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Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

The litter tray

long haired cat always gets covered in pooh! any suggestions?? please!!!!

17 replies

metimeatlast · 30/01/2013 10:52

Hi, title says it all really, my new 2.5yo female long haired rescue cat always gets covered in pooh when she goes for one! i think she may have been taken from her mother too young, as she never washes, she is a joy to have around, but this pooh problem is getting me down as she is getting it where ever she sits! to the point where i dont want her on me cause shes always got it on her! aaaggghhh!
does anybody else have this problem? what do you do? years ago i had the same issue with a previous rescue moggy so i no its not just her. please no replies of get rid, cos shes a happy well natured little miss who is dearly wanted.

OP posts:

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cozietoesie · 30/01/2013 11:30

Is it clinging to long hair around her bottom or to the exit itself? Or both? And is it fairly liquid in consistency or lumps getting tangled up ? (Sorry to be so brutally clear but...)

Also - does she use her tray and how often do you clean it?

soaccidentprone · 30/01/2013 11:48

clip the hair round her bum so there's nothing to stick too?

also wet your hands and stoke her? I find that damp cats usually start to wash themselves

soaccidentprone · 30/01/2013 11:52

also try brushing her for a minute at a time.

our small fluffy cat sometimes gets poo on her bottom fur. we clip it off using kitchen roll and sharp scissors.

Wheresmycaffeinedrip · 30/01/2013 12:10

Brush her twice daily , keep hair hair clipped especially around her bottom. Is she overweight? Sometimes they can have trouble reaching places if they r a bit on the bigger side?

Sorry just read she can't wash then u will have to do it for her . Think your best off keeping her hair shorter. Clean bum after the toilet with cotton will and warm water. Keep hair very short around her anus.

cozietoesie · 30/01/2013 12:21

You can actually get wipes to clean with if you haven't always got cotton twill to hand.

I'm just a little concerned about the 'always gets covered in poo whenever she goes' though. That sounds as if the poo is a tad runny because it should really come out in lumps and most times go in the tray/ be able to be cut off.

But all the above is good advice, OP.

kiwigirl42 · 30/01/2013 12:49

I've got 2 ragdolls so know all about 'clingons on the starboard bow' as we call them.
the best thing is to get a pair of scissors and trim the trousers really short. It may not look very elegant but works. It usually takes me a couple of attempts over the course of the day to do a full job.

metimeatlast · 30/01/2013 13:14

thankyou all for your replies.
in answer to everybodys points :

today im going to try with the help of my mum to cut all the fir around her back end to see if that helps.
she is a very regular box user with both wees and poohs, im around most of the day so empty any deposits she leave without fail (last thing at night its left clean and cleaned 1st thing in the morning prior to breakfast)
she isnt overweight, shes quite a slender cat, so she should have no problems washing ( i will try damping the fir like soaccident said)
ive had her 8 days, the first couple of days her pooh was normal, then its become softer and she has had a touch of dihorea for 6days poohing about 3-4x a day. i cant seem to find the right food for her, she eats 3x pouches a day and ive been changing her foods after 2 days as i think its not been agreeing with her and thats why the dihorea hasnt shifted?
Ive been chasing her round washing her bum whenever she goes, but it isnt helping her with the settling in period

Can anybody recommend a food that makes their pooh less stinky aswell please??
again , many thanks for all your responses

OP posts:

Wheresmycaffeinedrip · 30/01/2013 13:22

John well beloved is supposed to be pretty good.

cozietoesie · 30/01/2013 13:37

If she's had a touch of diarrhoea for 6 days (which was what I was worried about) then I'd think about having her up to the vet. Sorry - I know that that's not what you want to hear what with needing to settle her but you might not know all her history so it could be a good idea to get her checked out. It might just be all the upset and a change of food - but who knows? Especially as her first two days were normal.

Have you registered her with a vet yet?

cozietoesie · 30/01/2013 13:41

PS - if you do go to the vet, see if you can take a sample of poo with you in case they need to do any tests.

soaccidentprone · 30/01/2013 13:59

I was told not to give chunks in gravy by the RSPCA as this is more likely to upset cats stomachs.

try something like this but make sure a bowl of fresh water is available

metimeatlast · 30/01/2013 14:26

to be honest i havn't registered her with a vet yet, i got her from a family friend who had a large family and children with allergies, the cat has been wormed, de-flead, spayed and is upto date with injections.
I tend not to buy gravy type foods, just out of habit, as they always seemed to have more gravy than meat (when we had our dog, silly habit has stuck)
As for the dihorea starting... i made the stupid mistake of doing a shop in Aldi, and just grabbing a couple of their tins, and looking back, thats when the problems started.
I will give it 24 hours now (as have put her back onto what she was ok with to start, yesterday) then will seek vets advice, her box has been clean from pooh all day, so got to wait and see to make a decission

OP posts:

cozietoesie · 30/01/2013 14:33

That's promising. A sudden change in diet can be counter-productive sometimes and if she hasn't had a poo all day that sounds as if she's adjusting.

Still a good idea to register her with a vet soonish though. Better to do it in advance of when you really need them.

Good luck with her.

metimeatlast · 30/01/2013 19:27

thanks all, lady cat is now all trimmed around her backside and had a very undignified bum wash still no pooh to report, so hopefully things are in hand and she is on the mend

OP posts:

catkitson · 31/01/2013 08:07

Canned pumpkin is very good for firming up a cat's poo. Also one of mine has a fish allergy, if I give him anything fishy he always gets the runs. You can also try hairball formula to help make the poo more soild.

Changing food from their usual to something new, and not doing it slowly can cause upset tummies.

Royal canin do an indoor cat formula which is meant to make poo less stinky.

The one who always had a dodgy tummy is fine now on royal canin indoor, plus non fishy wet food. If I go for totally wet food, we go back to stinky liquid poo.

I hope she is on the mend and you can hug her without fear of getting pooed on very soon.

metimeatlast · 01/02/2013 09:44

thanks catkitson lady cat is all firmed up now and back to normal. so lots of hugs for her again she is an indoor cat at the mo, gota keep her in until about 19 feb, but she used to be a very outdoor cat and now seems to be crying at the doors to go out, so that may end up changing, although im dreading it tbh. but it thats how she wants to be i will allow her outdoors in time, but i do not believe in allowing cats out overnight, so i will have to keep my fingers crossed that she isnt a wanderer! but im sure she will be home for her last thing at night feed

OP posts:

TheSilveryTinsellyPussycat · 01/02/2013 23:38

Train her to come when you shake the biscuit box :)

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