Gross, cat.)
My question is, do I need to slowly transition them to the new food, even if it's a wet food? They haven't really eaten tuna before - we avoided it when they were kittens and just kept avoiding it up until now. I don't want to make them throw up, but I do want to see if they can acclimate to the tuna.
 

kittyluv387

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Eh if he already has diarrhea issues I don't see the need to do a slow transition. And with high quality canned it's less of a risk. I would stay away from fish if he's a sensitive boy. It's more of a treat food. Since he likes turkey you can try other canned turkey and also canned rabbit. Sensitive cats usually respond well to rabbit.

Pates:
Dr. Elsey's Turkey
Redbarn Naturals Turkey
Rawz rabbit
Hound and Gatos rabbit
 

rubysmama

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I don't want to start celebrating just yet, but we tried eliminating dry food and chicken from their meals by switching them to a turkey canned food and it seems to have worked!! Consistent solid stools for the first time ever.
Just logged on and this is the first message I read. :woohoo:

Seriously. Excellent news! I know what it's like to see normal stool in the litter box for the first time. Before I changed Ruby's food, I used to wonder how you knew the difference between the pee clumps and the poop clumps. Once she had normal stool, it was obvious. :doh:

(I'm not sure if it's the elimination of chicken or the elimination of the dry food that's done it, tbh, but at this point I don't care, I'm just happy it's working)
It could be either, or both, especially if chicken is an ingredient in the dry food. But, it doesn't really matter, right. :thumbsup:

I'm worried that they are getting bored of the turkey food, and I've read that if cats eat the same food for long enough they can develop a sensitivity to it, which seems like the worst thing ever right now.
My Ruby has been eating her canned duck food for over 5 years now, and hasn't gotten bored with it, or developed a sensitivity to it yet. :crossfingers:

My question is, do I need to slowly transition them to the new food, even if it's a wet food?
Normally, yes, the recommendation is to slowly transition to a new food. But my vet suggested changing to the duck food right away, and literally, Ruby's stool was normal the very next day. So I think if there's already a sensitivity to a food, the quicker you stop feeding them it, the better.

They haven't really eaten tuna before - we avoided it when they were kittens and just kept avoiding it up until now. I don't want to make them throw up, but I do want to see if they can acclimate to the tuna.
If it were me, I'd stick with the turkey for a while, so that you can know if it is agreeing with their digestive systems, particularly Pippin, who had the diarrhea and litterbox issues. Then, maybe try another food.

If you want to still feed them a dry food, along with the canned, look for one that is mostly turkey.
 
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