I have a foster cat named Hushpad (I know, ridiculous name, but she came
with it) who is ten years old. She came from a house of 8 cats, and the
caretaker was slipping into mental illness, forgetting to feed them, the
house was a mess, etc. All the cats from that house are 7 - 10 years old
and have various health problems, haven't seen a vet in years. One had
advanced cancer and had to be PTS. Two have been adopted (yay!), the others
are still in foster care. Hushpad is very small and thin, in need of dental
work, and has never been spayed. She had a bad case of earmites, which were
treated, a URI, which is clearing up, and an ulcer on her eye that's healed,
but that eye is still squinty and is being treated. She will only eat
canned food, possibly because of her bad teeth. The rescue group will have
her dental and spaying done as soon as the vet clears her for surgery.
Now that I got the background out of the way, Hushpad has very small, hard,
dry stools. I would expect that with only eating canned food, she would
have looser stool, but they are like small, hard rocks, and always look very
dry, almost petrified. Her urine output seems normal. I've never seen cat
poop so rock-like. I did a cursory Google search of this group and saw some
posts about CRF. Could this be possible? She doesn't seem overly thirsty.
Could she be constipated?
Another question, sorry if this sounds dumb, but do cats experience
menopause? So far, she isn't showing any signs of going into heat, I've had
her for about 2 1/2 weeks.
Thanks for your help, this girl is a real sweetie, and I hope she finds a
home quickly.

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-Kelly
kelly at farringtons dot net
Check out www.snittens.com
~*Connie*~ - 14 May 2004 02:43 GMT
> I have a foster cat named Hushpad (I know, ridiculous name, but she came
> with it) who is ten years old. She came from a house of 8 cats, and the
[quoted text clipped - 27 lines]
> kelly at farringtons dot net
> Check out www.snittens.com
I don't know about CRF.. but anything is possible. Yes, she could be
constipated, she could have some bowel issues. Id recommend canned pumpkin,
plain full fat yogurt, and cat lax or some other hair ball goop.. :) one,
two or all three.. couldn't hurt her in the least..
-L. : - 14 May 2004 07:34 GMT
> I have a foster cat named Hushpad (I know, ridiculous name, but she came
> with it) who is ten years old. She came from a house of 8 cats, and the
[quoted text clipped - 23 lines]
> Thanks for your help, this girl is a real sweetie, and I hope she finds a
> home quickly.
Hey Kelly,
Thanks for taking this girl in!
She could have a blockage - either hard or soft - that is interfering
with stool production. I had this problem with one of my kitties. I
would try to incorporate more fiber into her diet (canned pumpkin) and
make sure she is drinking enough water. She also could be constipated
from lack of food in the previous home.
Good luck,
-L.
KellyH - 14 May 2004 14:33 GMT
Thanks for the suggestions. I'm going to go get some canned pumpkin and
plain yogurt today.

Signature
-Kelly
kelly at farringtons dot net
Check out www.snittens.com
> > I have a foster cat named Hushpad (I know, ridiculous name, but she came
> > with it) who is ten years old. She came from a house of 8 cats, and the
[quoted text clipped - 36 lines]
> Good luck,
> -L.
MIKE - 14 May 2004 17:55 GMT
Amber is 9 1/2 and has always had "pellet" stools. There are usually
five or six "pellets" and the litter is usually tossed all over the
place. I can't tell if the stools are hard or not because of the
clumping type litter.
-MIKE
KellyH - 14 May 2004 18:33 GMT
> Amber is 9 1/2 and has always had "pellet" stools. There are usually
> five or six "pellets" and the litter is usually tossed all over the
> place. I can't tell if the stools are hard or not because of the
> clumping type litter.
That's what Hushpad has. They're like rocks tossed in with her litter. I'm
using traditional clay litter with her. It could be that she's always had
poop like that. Unfortunately, we don't have much history on her. I tend
to be a worrywart when it comes to my cats, especially the fosters.

Signature
-Kelly
kelly at farringtons dot net
Check out www.snittens.com
Laura R. - 15 May 2004 20:25 GMT
circa Thu, 13 May 2004 16:23:32 GMT, in rec.pets.cats.health+behav,
KellyH (Kelly@whatever.com) said,
> Now that I got the background out of the way, Hushpad has very small, hard,
> dry stools. I would expect that with only eating canned food, she would
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> posts about CRF. Could this be possible? She doesn't seem overly thirsty.
> Could she be constipated?
I'd vote for constipated, whatever the reason. Try pumpkin.
Laura

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I am Dyslexia of Borg,
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James Marz - 16 May 2004 00:18 GMT
> I have a foster cat named Hushpad (I know, ridiculous name, but she came
> with it) who is ten years old. She came from a house of 8 cats, and the
[quoted text clipped - 23 lines]
> Thanks for your help, this girl is a real sweetie, and I hope she finds a
> home quickly.
Give your cat a box full of chocolate flavored laxitives.
m. L. Briggs - 16 May 2004 00:48 GMT
>> I have a foster cat named Hushpad (I know, ridiculous name, but she came
>> with it) who is ten years old. She came from a house of 8 cats, and the
[quoted text clipped - 25 lines]
>
>Give your cat a box full of chocolate flavored laxitives.
You are so juvenile!