A few months ago I got a farm cat who was abnormally small. He was 6 months old when we got him, but weighed exactly 1 pound. He fit in the palm of my hand. Well now he has grown and filled out and his fur is nice and shiny, but he is still significantly smaller than his siblings. He weighs about 3 pounds now at approx. 9 months old.
He has had diarrhea ever since we got him. We took him to the vet when we got him to see why he was so small and the vet said most likely it was a ginetic thing, and that usually there are other complications. I figured the diarrhea was maybe a digestive problem, and left it at that. I didn't have the money to get a bunch of testing done, and I figured as long as he looks and acts healthy I would not worry about it.
Now that I have had several months to observe him, I am interested in finding out what is causing his diarrhea. I will take him to the vet soon, but I would like some ideas. What I have observed is that he eats and drinks constantly. He eats about two times more than my 16 year old healthy cat does. Usually when I am looking for him, I find him at his food bowl, or asleep with his chin in his water bowl. He always goes right to his box after eating, and right back to his food bowl when he's done. In three days I scoop about 5 pounds of feces and urine out of his box, which is about 4x what I get out of the other cat's box. I don't see any signs of worms or blood. Otherwise he seems to be in good health and is extremely playful...I don't even see him sleep much, like a normal cat would. His belly doesn't appear to be distended either.
any ideas?
my abnormally small kitten has diarrhea constantly
Has he never been examined since, in three months??? NOW is the time to do so, and be prepared for tests.
I strongly suggest first testing/treating for worms/parasites/bacterial infection (i.e., tapeworms, hookworms, roundworms, e-coli, salmonella, toxoplasmosis, giardia, campylobacter, coccidia). Then I strongly advise ruling out malbsorption, diabetes insipidus, or liver shunting. Malabsorption could be genetic, but could also be due to a dietary insufficiency or feeding an inappropriate diet (what are you feeding him?). Diabetes insipidus is a congenital imbalance and when you mention falling asleep near or in his water bowl, this is extremely concerning, he is obviously dehydrated due to the diarrhea, but could be suffering from diabetes insipidus. Liver shunting is also congenital, marked by slow growth, poor development, vomtiing, diarrhea, eventual liver disease/failure if not treated at the onset (must be surgically corrected).
Don't wait for "soon", get your kitten to an experienced vet immediately, (preferrably a new vet, feline-only vet) and get this diagnosed properly so it can be effectively treated.
I strongly suggest first testing/treating for worms/parasites/bacterial infection (i.e., tapeworms, hookworms, roundworms, e-coli, salmonella, toxoplasmosis, giardia, campylobacter, coccidia). Then I strongly advise ruling out malbsorption, diabetes insipidus, or liver shunting. Malabsorption could be genetic, but could also be due to a dietary insufficiency or feeding an inappropriate diet (what are you feeding him?). Diabetes insipidus is a congenital imbalance and when you mention falling asleep near or in his water bowl, this is extremely concerning, he is obviously dehydrated due to the diarrhea, but could be suffering from diabetes insipidus. Liver shunting is also congenital, marked by slow growth, poor development, vomtiing, diarrhea, eventual liver disease/failure if not treated at the onset (must be surgically corrected).
Don't wait for "soon", get your kitten to an experienced vet immediately, (preferrably a new vet, feline-only vet) and get this diagnosed properly so it can be effectively treated.
..........Traci
Re: my abnormally small kitten has diarrhea constantly
Sounds to me like two things I am VERY familiar with... Could be worms - you can not always see worms in feces - Or could be a sensitive kitty... I ha done kitty who was allergic to EVERYTHING - The only thing that stopped the rancid diarrhea and the frequent vomitting was Science Diet Seneitive Stomach food... You might want to try different foods but DEFINATELY get your kitten into the vet to be checked out before your other unsuspecting kitty catches something.... Good luck!