Help: Worried about our cats' health

Thread view:

Enable EMail Alerts

Start New Thread

Thread rating:

tencigars@yahoo.com - 20 Feb 2005 19:43 GMT

Our two cats have developed a problem with their stool. It has become
quite soft, and one of them is frequently leaving a little pile outside
of the litter box on the tile floor or in the bathtub.

This has been going on for close to two weeks now.

They are both neutered males residing entirely indoors, and they have
been on a diet of canned Purina Pro Plan "Ocean Fish & Crab Entree" for
about six months. One 3 oz. can apiece in the morning and another in
the late afternoon. We feed them nothing else.

Their appetites remain strong and their general energy level and
disposition seems healthy and normal.

What could be causing this and should we be concerned?

Thank you for any insights.

Jeff

Reply to this Message

Spot - 20 Feb 2005 19:52 GMT

Not to panic you any but a diet of only fish for any cat is not good. The
oils in the fish are too much for their system on a constant basis. I had a
cat who got on a kick where he would only eat stuff with tuna. After a
while he started loosing hair. He got back to normal after I took the tuna
away and even till the day he died I would only give him tuna about once a
weeks.

I would take the fish food away and switch them to something else canned
also a visit with the vet is called for to.

Celeste

> Our two cats have developed a problem with their stool. It has become
> quite soft, and one of them is frequently leaving a little pile outside
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
>
> Jeff

Reply to this Message

Karen - 20 Feb 2005 20:26 GMT

> Our two cats have developed a problem with their stool. It has become
> quite soft, and one of them is frequently leaving a little pile outside
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
>
> Jeff

They may be developing an intoleranced to some ingredient in the food. I
know there are a ton out there, but fish flavored food isn't the best thing
to have cats on. Especially male. Too much fish = too many minerals that may
cause urinary problems. Also, fish quality is not regulated like other
meats. I'd try slowly switching them to a different flavor, or even brand
altogether. It seems like I hear of a lot of cats not reacting well to Pro
plan here. That is of course purely anecdotal, but it does make one wonder.

Reply to this Message

W. Leong - 21 Feb 2005 06:47 GMT

>> Our two cats have developed a problem with their stool. It has become
>> quite soft, and one of them is frequently leaving a little pile outside
[quoted text clipped - 26 lines]
> plan here. That is of course purely anecdotal, but it does make one
> wonder.

I agreed. When I first got my cat Rusty, he started pooping outside the
litter box when I fed him Pro Plan. The problem stopped as soon as I
switched back to the food he was fed at Humane. The vet said
probably something in Pro Plan didn't agree with him.
Rusty also had his first urinary blockage while on IAM ocean fish.

Last year Rusty again pooped outside the litter box. He had been on
the same prescription food for 3 years for his urinary problem -
Waltham pH S/O. So we didn't suspect the food at first. But finally
the vet put Rusty on Hill's I/D and the problem stopped right away.
I suspected the formula was changed when the Waltham food became
Royal Canin, or Rusty developed an intolerance to one of the
ingredients.

Reply to this Message

tencigars@yahoo.com - 20 Feb 2005 21:59 GMT

tencig...@yahoo.com wrote:

> Our two cats have developed a problem with their stool. It has become
> quite soft, and one of them is frequently leaving a little pile outside
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
>
> Jeff

So far the replies I have received say that too much fish may be a
problem for cats. I thank you for the feedback.

I must say, that comes as a big surpise to me, as I posted a question
here about feeding exclusively this cat food when I started the cats on
it (titled "Is this cat food okay?") and got 20 replies, not one of
them mentioning the possibility that too much fish oil was bad for
cats!

Thank you. I will try to find another cat food, a non-fish variety,
that they will both eat. Looks like I'll be making a trip to PetSmart
this evening :)

Jeff

Reply to this Message

Karen - 20 Feb 2005 22:24 GMT

> tencig...@yahoo.com wrote:
>> Our two cats have developed a problem with their stool. It has
[quoted text clipped - 34 lines]
>
> Jeff

It's not the fish oil- a little omega 3 is good for them, but it should be
way down the ingredient list. Fish as a main ingredient is a problem (or can
be.)

Reply to this Message

Rate this thread: