Blood in a cat's stool: causes and treatment
Animals can never communicate in understandable language that something is bothering them. Therefore, their owners must monitor their pets' behavior, their appetite, and the contents of the litter box. Sometimes, drops of blood can be seen in the litter, but it's important to diagnose their source. In one case, filler The urine may be pinkish, or there may be blood in the cat's stool. But what causes this condition? How dangerous is it for the animal? How can you help your pet?
Content
- 1 Why does my cat have blood in its stool?
- 1.1 Poor nutrition
- 1.2 Constipation
- 1.3 Microcracks in the rectum
- 1.4 Foreign body in the intestines
- 1.5 Helminths, protozoa
- 1.6 Infectious diseases
- 1.7 Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract
- 1.8 Neoplasms, polyps
- 1.9 Problems with blood clotting
- 1.10 Poisoning with rat poison, zoocoumarin and other rodent poisons
- 1.11 Dysbacteriosis
- 2 When to seek veterinary help
- 3 How to help a cat with blood in its stool
Why does my cat have blood in its stool?
There are many reasons why a cat might have blood in its stool. First, it's important to determine whether the blood is fresh or dried. Crimson blood in a cat's stool indicates fresh bleeding, near the anus (in the rectum, or with a damaged anal sphincter), or severe bleeding in the large intestine.
If the blood in a cat's stool is dark (as if caked), this indicates that the bleeding was "higher up" in the intestines. It has had time to clot during its passage through the digestive tract. But why does blood appear in a cat's stool in the first place? What are the causes of this condition in animals? Should you be alarmed? Let's take things one step at a time.
Poor nutrition
This is especially true if the diet consists solely of coarse food (such as dry food). Its particles can damage the stomach lining, and less commonly, the intestines (after digestion in the stomach, the small intestine receives the already crushed and soft food). The intestinal lining can be damaged if the animal doesn't drink enough water (which is why chewed food doesn't soften and remains rough and sharp-edged) or if the gastric juice secretion is insufficient.
Constipation
Constipation in pets isn't limited to improper feeding. There are numerous causes of poor bowel movements. Hard feces move slowly through the intestines, damaging the delicate lining. Small scratches can bleed, which is how blood appears in a cat's stool. The blood is usually small and can be found on top of the feces (i.e., it appears at the end of the defecation process).
Microcracks in the rectum
They are formed due to injury to the mucous membrane by hard feces, foreign objects, thinning and drying of the mucous membrane.
Foreign body in the intestines
A foreign body can damage the gastrointestinal tract mucosa. Foreign, indigestible objects can include not only bones, sticks, and pieces of plastic (from chewed toys, for example), but also hair. Even if foreign bodies don't damage the gastrointestinal mucosa, they can cause constipation.
Helminths, protozoa
If we examine the parasite's structure, we see that most intestinal helminths have special attachment devices on their head end: suckers and hooks. These can damage the mucous membrane, causing minor bleeding.
Giardia, coccidia These are protozoa that can also cause blood in a cat's stool. This is due to increased capillary permeability. As a result, droplets of blood from the capillaries enter the intestinal lumen, mix with feces, and the owner notices abnormal feces in the litter box.
Infectious diseases
Some bacteria and viruses can cause blood in a cat's stool. For example, pathogens panleukopenia, parvovirus, rotavirus and coronavirus infections, etc.
Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract
The most common digestive diseases that lead to the appearance of blood in the stool of a cat are: stomach ulcer or intestines, acute pancreatitis, liver dystrophy, chronic colitis, enteritis and others. While the droplets will be noticeable with an ulcer, with other gastrointestinal diseases, the blood admixture is practically unnoticeable (however, changes may be detectable with laboratory testing).
Neoplasms, polyps
Such intestinal growths are not uncommon in cats. And when feces pass through such growths, they again become traumatized. However, malignant tumors (intestinal cancer in cats) are quite rare and difficult to diagnose.
Problems with blood clotting
If an animal has problems with blood clotting (including a lack of vitamin K or prothrombin), then any injury, even the most minor, will lead to bleeding.
Poisoning with rat poison, zoocoumarin and other rodent poisons
These rodent poisons are anticoagulants, meaning they interfere with blood clotting. The cat was poisoned It can occur not only when catching rodents (which have already been poisoned), but also when eating a mouse or rat carcass or licking the area where the poison was deposited. The animal can only be saved with the help of an antidote (a specific antidote).
Dysbacteriosis
Diarrhea, bloating, and flatulence are often symptoms of dysbiosis. Less commonly, intestinal bleeding is observed.
When to seek veterinary help
In addition to the presence of blood and mucus in your cat's stool, you should pay attention to other symptoms. Is there vomiting? diarrhea, loss of appetite, lethargy, or a fever may develop. If you notice blood in your cat's stool for the first time, switch it to wet food (remove dry food) and observe.
If the situation has not improved within the second or third day and new symptoms appear, then run to the vet!
You should immediately contact a veterinarian if you notice any of the following in your pet:
- Vomiting
- Loose stools with streaks of blood or bright red color (regardless of the age and gender of the pet)
- Frequent emptying of the bladder
- Lack of water
- Increased thirst
- Sudden lethargy
- Fever (elevated temperature)
- The appearance indicates that the animal is unwell.
How to help a cat with blood in its stool
- Before starting treatment, it's important to understand why your cat has blood and mucus in his stool. Only after establishing a diagnosis can a treatment plan be developed.
- In case of a foreign body or neoplasm in the intestine, only surgical intervention will help.
- In case of poisoning with rat poisoning, it will be necessary to use an antidote (vitamin K), IV drips, gastric lavage, supportive therapy; in case of poor blood clotting, constant use of vitamin K and iron supplements is necessary.
- Treating a cat with a gastrointestinal disease requires a comprehensive approach. The primary goal is to address the underlying cause and prescribe specific and symptomatic treatment. The animal should be monitored by a veterinarian and undergo additional examinations (urine, blood, and fecal tests, ultrasound, and, if necessary, X-rays with contrast). Self-medication is extremely dangerous.
- Infectious diseases require specific treatment (use of serums with ready-made antibodies, antibiotics) and symptomatic treatment. Failure to initiate therapy within the first 24 hours can result in the loss of your pet.
- For diseases caused by protozoa or parasites, it's essential to identify the pathogen. This is the only way to select the most effective medication to help your pet.
You can also ask our website's staff veterinarian a question, who will answer them as quickly as possible in the comments box below.
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192 comments
Enessa
Hello. My cat ate dry Blitz for a year, and everything was fine. Recently, she started seeing scarlet drops of blood in her stool. She's energetic.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! How are your deworming treatments going? How are your stools looking? Is it too dry? You should have an in-person examination. First, rule out any fissures in the rectum or lower colon (as well as tumors, polyps, ulcers, inflammation, or foreign bodies that interfere with normal stool flow. Peristalsis increases to push the stool through, which can cause mucosal injury and minor bleeding).
Then, parasites, including protozoa, are ruled out. In any case, a more comprehensive medical history and illnesses are needed, along with more information about the pet's lifestyle, diet, care, and disease prevention.
Catherine
Good afternoon! My cat is one year old. Over the last month, I've noticed blood (not caked) and mucus in my stool. He eats Sheba and Perfect Fit wet food, but also eats a lot of Purina One dry food. He drinks plenty of water and is active. Other symptoms include small sores on his lips that appear one by one and disappear over the course of a couple of days. Could these symptoms be related?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Yes, they could be related. How are your dog's vaccinations and dewormings up to date? Does he have access to the outdoors and contact with other animals? Have his stool tested for helminths (including protozoa). And be sure to investigate the cause of the ulcers. Rule out an infectious cause for the oral ulcers first. Then, avoid any possible contact with chemicals, flowers, or medications.
Enessa
Hello, I have a question. My cat is on Blitz dry food, which is suitable for her. Everything was fine before, no vomiting, diarrhea, or blood. Recently, however, she's started vomiting, but it's not very frequent, and it's clear that she's clearing up, and there's scarlet blood in her stool, literally a tiny drop. The food is good; I've been feeding it for a year. As soon as I start giving her pouches, the blood clears up immediately. She's energetic.
Irina
Hello. I cooked porridge with Novaga heads for the cats. My cat has been pooping blood for the second day. He has a good appetite.
He's cheerful. The cats ate too, but everything's fine. How can I help him?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Your cat may have eaten something hard that damaged his intestines. Undigested. This could include any bones (even the smallest), scales, gills, and other hard parts of any food.
Those that are indigestible should not be present in an animal's diet! Perhaps. This cat was less fortunate; he ate something that others did not touch. Option 2: take him to the vet for an examination (they may even perform surgery if necessary). Or wait until the problem resolves on its own.
Svetlana
Good afternoon. Our kitten is 3.5 months old, a small breed, and recently joined us. He's up to date on vaccinations and deworming. He's on a natural diet—a mix of minced meat, organ meats, and vegetables. He eats well, is active, and drinks water well. I give him low-fat sour cream (he doesn't like kefir) and a quail egg twice a week. His stool is fairly firm and well-formed.
There are streaks of blood in his stool, which are scarlet. Should I eliminate wet food as a treat? I only feed premium food. I don't feed dry food; he doesn't like it. Although, his previous owners ate dry food and boiled chicken. Is it time to take him to the vet?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! What kind of meat do you feed your cat? Raw or cooked (frozen, scalded, or boiled)? What kind of food do you feed it? You could take it to the vet and have a stool test for protozoa. Ideally, don't mix natural food and commercial food (even wet).
Maria
Good afternoon
Cat 1 year, 2 months, Devon Rex.
She came to me at four months old. She always had unformed stools with blood and mucus. The breeder told me to ignore them. But now they're becoming less and less formed every day. I'd like to know what can be done about this. She's a very small cat, weighing about a kilogram.
What I've already tried:
I changed the food, dewormed in a timely manner with Febtal and Milbemax,
Several courses of probiotics and smecta
Ronaxan antibiotics
All this gives only small temporary improvements 🙁
She's currently eating Nutram Ideal Solution Support (for "good digestion and skin health"). She previously ate Hills ZD (she's allergic, with swelling, sores, and itching all over her body). As a kitten, she ate Primordial for kittens and canned food. The breeder gave her Karmy. She's active and affectionate, and her only concerns are itching and loose stools.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Take your pet in for an examination. Get your blood tested for a complete blood count and a fecal analysis for parasites and protozoa. Let them examine you and see if they can find the problem. Diagnosis is difficult without a doctor's permission. But something tells me the skin and stool problems are just symptoms, not a distinct disease.
Perhaps an organ is suffering, or has become inflamed. Perhaps the kitten was defective, or the breeding was improper. That's where the health problems stem from. A general examination is needed. Then, treatment and diet can be adjusted.
Irina
Hello, we have a 1.5-year-old cat. Three weeks ago, he started passing unformed stool. It wasn't runny, like diarrhea, but soft and very greenish, with mucus and a drop of fresh, bright red blood. A month ago, he was fine, but after spending a week outside (he's generally a house cat, always indoors in the city, except for a couple of days in the country in the summer when we visit), he only ate and came home to sleep.
So, upon returning home to the city, we first noticed mucus and dead worms in his stool. The vet, naturally, immediately diagnosed a worm infestation based on my description, without much examination, and gave him injections of Levamisole, Iverlok, and Diphenhydramine.
The worms were gone, but his stool hadn't returned to normal; it was still unformed. At another clinic, they examined him again and ran a blood chemistry test. Everything seemed normal, except for his urea, which was elevated to 12 units. So, he took another deworming pill, but his stool remained the same, with mucus and a drop of scarlet blood.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Fresh stool analysis is recommended to rule out protozoa. The cat's diet should be revised to a more gentle one to avoid straining the gastrointestinal tract. What are you feeding the cat? Biochemistry levels should be checked; there may be a problem with the ratio of these levels, although everything should be within normal physiological limits. Does the cat eat any grass? Plants?
Faith
Hello! My cat is 12.5 years old. I've started noticing bright red blood in his stool. I haven't noticed any other symptoms. I've dewormed him with Prazitel, but the situation hasn't improved. Could you tell me what tests I should undergo in this situation?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! It's advisable to submit feces to a lab to rule out protozoan parasites. Prazitel won't kill them; a different medication—a coccidiostatic—is needed. A complete blood count and biochemistry panel are also needed; this will help rule out cancer (unfortunately, the cat is no longer young, so there's a risk of tumors) and internal organ problems.
Is the blood in large quantities or just drops? Is the stool normal or has the consistency and color changed? Could this type of bleeding be a consequence of constipation?
Lyudmila
Good afternoon! Today I discovered blood on the floor and on the chair where my cat was sitting. It's scarlet and there's quite a lot of it. My cat is 19 years old. She's always been very active. But in the last two months, her appetite has decreased. She eats wet food. She's been vomiting before this, too. She's become very lethargic, drinking more often than eating. She seems hungry, but isn't eating well.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! My cat is older, so it's important to rule out cancer, as scary as it may sound. An examination is necessary. But first, we need to determine whether the blood is coming from the rectum or the uterus. An ultrasound and blood tests are essential. It's possible it's not that bad—just inflammation, ulcers, maybe even parasites. But only after an examination and testing can we know for sure.
Victoria
If there is blood in the stool, you can't use enemas or suppositories, but taking Regulax before bed works much better.
Olga
Hello. I have a cat who is 1 year and 9 months old. He's not neutered and goes outside. About a month ago (two weeks after his vaccinations), I noticed streaks of blood in his stool at the end of the process. I stopped feeding him dry food. He doesn't always use the litter box; sometimes he goes outside, so I can't always monitor his stool changes. He lost a little weight at first.
He vomited once, after which they started giving him Aversect 0.2% injections once a week, as recommended by the vet. I sometimes see blood, sometimes not, but it's not at the end anymore, but in the middle, in dark clots. After the injections, the cat started eating better and gained a little weight.
Today he got another shot. By evening, he had another bloody bowel movement and vomited some more liquid. He's on liquid Felix and dry Purina One. We don't have a veterinary clinic, so taking him to the regional center is very difficult. What should we do? Maybe you can suggest something. We tried parasite treatment when we noticed the blood, but he spat out almost all of it.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Why do you need to inject Aversect once a week? Did the vet diagnose your cat with demodicosis? Didn't you try reading the instructions before injecting your cat? Let's say you used Aversect to treat nematodes. But! Blood in the stool can also be a symptom of protozoan parasites (like giardiasis).
Enteritis and intestinal ulcers could also be caused by the same feeding. Forgive me, but feeding your cat both budget food (Felix) and super-premium food (Purina One) is wrong. Eliminate Felix from the diet altogether!
Now, get food for animals with sensitive digestion. Don't let him outside (he could eat anything there, even swallow a foreign object, which would cause bleeding). Besides, the animal will constantly pick up parasites during walks.
Introduce vitamins and minerals into your diet.
Vitamin B12 is essential (injectable is fine), calcium supplements (essentially, so monitor your phosphorus and vitamin D intake, otherwise the calcium won't be absorbed), and vitamin C to strengthen blood vessel walls.
Irina
Hello! I have an 8-year-old British Shorthair cat. I've been having blood in my cat's stool for a month now. The blood is bright red and fresh. When we first noticed it, we took him to the vet. The vet examined him and took his temperature, which was normal. A stool test showed no worms. He was prescribed Sinuflox injections.
I had 3-4 injections (I couldn't take any more). I also gave Linex (without a doctor's prescription) along with the injections. For a week or two, everything was fine, and my stool was bloodless. Now, for three weeks, it's all happening again. The clinic doesn't do colonoscopies, so we can't check my bowels. Could you please tell me what to do?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! What are you feeding them? How long ago and what medication did you use for deworming? It's good that you checked their stool for pinworm eggs. But parasite eggs aren't always present in the stool, only during the period when the females are shedding them. So, you need to have them tested several times a month. And also have them tested for protozoa. What is the stool like?
Maybe it's too hard? Does the cat shed too much? Is he still throwing up clumps of licked hair? Instead of a colonoscopy, you could at least get an ultrasound to check the condition of the intestines (inflamed walls will be noticeable).
Irina
Good afternoon, my 4-month-old kitten has blood and some mucus in his stool. The kitten has been dewormed, vaccinated, and is quite active. He eats Royal Conin kitten dry food. What tests should I do first for diagnosis?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Your description is a bit unclear. Is the kitten 4 months old, or has the blood in its stool been present for 4 months? The first thing to rule out is protozoan parasites (regular anthelmintics don't work on these little buggers). Therefore, a stool sample should be submitted for analysis, but it must be fresh (no more than half an hour after collection, meaning it's easier to do it at the clinic itself).
Second, get tested for infectious diseases (both viral and bacterial). Also, get a complete blood count and biochemical analysis to determine if there's any inflammation in the animal's body.
Daria is a veterinarian
Ultrasound and other more specialized examinations MAY be prescribed based on laboratory test results. If anything is suspected (inflammation, tumors, blood loss, for example, due to gastrointestinal ulcers), or, conversely, everything is clear, then an instrumental examination may be performed.
In general, what does the stool itself look like? Is it too dry? Or, on the contrary, too runny. What kind of blood is it (scarlet, dark) and how much is it (a drop, a lot)? Is it mixed in at the end of the bowel movement or is it present in the stool?
Irina
4 months is the kitten's age.
Blood at the end of a bowel movement, on top of the stool. I would say the stool is a bit runny, not dry. The blood is bright in the stool. Despite all this, the kitten is playful, eats well, and drinks enough water.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello again! Since the blood is scarlet at the end, the problem is most likely at the very end of the gastrointestinal tract (large intestine, rectum), as the blood hasn't yet had time to clot and "oxidize" (i.e., acquire a brownish tint). Therefore, the first thing to do is have a fresh stool sample tested for protozoa.
Then switch to wet food from the "sensitive digestion" line. Add probiotics/prebiotics, vitamins, and dietary supplements to help digestion. If protozoa are detected in the stool, a long-term course of metronidazole-based medication will likely be prescribed.
Irina
The blood is bright, on top of the feces.
Ivan
Hello, we have a one-year-old Bengal cat who frequently has loose stools, sometimes with blood. We feed him mostly hils wet food for neutered cats. He ate my little sister's hair tie three times, which he later vomited out. Should I be concerned?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Yes, you should be concerned. Blood in the stool (especially liquid stool) is always a pathology (abnormality). It's important to look for the underlying cause: parasites, protozoa, enteritis, ulcers, tumors, mucosal trauma, infection, or foreign objects in the gastrointestinal tract.
I think you understand that only an in-person examination can make a definitive diagnosis. It's a bit unclear: did the cat eat three gumballs, the same one several times, or was it the third time he was seen eating inedible items? In any case, review the diet (your phrase "mostly Hills" clearly implies that you're feeding the animal something else). And deworm the intestinal parasites (but only if you eliminate the loose stool; worms aren't dewormed for diarrhea).
Nika
How can I stop diarrhea if it's caused by worms?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Smecta "fixes" the stool. Other common remedies include starch and water, and introducing rice into the diet. Once the stool becomes more or less formed, you can eliminate the parasites. If the infestation is severe, extreme caution is necessary to avoid increased intestinal peristalsis, which can lead to intestinal obstruction.
And after 10-14 days, repeat deworming (it is possible to do it once only if the drug chosen is effective on all stages of larvae and adult helminths, and the infestation is small or medium).
Inga
Hello! My cat is 6 months old. He eats dry food for neutered cats. We've noticed that sometimes there are drops of blood in his stool. What could this be?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! There are many possible causes of blood in the stool. These include trauma to the mucous membrane by hard feces (check the stool), inflammation, ulcers/cracks, foreign bodies (including tumors), weak blood vessels, helminths (including protozoan parasites), infectious diseases, poisoning, the use of certain medications, poor-quality food, and much more.
More details are needed (what kind of blood, how much), but ideally the animal should still be examined in person with additional testing to find the exact cause of the illness.
Valeria
Hello! My 3-year-old Maine Coon cat has blood in her stool. She was out of town for two weeks. She was eating dry and wet food well, was active, and felt fine. When we brought her home, she no longer eats dry food at all. She is active and has a good appetite, and only eats wet food. I first noticed blood on August 7, 2019, in the evening, and again on August 8, 2019, in the morning (a small streak of blood).
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! You need to get a stool sample tested. We need to rule out protozoa or larger intestinal parasites. Are your pets on schedule for deworming? It's also important to rule out a viral infection (if the stool is runny). What kind of food (who is the manufacturer)? Are the stools too hard or dense? Is there constipation?
Marina
Hello, my cat is 3 years old and eats porridge, meat, cottage cheese, and egg whites. He started scratching himself, and the vet said it was an allergy, gave him an injection, and prescribed suprastin. He started having loose, bloody stools. I stopped giving him suprastin, but he's still active, playing, and eating, and his behavior hasn't changed much.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! How are things going with deworming and vaccinations? Were they done according to schedule? Was antibiotic therapy prescribed? Was any testing done? Are there any rashes or lesions on the skin? Is the itching still present? Have you tried changing the diet? Have you given any medications on your own?
Lily
Hello! Bengal male cat, 11 months old. Vaccinated. Eats Royal Canin Intestinal dry food and ground chicken necks. Three days ago, his stool was lighter than usual and there was a drop of bright red blood from his anus. We removed the necks from his diet, and the next day his stool was normal. On the third day, there was a drop of blood at the end of his fecal tape, and his stool was softer than usual. He doesn't go outside, but he opens the shoe cabinet and sniffs everything there. He drinks water. He eats well and asks for meat, but we don't give him any. He is active. His stomach is soft.
I've been noticing intestinal spasms and a cough for a week (a 2-3 second neck tightening). I bought Advocate deworming and flea drops for 4-8 kg cats until they start bleeding, but I'm hesitant to use them. Taking him to a clinic in another city is stressful for him, and holding him is a challenge. We called a local vet when we had a problem, but we'll take him there if necessary.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Remove any foods containing bones (even the smallest ones) from your pet's diet. Give him an anthelmintic (we're not talking about diarrhea). However, it wouldn't hurt to get him examined (blood can also appear if he has protozoa in his intestines, and regular anthelmintics don't kill them).
Infectious diseases shouldn't be ruled out, nor should inflammatory processes (enteritis, ulcers, mucosal trauma from bone fragments, for example) be ruled out. Scarlet blood indicates fresh bleeding, meaning the problem should be sought in the lower intestine.
Martina
Hello,
I have a European Burmese. He's 8 years old and neutered. Last month, he had runny stools with a drop of light-colored blood. After being dewormed, he didn't have any blood for a month and was going to the bathroom normally. Today, his stools were runny again, but the blood was blackish. He usually eats only dry food and rarely eats canned food, but a couple of days ago, he started asking for more canned food.
What could it be? What can I do to help him? I was planning to deworm him again and give him more water.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! What kind of food are you feeding? How have you been treating parasites? How are the vaccinations going? Blood this dark most likely indicates intestinal bleeding (either in the upper colon or small intestine, as it clots during its passage through the gastrointestinal tract). An ultrasound would be a good idea, as would an intestinal examination.
Rule out inflammatory processes (a general and biochemical blood test will provide clues here), neoplasms, protozoan parasites (regular anthelmintic drugs do not work on them), ulcers/cracks, etc.
It's a good idea to review the feeding and provide more fluids. It's possible that the animal wouldn't be able to cope with very dry food, and hard feces would form in the intestines, scratching the mucous membrane. But you can see the feces in the litter box; if they're liquid, it's clearly not due to a lack of water.
Natalia
Hello. My cat is 1.1 years old. I had her spayed when she was almost 10 months old. Three days after the spay, I noticed a drop of red blood in her stool. Then she started having diarrhea. I gave her levomecin and phthalazole, but finally I treated her with 1.5 ml of smecta 4-5 times a day. I split the capsule in half, morning and evening, and took Bifiform from a regular pharmacy. Feline Prebiotic from the veterinary pharmacy didn't help. She was spayed in February 2019. It's now June.
The cat is eating dry Orijen food normally. Her stools are still loose, but only twice a day. So we've kind of stopped worrying too much. Today I was cleaning the litter box and there was a fair amount of scarlet blood right on top of her loose stool. I looked and saw two drops of blood on the floor. I haven't dewormed her.
Before her spay, my cat ate Orijen and had normal, thick stools twice a day. What should I do? We can't get a stool sample here in town. I'll have to take it to the region if I can find out in Yekaterinburg. What should I do, please?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Spaying didn't affect her bowel movements in any way. On the contrary, constipation in animals during the first few days is often caused by pain. But it's not like she's had loose stools for four months. She should have been treated for parasites long ago, including protozoa. And she should have been examined by a vet, not medicated.
During this period, feed should have been selected for animals with gastrointestinal disease or sensitive digestion. Enteritis, ulcers, or intestinal fissures should also be ruled out.
Margarita
A family we know developed panleukopenia in their cat. It was also after spaying. Before that, they'd also found blood in her stool, but only once, so we thought it was the food. They couldn't save the cat. I hope yours isn't the same, but it's best to check for infectious agents.
Inna
Good evening!
We adopted a two-month-old Devon Rex kitten five days ago. For the past five days, his stool has been runny and mixed with scarlet blood and mucus. This evening, the blood increased.
A week before the move, we dewormed and vaccinated against rabies.
Everything seemed fine before the move, but the bleeding appeared within the first few hours at home, so it can't be attributed to the change in food. Or could the new food have had this effect within 2-3 hours?
At home, the kitten ate its mother, yolks, Fitmin kitten food, and sometimes wet food (I don’t know the brand).
After the move, we immediately introduced N&D (Farmina) grain-free kitten food. The next day, we gave her a couple of bagel crumbs, and in the following days, we fed her scrambled eggs and egg yolk from the table. When we investigated the blood in her stool, we clarified the exact name of the food and reintroduced it from the day before.
This evening, the stool became noticeably looser and more frequent (twice in a couple of hours), with slightly more blood. The kitten is alert and active; the other kittens in the litter, who stayed home with their mother, are free of similar symptoms.
We're going to the vet in a few days, trying to figure out the cause ourselves and deciding what to do. Should we probably cut out the dry food completely? But what should we replace it with? Will boiled beef be okay? And what's best—cut it into small pieces or blended? And what should we use for fiber?
Thanks in advance for your reply! I've reread all the messages, but each case is unique, and I want to avoid making any more mistakes before seeing a doctor.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Are you sure the kitten didn't eat anything at the previous owners' house that triggered the digestive upset, and that the sudden change in food only worsened the digestive upset? But if I were you, I'd take it to the vet for tests (for coronavirus and definitely for protozoa, but only fresh stool samples are tested for protozoa).
Giving anything before a veterinarian's appointment can obscure the clinical picture, complicate diagnosis, and may render the tests uninformative. The animal requires intravenous fluid therapy if there has been significant fluid loss, as well as hemostatic medications.
Ira
We had this happen after constipation :( Apparently he chewed on some bones. Later, I started giving him a couple of drops of Regulax in such cases, his stool softened and there was no blood.
Oksana
Good evening! My 8-year-old cat is a domestic cat. He was neutered and had a urethral plastic surgery three years ago. He only eats Proplan cat food for spayed cats, and he doesn't eat soft food well. I always offer it, but he won't even eat half a can. A year ago, he had mucus and streaks of blood in his stool, and his stool is hard.
We tested him and found coronavirus and protozoan cysts, but nothing else. We treated him, and the coronavirus was negative when he was retested, but the protozoan cysts remained. Now he's bleeding bright red blood again, in drops, and his stool is hard. I'm giving him water from a syringe, although he's drinking and eating normally on his own, and there are no other symptoms other than blood in his stool. I also give him malt paste every day.
You wrote that protozoa can produce blood. My cat has protozoan cysts, and can they also produce blood? How can I get rid of them? If metronidazole helps with protozoan cisterns, what is the dosage and how many times a day should I give it to him? My cat weighs 6.5 kg. I would be very grateful for your help. We love our cat very much, please help me figure this out!
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Cysts are one of the "stages" in the protozoan life cycle (a kind of "pinworm" for nematodes, which are looked for in stool tests). If they remain, it means the treatment was inadequate. The drugs of choice for treating cats for protozoa are sulfonamide antibiotics, such as sulfadimethaxine. For the first two days, the dose is 50 mg of active ingredient per 1 kg of body weight, then 25 mg/kg per day for 2-3 weeks.
Metronidazole can be used at a dose of up to 25 mg/kg (minimum 10 mg/kg), but twice a day (every 12 hours). + coccidiostatics: amprolium, pharmcoccid, coccidin, chemcoccid, quinococcin, for example. However, with protozoan infections, the stool is most often liquid. Could the blood be due to the stool being too hard? Replace dry food entirely with wet food for animals with sensitive digestion.
Irina
Hello. My Sphynx cat is cheerful and has a good appetite. We've been to the vet and she's healthy, but we adopted her as an adult two weeks ago and for two weeks now she's had blood, like mucus, in her stool. I've been giving her probiotics and Hill's cat food for cats with gastrointestinal issues for the past 10 days. Her stool is loose. We've been giving her wet food, but it's causing diarrhea.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Did they deworm the animal when you got it (including protozoa)? Where did you get the adult cat, and what did they feed him? It looks like they gave you a sick animal.
Now it's time to get examined and find the cause of the illness (most likely enteritis – an inflammatory process in the intestines). It's important to rule out intestinal ulcers, tumors, and foreign bodies. Increase your vitamin intake (including K3 for better blood clotting, and E and A in oil for faster epithelial cell regeneration).
Svetlana
Hello. My cat is 11 months old. For the last week, he's been spitting bloody mucus. Previously, it happened about three times, but now it's every day. He's fed dry food constantly and wet food twice a day. Otherwise, his behavior and general condition are completely normal.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! There's very little information about the pet's care and feeding. What kind of food (manufacturer) is it? Are there any supplements from the table? How long ago was the parasite treatment last done, and what medication was used? Does it have all the necessary vaccinations for its age? Does it go outside? Does it interact with other animals?
What is the consistency of the stool? What color is the blood (bright red or dark brown)? How much is there? Has the patient's body temperature been measured (not by the ears or nose, but with a thermometer, as is required)? Have you already tried any other medications yourself?
Maria
Hello! Please help. My two-month-old kitten has blood in his stool at the end of his bowel movements for about 2.5 weeks now. It started when I first added oatmeal to his meat puree. I haven't given him oatmeal since, but the blood is still there. Tests for helminths and eggs, giardia, salmonella, and coronavirus are negative. We're waiting for the bacterial culture results. The vet recommended giving him only pureed food for a week. I did, and the blood may have cleared up, but it's hard to tell because he keeps dropping feces into the litter.
But the blender broke the other day, and the bleeding was clearly back. I'm feeding her natural food: frozen farm-raised ground rabbit + mashed boiled zucchini (or another vegetable, sometimes rice). And even without the blender, it's not at all hard food. What could be causing such mucosal sensitivity? At her age, her mother ate dry food just fine. Thanks for the answer!
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Is this the right age for deworming? Have you dewormed? A stool test for helminths can sometimes be negative because parasites don't always lay eggs. Prophylactically, you should deworm with a broad-spectrum medication, such as metronidazole, as a preventative/treatment for protozoa.
Actually, the kitten is already an adult and can eat solid food. It's strange that he's still on soft food. Vitamins A and E should be given as well; they help the mucous membranes and other tissues recover and regenerate faster. Is the blood bright or brown, as if clotted?
Sofia
Hello! My kitten is three days old and is bottle-fed. He's not nursing. Today I noticed that he's passing light-colored blood when he defecates. He meows while doing so. What could this be and how can I deal with it?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! What exactly are you bottle-feeding your kitten? Cow's milk or a special kitten formula (cat milk replacer)? How are you feeding her? The meowing could be due to constipation, or, conversely, flatulence and severe laxatives. Please describe the situation in more detail. Most likely, the bleeding is due to improper feeding.
marina
I used to give them Royal wet food for kittens, but now I don't, only Hill's ID dry food.
On April 8, should I give Enviro according to the schedule, but is it possible even if there is blood in the stool?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! What's with all these sudden changes in food and brand? Why hasn't the animal had blood in its stool been diagnosed? You can't switch to a different food unless the gastrointestinal issue is resolved. Don't change the diet until you resolve the blood in the stool. It's also best to switch from dry to wet food; dry food may not fully dissolve in the gastrointestinal tract and may irritate the mucous membranes.
It's best to serve wet food. Have a stool sample tested for protozoa (but it must be fresh – no more than half an hour; sometimes clinics collect samples directly from the rectum, carefully, to ensure they're "fresh"). Have an ultrasound done to rule out tumors, foreign bodies, and ulcers in the intestines.
Anzhela1996
Hello, please tell me, I had my cat neutered a week ago. The doctor examined him before the procedure, everything was fine, no contraindications. We performed the surgery, everything went well, no side effects. He eats and drinks well, and is active. Three days ago, I put some flea drops on his withers, and he somehow got them out and licked them. After that, he pooped this morning and there was a small drop of blood, but the stool was normal, no mucus or diarrhea. Is this poisoning?
He was once poisoned by litter (I decided to try it), he had bloody diarrhea, the vet recommended smecta, it helped. This time I decided to give him smecta too. Do you think he could have been poisoned by flea drops?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Poisoning could have occurred if the drops weren't fully absorbed and the cat was able to reach the area where they were applied with its tongue. However, in this case, poisoning would most likely manifest itself as profuse salivation, vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, and lethargy. Can you recall whether you've been deworming and with what? How long ago? What color is the blood in the stool (scarlet, brown)?
In the future, if you treat your cat with drops, either hold them in your arms for 30-40 minutes to ensure they're thoroughly absorbed, or put a collar around their neck to prevent them from licking the withers. If you notice this, induce vomiting (if it's been less than half an hour since they licked themselves), administer activated charcoal or another absorbent, smecta, and plenty of fluids.
Anzhela1996
Thank you very much! Smecta helped, the bleeding stopped. And please tell me, what can I use to deworm him besides syrups and tablets? I bought some drops for the withers, but they're not very good. I want to buy some good ones, but I don't know which ones. He also has spots on his tongue, which go away after the dewormer, but they've now appeared again (I dewormed him a little over a month ago. I have a Scottish Fold. I'd be grateful for any advice).
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! I prefer tablets. And stick to good, certified products. It's better to give an expensive product once that's guaranteed to work than a cheap one twice. For example, Drontal, Milbemax, Caniquantel, and their analogs (they have a broad spectrum of activity and kill both adult and larval insects, so a single dose is sufficient, and there's no need to repeat after 10-14 days).
Animals often spit out suspensions, so pets don't receive the full dose. Regarding blood, it would be a good idea to rule out protozoan parasites (they shed blood). Metronidazole will help combat protozoa.
Angela
Thank you so much, Daria, do you have an Instagram page? I'd love to follow you.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! I do have a page, of course, but it's personal and my profile is private. I don't offer veterinary consultations there (if you have any questions, please write here; I'll answer them on the second day, if not the first). I do have a subscription to dozens of veterinary clinics, including some international ones.
Angela
Hello, I understand)) Could you please tell me what could cause a rash on his lip? Usually he licks something salty and gets a rash right away, but the other day he developed a rash, even though he didn't seem to lick anything, I kept a close eye on him. Could it be worms? Or fleas? Although I treated him for fleas a week ago.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello again! Well, you can't watch the animal 24/7 (especially since cats are nocturnal, and most of them are mischievous at night). It could have chewed something at night. Worms won't do that. Fleas are the only way to avoid them if they bite your lip or if you have flea allergy dermatitis (a type of allergic reaction to the saliva and excrement of these skin-dwelling bloodsuckers).
Do you have any decorative indoor plants at home? Does your cat chew, lick, or sniff them? Do you use any chemicals on your floors or dishes?
Angela
Hello! We don't have any houseplants because he's very curious and tries everything. I treated him for fleas a week ago. He loves to climb into the sink, etc., and we try our best to cover everything with something so he doesn't lick the chemicals. I'd just like to know if this is dangerous. We've already taken him to the hospital several times for allergy shots, and they say he's allergic. Because, like cheese, he'll lick butter and then break out in a rash the next day.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello again! It's possible your cat does have a food allergy. Likely to dairy products, for example. Hide such things from your cat if you know it's climbing on the table, licking, and tasting everything. Licking everything is very bad news, and it could be a big mistake. Before you can wash off any chemicals, your cat might lick your food and get severely poisoned and burned.
Cats often go into the sink to drink from dishes that are there (they haven't had time to wash them) or to lick water from the sink. Provide a large drinking bowl (a large plate or even a mug can help with sink urges). Do injections at the clinic help? If so, it's likely an allergic reaction.
Anastasia
Daria, hello! Please help us! I adopted a British shorthair neutered male cat, 1 year and 3 months old, and I have a female British shorthair at home. At first, he was pooping mucus and a little blood, and after a while, the female cat started having the same problem, even though his stool had always been fine before. I've had both of them dewormed several times.
Can my cat get protozoa from a cat? And how can I treat both of them now? What's the proper dosage of metronidazole? Also, the cat had white specks like semolina at first, and now my cat has too. What could this be? Now the cat has a separate stream of mucus coming out at the end of his stool, and it lasts for a very long time! Please help.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Yes, protozoa can be transmitted. However, in your case, infectious diseases must also be ruled out. For protozoa infections, cats are given high doses – up to 25 mg of active ingredient per 1 kg of body weight (minimum dose 10 mg of active ingredient per 1 kg of body weight) with food every 12 hours.
But I would recommend getting a checkup and checking the gastrointestinal tract. What about feeding? Has the animal's diet been changed recently? Are there any other symptoms? Is the animal constipated? Is the stool a normal consistency or hard?
marina
Good afternoon
Sphynx, 5 months old, dewormed in January by Envayer
He was on Royal kitten food, I switched him to Optimil, and at the end of his bowel movements, he started seeing a drop of dark blood. He's happy, drinks a lot of water, his urine is normal, and he hasn't developed any skin rashes.
The vet advised switching to Hill's ID and giving him 1 phytomines each to remove hair (even if there is no hair, it contains medicinal herbs).
I've been giving her this regimen for a week, but there's still blood in her stool, just 1 drop at the end. Her stool is normal, not constipated.
What should I do? Or hasn't enough time passed yet?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! I prefer malt paste for cats (it helps remove hair from the digestive tract and strengthens the fur, preventing it from shedding as much). How long has it been since you dewormed your cat? Have you tried wet food? Have you had a complete blood count and biochemistry done?
Tatiana
Hello! We have a 13-year-old cat. About a month ago, she started having mucus and fresh blood in her stool. This happened after a stressful event. A four-month-old kitten, bought for her mother, came into the house. He lived with her for about a week and pestered her constantly, trying to play. He also had different food, and our cat ended up eating it.
A few days after the cat was taken away, these problems began. The cat became lethargic and lost her appetite.
The vet gave me an IV and prescribed Sulf for 6 days and Fortiflora for 2 weeks.
We finished all of this. Her appetite returned, and she seemed to be more active. But the blood remained. The doctor also prescribed Proplan EN food for digestion and Hepatovet for a month, plus we took Diagel for four days. After the Diagel, the blood stopped, but it returned after we finished.
They prescribed Ciprovet for 5 days, which we took. And then we continued Hepatovet.
Now the cat feels well, has a good appetite, plays sometimes, goes to the toilet every day, but every now and then this scarlet blood appears again, and at the beginning of the bowel movement (the first poop, in Russian) it comes out brown, apparently blood from the previous toilet, it continues for some time and dries.
The doctor said she has a metabolic disorder and clogged Bartholin glands (they were apparently cleaned). A stool analysis showed a lot of fat. She's currently on a diet and has lost a bit of weight.
We dewormed, no worms.
I'm concerned about the blood; the doctor isn't saying anything definitive about it. But he's ruling out foreign objects in the intestines. I've also noticed a lot of hair in my stool. Could that be the cause?
Maybe we should switch completely to wet food?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Switch entirely to wet food for animals with sensitive digestion. It would be a good idea to have fresh stool samples (no more than half an hour old) tested for protozoa. Rule them out. They often produce blood in the stool, but only in small amounts. Simple anthelmintics do not eliminate protozoa.
Rule out intestinal ulcers and anal fissures (since the blood is bright red). Rule out polyps and tumors (only an X-ray or coproscopy will help with this). How did you rule out a foreign body? Did you feel it with your hands or did you get an X-ray?
Tatiana
We had a biochemistry panel, a clinical blood test, and some other blood tests for the liver. Cancer was ruled out. Initially, all the blood tests were normal, but a month later, a repeat test showed slightly elevated white blood cells, so we started antibiotics. A stool test was done, and that's when they discovered elevated fat and hair in the stool.
We gave Milbemax twice (we give it once a quarter), and worms were ruled out.
Regarding the foreign body, they said it definitely wasn't that, because the symptoms were different, and our cat doesn't like to eat just anything. They didn't do an X-ray.
We've now introduced wet food, and the bleeding has almost completely disappeared. We'll keep an eye on it; maybe the dry food isn't being fully digested and is causing irritation to the mucous membranes as it passes out.
Thanks for the reply, we'll know what to do next if the bleeding appears again!
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello again! The main thing is to get well soon! Give Fortiflora (especially after taking antibiotics, it's good to restore the microflora and improve digestion). And keep an eye on it. I think everything will improve with a change in diet.
Victoria
Hello, the day before yesterday my cat pooped, I wiped it with wet wipes because it is very fluffy and its bottom is dirty after going to the toilet, so I started wiping and saw a little blood on the wipe, I looked in the tray there was only a little bit on top, yesterday she went without blood, today again at the end there is a little blood, only at the end, otherwise everything is clean, she eats, drinks, etc. as usual.
He also farts frequently and smells. The vet prescribed us Espumisan for children. We gave it to him and it seemed to be fine, but then the same thing happened again.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Espumisan is simply for gas relief, so that flatulence doesn't distend the intestines, causing colic or pain. But it has no effect on blood in the stool!
What are you feeding your pet? How long has it been since they've been treated for parasites? Have you had a stool test? There are several possibilities: constipation due to improper feeding, protozoan parasites (such as giardiasis), intestinal polyps or tumors, or lesions in the lower intestine (ulcers, fissures). Without a proper examination, a definitive diagnosis is impossible, meaning treatment cannot be chosen.
Inna
Hello! Today I discovered blood after my one-year-old British Shorthair's stool. It's not dark. He eats Royale normally for British Shorthairs, and Sheba slices in sauce. He drinks and walks. However, his mouth has been smelling rotten for a while now (his teeth seem fine) and he often has a runny nose, like water. When he has a runny nose, he's not active. He was dewormed on time. He's a house cat. Should I take him to the vet?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! I don't necessarily need to rush to the vet, but it's a good idea to get a checkup. It's important to rule out gastrointestinal problems. Mouth odor can be caused by inflammation in the upper gastrointestinal tract: the mouth, throat, and stomach. It can also be caused by the food (my old lady's mouth stinks terribly after eating fish-flavored food. I joke that the stench makes flowers wilt, but if you give her a different flavor, the smell is practically gone).
But bright red blood at the end of a bowel movement indicates that the blood is fresh, not yet oxidized, meaning the wounds are fresh (either microcracks in the lower colon or rectum, or protozoa have become active, perhaps polyps or neoplasms in the intestines). As you can see, differentiating the diagnosis is not so easy without an in-person examination and the results of the tests.
Julia
Good afternoon
Please advise us. We have a similar situation. My 8-month-old cat has blood at the END of his bowel movements, about 3-4 drops. I can't figure out what kind of blood it is. It's not bright red, something in between. The feces aren't hard, but formed and dark. We feed Brit Care Super Premium kitten food and pouches of the same brand. His appetite is normal, he drinks enough water, is active, and doesn't seem to be bothered by anything.
There was no blood on this food before, but now there's been blood for a week. We did a complete blood count, and all the results are normal. The doctor said the cat is healthy. We didn't do a stool test. He's a domestic cat, not exposed to other animals, and is wormed with Milbemax every three months. We gave him Heal's, but it didn't help. What could it be? There are no other signs. There was blood in his stool before, when we first got the kitten; due to inexperience, we gave him lower-quality food (although I'm no longer sure it was the food back then).
But after we switched to Brit Super Premium, the bleeding stopped and the problem hasn't bothered us since. Then a week ago, I bought my cat some dry Mnyams kibble treats. Whether it was from them or not, he developed diarrhea—or rather, his litter box frequency didn't increase, but his stool was runny, like mush, and blood appeared again at the end of each bowel movement. After switching to Hill's medicated cat food and giving him Smecta (as recommended by the vet), the diarrhea stopped and his stool returned to normal, but the blood still appears at the end of each bowel movement. What should we do?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! You just answered your own question =) Please read carefully. You've suddenly introduced a new "food"—a treat from a different manufacturer, and unlikely to be super-premium or holistic. Digestive upset has occurred. It may take about 2 weeks for the symptoms to resolve. Add Fortiflora (a probiotic) to the food.
Hemostatics (etamsylate, for example). As for not going outside, you can easily bring parasites (eggs) into the house on your shoes.
Julia
Thank you! We'll try the medications you recommended. Should he be dewormed just in case? According to the schedule, we're only supposed to deworm him in another month. Or should we give him Milbemax earlier to rule out any concerns? Thanks for your help! I wrote down all the information I had to give you a full picture.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! It's good that you're explaining everything. That's how it should be. And at your in-person doctor's appointment, you should also explain everything; even the most insignificant things, in your opinion, may be crucial for a diagnosis. You can have parasites removed if you suspect it. But if you have diarrhea or loose stools, don't remove them. First, try to get your stool formed.
Eve
Hello!
Recently, my cat started seeing a drop of blood at the end of his bowel movements. I once found it in the white litter on top, and today it was on the pad near the potty (hence the conclusion that the blood appears at the end, after the cat has already exited the litter box).
Before the blood was first discovered, the cat was eating Royal Canin dry food. He didn't chew it, but swallowed it straight away. He doesn't drink much water. The veterinarian we consulted when the first drop appeared said it was likely constipation or a burst blood vessel due to intense strain.
We've been feeding her liquid food from bags for 4-5 days now. I haven't seen any blood until today.
In addition to wet food, he still eats dry food occasionally. He even steals it from another cat. Could it be that the bleeding has returned because he's started eating dry food along with wet food?
I'd be very grateful if you could suggest some good brands of liquid food. For now, we're using Purina.
The vaccinations were done in the summer, since the cat went outside.
The previous owners don’t remember whether they gave him any deworming medication (the cat moved to us 9 months ago).
I know that before he came to us, for the first two years of his life he was fed whatever was on the table.
He feels well, plays, has an appetite, and doesn’t look like a sick cat.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! So, you haven't dewormed your cat even once in 9 months? Especially since he's been outside? Start with deworming with a broad-spectrum medication, and I'd rule out protozoan parasites (like giardia). If your cat only "steals" a little dry food, that's okay (as long as they're from the same manufacturer). Good foods include super-premium and holistic options, but they still need to be selected individually (perhaps because the cat doesn't like the taste, or is allergic to the food).
When treating for parasites, treat all pets in the house on the same day, including all family members. Everyone should be treated at the same time to prevent reinfestation. Be sure to wash all pet care items, toys, and floors, and be sure to rinse/scald with boiling water and disinfect litter boxes. Pinworm eggs should be destroyed if they have already entered the environment.
Olga
Please do not publish the previous message, as I have added to it below.
Hello! Could you please tell me what you think might be the cause? I adopted a stray cat from a foster home at 8-9 months of age and was neutered. From the very beginning, I noticed blood in my stool: bright red, always a few drops at the end of a bowel movement, or on my butt. The stool is not hard, but normal and formed.
The doctor prescribed Royal Canin Fiber, Solcoseryl ophthalmic rectally after defecation.
This problem wasn't present with this food, but over time, the cat completely refused to eat it. Now he eats Pronature Holistic (once a day, but not every day), wet Proplan (pate/pouch), and partially cooked chicken and beef (break up the tough meat with a blender) once or twice a week. Unfortunately, he refuses complete premium wet food (such as Animonda Carni). He drinks well. He uses Milbemax dewormer, doesn't go outside, and is vaccinated.
He goes to the bathroom once every two days, with blood being seen 3-4 times a month. Occasionally, a small amount of clear mucus is present. The cat has never vomited, and there is no visible hair in his stool. We cannot see any pattern between what he ate and the appearance of blood.
Otherwise, we don’t notice any other symptoms at all.
He does, however, usually dig for a long time before going to the toilet. The vet suggested that the cat may have suffered a rectal/sphincter injury as a child, leading to scarring, and that could be the cause of this problem. Unfortunately, we can't get a protozoa test because the lab in our city only accepts samples during certain hours, and it's simply impossible to collect warm stool samples and bring them in to match. We're planning an abdominal ultrasound. We'd like to hear your opinion on the possible causes and future prospects. Thank you very much!
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Since the blood is bright, bleeding could be from the lower colon or, more likely, from the rectum. There are many possible causes: trauma to the rectal mucosa, protozoa, tumors, intestinal ulcers, infections, and sometimes allergies. A biochemical analysis and coproscopy are needed. An ultrasound won't give a definitive picture, but it won't hurt.
Gastroenteroscopy and coproscopy are the best options for diagnosis in this case. Metronidazole will work for protozoa. The problem is that you're interfering with the pet's diet. Treatment should be given DAILY for 2-3 months, and no natural food mixed with commercial food. It's better to simply switch to a wet diet to reduce the damage to the intestinal mucosa. The prognosis is likely favorable, as the symptoms are intermittent, the blood loss is minimal, and you're concerned about your pet and willing to help them rather than hoping for a spontaneous recovery.
Katerina
Good evening!
For the last 3-4 days, my cat has been passing blood in her stool. The blood is not brightly colored. It appears to appear toward the end of her bowel movements. She eats 1st Choice cat food for spayed cats. She drinks water well and has a good appetite. She is not lethargic; she is as active as ever.
I did notice a comb on his beard. He's been wormed and flea-free for a while now. They recommended Procox at the pet store. Could you please tell me if I can do anything myself or should I go to the vet?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Ideally, of course, you'd need to get to a clinic and rule out any serious gastrointestinal issues. There could be problems with the large intestine. Infectious diseases, protozoan parasites, tumors, polyps, ulcers, and other pathologies should be ruled out. Nutritional issues could also be a factor. The scratching marks should also be examined; they might not be caused by fleas (allergies, dermatitis, scabies mites, and other causes could also be the cause). The root cause needs to be identified, not just symptomatic treatment.
Katerina
Thank you very much for your prompt response!
Tatiana
There are no worms, but there is blood in the stool, not scarlet. There is no vomiting or anything, he behaves normally, and when there is a defecation, he does not meow or scream.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! If the blood isn't bright red, then the problem should be looked for in the small intestine or the upper colon (possibly ulcers, polyps, or tumors). Repeat the parasite treatment with a good medication that's effective against tapeworms and roundworms. Protozoa should be ruled out (metronidazole is suitable). Blood tests are needed, and a gastroenteroscopy or colonoscopy is recommended to rule out intestinal tumors or erosions.
Tatiana
We fed him Porfit food, the cat was in severe pain, we switched to Purina, the cat goes to the toilet normally, the stool is good but with blood, what should we do?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Get tested. Rule out helminthiasis (including protozoa), polyps, tumors, ulcers, intestinal fissures, and enteritis. If there was a sudden change from one food brand to another, this could be the cause. But what kind of blood is it? Brown or bright red? In drops or clots? Or mixed with feces? In the middle of a bowel movement or after it's finished? When were the parasites dewormed? Is there any vomiting or nausea?
Julia
Hello. My cat is about a year old. He always has dry food, water, and milk in his bowls. He doesn't chew the dry food; he swallows it straight away. I noticed that immediately after he defecated, bright red blood started flowing from his anus. (Amount: about 1/3 teaspoon). He doesn't vomit, his stools are neither loose nor dry. He's not lethargic. What could be causing this?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Let's start with eliminating milk. Adult cats don't need it (fermented milk products like kefir, cottage cheese, plain yogurt, and sour cream are good options), but since your cat is on dry food, there's no need to add any natural food. Second, if the blood is bright red, there's a problem with the lower intestine (large colon or rectum). There's a lot of blood coming out, so there are either large cracks in the mucous membrane, ulcers/erosions, or maybe polyps/neoplasms. Have you dewormed your cat lately? What are you feeding him?
Alena
Hello. Please help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My cat is one year old. She has been pooping blood for three weeks. There are scarlet drops in the middle. No diarrhea or constipation. I took Milbemax for worms just recently, maybe a month ago. She drinks well and is active. No fever. She eats Proplan Delicate pouches, and sometimes I give her raw beef. Or fish, boiled boneless mintai fillet. She hasn't swallowed any foreign objects.
The vet prescribed treatment—a hemostatic, Dicynone, 1/3 twice a day for the first three days, and then half a dose until today. It didn't help at all!!! What should I do?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Question one: why are you feeding natural food if you already feed a commercially prepared balanced diet? Why raw meat? You know there could be infections and parasites. Protozoan parasites should be ruled out. How can you say with certainty that there isn't a foreign body? Did you get an X-ray? Or is the animal constantly under your supervision? You also need to rule out tumors and intestinal ulcers.
Natalia
Hello! A month ago, the vet told me to feed him only cooked meat. I started giving him beef, and that was it. But for over a week now, I've been noticing strange stools! He's been pooping once every 2-3 days. His stools are very dry inside, and the outside is coated in some kind of thick, light mucus. The last time, there were even streaks of blood. What could it be? I dripped some deworming medication onto his withers. We're now taking probiotics. Could it be because he only eats beef?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! You can't feed your cat only meat! A protein-only diet is hard on the kidneys! The body needs carbohydrates for energy—they're the easiest source of energy. Carbohydrates include grains, vegetables, and unsweetened fruits. Fats are also necessary for hormone synthesis and body function, and they also provide energy (1 g of fat = 9 kcal of energy). Therefore, the diet must be varied!
Just don't include unhealthy fats, just like carbohydrates (just like in humans). My advice: get your dog tested for biochemistry, have an abdominal ultrasound, and assess liver function. Give him more clean water. A protein-rich diet requires a lot of fluids, as muscle fibers are dry and difficult to digest, causing constipation (dry stools). Blood can appear because dry stools scratch the intestinal lining. So, change the feeding. And anyway, why such a strange, all-meat diet?
Anastasia
Hello! My cat has blood and mucus in her stool (formed, no diarrhea). A worm or protozoa analysis revealed no signs of worms.
The swab test was positive for coronavirus (but a blood test was also positive 1.5 years ago). An abdominal ultrasound revealed no serious abnormalities.
We treated her with Enterofuril 1/2 capsule twice a day for 7 days and Fortiflora 1 pack a day for 14 days. She was fed Purina Gastrointestinal dry and wet food for 2 months. There was some improvement for one month, then it recurred. Otherwise, the cat is feeling fine. Could you tell me what the cause might be and what treatment is needed? Thank you.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Did you only do a swab? Did you not retest the blood? Perhaps the cat recently had a cold or a weakened immune system, which triggered the coronavirus "reactivation."
There may be ulcers, polyps, or growths in the intestines. Pinworm eggs aren't always detectable (females don't lay eggs every day, after all), so multiple stool tests are necessary. Knowing a history of coronavirus, I would prioritize ruling it out/confirming it. If you're a carrier, this infection can recur months or years later...
Alla
Hello, I have a British cat (Scottish Straight), 6 months old.
Is it possible to give canned food (Gourmet, Purina), storing it in the refrigerator in an open container for three days?
Blood became noticeable in the stool.
Thank you.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! You shouldn't feed your cat canned food if it's been open for more than a day (even in the refrigerator). Regarding the blood in the stool: has it been a while since they dewormed? It wouldn't hurt to take your cat to the vet and have a warm stool sample (within an hour of collection) tested for protozoa. Were your vaccinations up to date?
Marina
Hello! My Bengal kitten is 3 months old and won't eat dry food. We feed him liquid kitten food, Royal Canin and Brit Premium. He has loose stools most of the time, and I noticed a little scarlet blood. He's had all his vaccinations and has had deworming medication applied to his withers every month (only twice so far). The last time was 4 days ago.
He never goes outside. The breeder didn't give him any recommendations on food; he was fed homemade food. I immediately gave him liquid food because I had previously fed my cat liquid food and he lived for 18 years without any problems, and he ate dry food as well. This one won't eat dry food of any brand; he buries it and demands liquid food. The cat himself is very cheerful and runs around and plays all the time. He has a good appetite and drinks water. There are no concerns other than stool.
The vet advised switching him to dry food, but how can I do that if he'd rather not eat for a day, and won't touch dry food? I can't stop feeding him; I feel sorry for the kitten. I tried tricking him into eating dry food: I soaked it, chopped it up, mixed it with wet food... it didn't help.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! You shouldn't give your cat liquids anymore, otherwise his digestive tract will never adapt to normal solid food. There are canned foods and pouches, which aren't liquid, but soft and moist. But if I were you, I'd ask the clinic to rule out protozoan infections (giardiasis, for example). If the food is very liquid, add a little cooked rice to help it stick. Give him a probiotic (FortiFlora, for example).
Hope
Good afternoon. We adopted a cat, no longer a kitten. She behaves like a house cat, uses a litter box, and prefers wet food, refusing soups or anything else. The first day, she barely ate. She didn't poop. She didn't smell. The next day, after eating wet food, her appetite improved. She started asking to eat often. And then the problems started. She started emitting an unpleasant odor.
Very frequent and smelly. When she poops, the last portion of her now-liquid stool is coated with dark blood and mucus. After she passes the entire mass, she shakes off a few more drops of pure, dark blood. The cat constantly emits this foul odor.
I've never experienced this with cats. On the first day, we shoved half a deworming tablet down her throat, bought at the pet store. Could this have caused the blood and foul odor? Her first stool was bloodless. She poops 2-3 times a day, sometimes a bit runny. She eats poop-like kibble and liquid food. She eats little dry food, but can eat a lot of liquid food. Her nose is dry. When she wants to poop, she meows and comes. Can you tell me what to do?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Dark blood indicates bleeding in the intestines (i.e., not in the rectum). It is necessary to examine the small and large intestines, the stomach (to rule out inflammation such as enteritis or gastritis), and ulcers.
A chronic intestinal infection (bacterial) could be a possibility, and protozoan infections should also be ruled out (although drops of scarlet blood are more typical for these). The cat needs to be examined by a vet, tested, and undergo additional examinations. If there's a smell, it's likely a severe inflammatory process (possibly even tissue death—necrosis).
Olga
Hello! My 4.5-year-old cat has been having blood in his stool lately. The first few stools are formed, but the last ones are mush-like with a little bright red blood in them. We had an ultrasound, and the doctor said he has inflammation of the colon, colitis. I gave him one tablet of Milbemax for worms at the end of September after returning from the country.
Then I gave him Caniquantel around mid-November, but it didn't work out well. Now the doctor prescribed Febtal. She said it's effective against worms and giardia. I couldn't find any information that it works against giardia. Is this true? The cat always ate Hill's Perfect Weight dry food (since he tends to be overweight) and was also given Pro Plan pouches.
When the problems started, I switched his dry food to Sanimed Skin/Sensitive therapeutic food (recommended at the Beethoven store). I also give him Pro Plan pouches. We have another cat (2.5 years old). She doesn't have the same problems. How should I treat my cat? Should I give him Febtal?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Febtal contains fenbendazole, which has nematicidal and cestocidal effects (that is, against nematodes and cestodes). Even Febtal Combo contains praziquantel in addition to fenbendazole. However, although neither active ingredient is effective against protozoa directly, there are treatment regimens for protozoan infections using Febtal (but it is administered for several days in a row).
The simplest method against protozoa is metronidazole (a dose of up to 25 mg of active substance per 1 kg of live body weight of the animal 2 times a day (every 12 hours), the course of treatment is about 5 days).
Olga
Thank you very much for your recommendations! Can metronidazole cure trichomoniasis?
Daria is a veterinarian
Yes, you can. Metronidazole is the same as Trichopolum, just a different name. You can either buy metronidazole at a human pharmacy or ask for Metrogyl at a veterinary clinic. There's an injectable version (5 mg of active ingredient per ml), but it's administered intravenously, so you're unlikely to be able to administer it at home. It also comes in 250 and 500 mg tablets. I've already written the dosage and treatment regimen for protozoal infections above.
Daria
Hello! Today I noticed blood in my 8-9 month old cat's stool. It's not all blood, just the very last bit on the surface. The stool is soft and formed. The blood is bright red. She's in good health, happy, and eating and drinking well. We're feeding her Perfect Fit for spayed cats (she was recently spayed).
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! You need to submit a warm stool sample for testing to rule out protozoan infections (specifically, giardiasis and related protozoan parasitic diseases). These can cause these clinical signs. If your cat has long hair, give her more malt paste. Have you had her parasite treatment done promptly?
Lyudmila
Good afternoon. My 11-year-old cat had blood in her stool today. She's acting normal, happy, eating and drinking. Her general condition hasn't changed. I'm feeding her Fresh Now 7+ holistic dry food. She drinks water well. Her stool is always hard; we've tried many different foods; at first, the consistency changes, but over time, it returns to the same consistency. She sheds a lot of fur, and her belly is completely bald. Sometimes, she even gets stool stuck because of it.
I'm giving him Mult-paste every day now. The blood was alarming. Can you recommend anything? We've been to the vet several times. We've had a bunch of tests done, and everything is normal. In the end, they can't offer any advice.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Switch him entirely to wet food. No dry food. And make sure the water is clean, changing it at least once a day. You can give him a little Duphalac (0.5-1 ml) to soften the stool. What's the blood like?
Are the drops red or brown (like an old, curled-up mess)? Licking her belly could be due to stress or bothersome pain (hard stools passing through the gastrointestinal tract can be bothersome, a kind of massage). Be sure to give her malt paste daily. Vitamins can be added to her diet. Have you had a biochemistry test done?
Lyudmila
Good afternoon! The blood is scarlet. I've started giving her a Hils I'D pouch. The vet recommended it before. Plus, she's been using Multi-Toothpaste every day. Her stool has softened, but there was still a drop of blood. But not like last time. Maybe she developed a crack when she was going out because of the loose stool? I change her water sometimes twice a day, and I give it through a filter.
Which wet food is better? Pouches or canned? What brand? We had a biochemistry test. Globulin was low at 23.9, creatinine 178.43, glucose was elevated at 9.22, direct bilirubin 3, AST 68.4, amylase 220, and gamma-glutamate transaminase (GGT) 3. These were the abnormal values. We had her tested at the beginning of the year when she was vomiting for several days. The vet tried everything. They eventually gave her an IV and everything cleared up.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! It doesn't really matter whether it's pouches or canned food, as long as it's wet. Choose a brand from the super-premium or holistic categories (definitely not Kitekat, Whiskas, or similar). See what your cat likes best. Hill's is pretty good (I feed it to my cat). The biochemistry is questionable.
Sample numbers don't give a complete picture, but a pancreas check wouldn't hurt (amylase levels are more than double, along with a spike in glucose), although the blood test could have been performed after feeding or the animal was very stressed. Bright red blood indicates fresh bleeding (i.e., at the end of a bowel movement, most likely from the rectum).
Yes, cracks can occur due to damage from hard feces. This is why it's important to feed wet food and provide clean water. Soft feces will no longer cause damage, and the crack will heal (this should take about a week).
Lyudmila
Good afternoon! Thanks for the recommendations. What about the hair loss? She constantly licks her lower belly, and she's already moved on to her paws. Should I spray Stop-Itch? It might stop the itching and maybe she'll lick less. But she'll still lick it later, so is it harmless?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! You definitely shouldn't spray. The cat will lick everything and even poison itself. As a last resort, there's a Stop-Itch suspension. Prednisolone can also relieve the itching. It would be a good idea to take a skin scraping to rule out a mite. You could also give Fospasim—purely homeopathic—or KotBayun to calm the nerves. This kind of nervous licking should be discouraged.
Lyudmila
I also want to give him deworming medication (it's been six months already). Is Stronghold effective? The one you pour behind the scruff. Which medication is best? And do I need to do this twice? Or is one enough?
Daria is a veterinarian
Six months is a bit much. You need to treat the parasites every three months. You can use Stronghold (it treats intestinal parasites, skin parasites, and subcutaneous parasites). It's treated once a month (that is, once a day). By the way, have you seen any fleas? Are there any brown or black spots on the skin? Are there any strange white specks on the hairs? It's better to give the tablets twice if you decide to use them.
Lyudmila
Good afternoon. No, there are definitely no fleas, and she barely scratches, although I would have seen them. Her skin is clear, pink, and free of spots. There are no white specks on her fur. So, there's no flaking, her fur is fine, but she always loses a lot of it. And she licks it. We did a skin scraping. The results were negative. It looks like she has an allergy. I might try giving her some Stop-Itch suspension and some Stronghold behind her scruff.
Daria is a veterinarian
For allergies, you can also take 1/4 of Suprastin twice a day, morning and evening, but for no more than 3 days (!). Then administer the suspension and wash with a special shampoo. It's essential to find the cause of the allergy. If you don't eliminate the cause, you won't get rid of the allergy. Don't be so sure about skin parasites.
A couple of weeks ago, my neighbor brought me a completely indoor cat with a flea collar. She started scratching occasionally and licked her belly fur down to a bald spot about 3 cm wide. We twisted and turned her, and found flea droppings (brown dots). We started examining her, but only found two fleas on her tail; there were none anywhere else. However, over the course of a couple of weeks, they became quite annoying for both the cat and her owner. We treated her again for fleas, and her belly healed. You might also want to give her a sedative. Maybe something else is bothering her.
Lyudmila
Thank you very much for the recommendations! 🙂
Daria is a veterinarian
You're welcome. The most important gratitude is a recovered pet. Don't forget to get checked out and monitored by a doctor. If there's no improvement, you'll have to adjust your treatment approach and undergo additional tests. Wishing you a speedy recovery.
Lera
Hello.
A couple of days ago, I found a scarlet clot in my cat's stool. He had another one today. He dug for a long time yesterday, but didn't go anywhere, and today he dug for the same thing, but didn't go anywhere. I massaged him, gave him olive oil, and massaged his anus with it. Eventually, he did his business. His stool was normal, but with a bloody clot on top. He also vomited fur this morning.
Thai, 8 years old, neutered, indoor cat. He's acting normal. No fever, eats well, drinks, plays, and has no behavioral changes. He's a fat, fluffy, and laid-back cat.
In September, a new kitten arrived at home. Both were treated for worms and fleas. The older one was last treated with Broadline in October. The younger one was treated with Frontline or Stronghold at the end of November, I don't remember exactly. We took the younger one to the vet, and everything is fine. But he does have loose stools occasionally.
Both eat Brits.
They steal from each other, so they both get Brit Care Missy and Brit Premium Kitten. I also give the soft Brit Premium when possible. As for human food, the older one can sometimes eat chicken, boneless fish, and butter. The younger one is less picky and eats cottage cheese, eggs, and buckwheat. We don't give bones, and we separate the times when he eats dry food from natural food. Dry food is still the main food. There's water in the kitchen and in the room. I gave him toothpaste for a while, but then I forgot about it, but I'll start again soon.
My older son used to have constipation with dry stools, like in the summer and last year. But there was no blood. This was resolved with oil and massage. We also gave him RK food to soften his stool, but he ate it very poorly. Brit eats with gusto. The constipation episodes were occasional, but after that, his stool was fine.
What should I do now? Should I rush to the vet? The cat is very sensitive and skittish.
Of course, I wouldn't want to take him across town if I can do something myself. I was thinking about giving him more oil. Giving him a soft Brit more often (but I can't afford to do it more than once a day). Deworm him with Stronghold again. Get another pack of RK food to loosen his stool. And give him the hair removal paste more often. Keep an eye on him. And if nothing changes within a week, collect a stool sample and take him to the vet. Or is that too presumptuous?
Thanks in advance!
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Start by stopping table food. Feed a good food with a balanced supply of minerals, vitamins, and nutrients. Your cat is constipated due to insufficient fluid intake and a lack of fiber (you're feeding your cat protein, but it moves slowly through the digestive tract and takes longer to digest).
If you cook pet food separately rather than feeding it from your plate, add more vegetables (finely grated or pureed carrots and beets mixed with meat for them to eat). Be careful with butter, however, as it's fatty and can cause liver problems (especially for an older cat).
You can give Duphalac or its analogues (small doses, literally 1-2 ml per day; adjust the dosage individually; start with 1 ml – after about 3 days, the stool should become softer). If you give too much Duphalac, the stool will become very loose and the tummy may bloat, but as soon as you stop taking the medication, the stool will return to its normal state.
And drink more clean water. It's best to change the water in the bowl several times a day and get a larger container (cats love to drink from large dishes: pots, basins, and fish tanks). I used a 500ml bucket for my picky cat's water; I change it before work, after work, and before bed. She also likes drinking from a large bowl; she's finally abandoned my fish tank.
Lera
Thanks a lot!
I don't give my cats cooked food at all. If I do give them natural food, it's pieces of raw chicken (breast), raw cottage cheese, raw egg, sour cream, and raw frozen fish.
The little one is mostly a sucker for natural food, and the older one eats a little of it. But since the little one is always putting things in his mouth, I at least give him something less harmful. The other day, he climbed into a pot of buckwheat.
The eldest ate the olive oil from the frying pan himself, but I already read that it puts a strain on the liver, I’ll hide it, and keep Duphalac and Vaseline oil ready.
Am I correct in understanding that even the natural food we give is best eliminated altogether and left with only dry and wet food?
Thanks a lot again, I hope everything goes well.
Daria is a veterinarian
You got it right. Remove natural food. Don't leave anything unattended on the stove. Don't feed food from the table. Train your cats not to climb on the table or onto you while you're eating.
Yes, it's difficult, but doable. Choose good food. Expensive ones are more filling and nutritious than cheap ones. You can also give Duphalac daily as a preventative measure (0.5 ml in the morning and the same amount in the evening; if the stool becomes loose, then limit the dose to one dose). It's a safe medication that isn't absorbed in the intestines. What goes in is what comes out. It softens the stool, preventing it from compacting, preventing constipation.
Lera
Thank you so much!
Daria is a veterinarian
My pleasure
Yana
Hello, this morning my cat developed diarrhea with a little blood, hasn't eaten or drunk all day, and vomited once during the day. A week ago, we brought another cat in from the street. Naturally, he had worms, and we dewormed him. But could our cat have gotten worms from him, and are these all the symptoms? Our veterinary clinics are so bad they can only ruin things, what can we do at home?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! All pets and family members should be dewormed at the same time, as this can lead to reinfection. Do you only suspect worms? Is it possible that your cat (who I suspect is unvaccinated) contracted an infectious disease from another cat you picked up? Be sure to give your pet fluids (Rehydron/Normhydron and similar medications are given frequently, but in small amounts, for diarrhea). Deworming while diarrhea is present is not recommended.
First, you need to stop it (at least smecta, charcoal for starters, probiotics to restore the microflora). As soon as the stool is soft or formed for at least 2 days, give an anthelmintic. Be sure to repeat after 10-14 days. Wet cleaning of the house daily.
Elena
Hello, we have a 5 year old British shorthair cat who eats Royal food (he only eats dry food). He has blood and mucus in his stool, and he always goes to the potty, and then the remaining mucus comes out somewhere else.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Your pet needs to be examined to rule out parasites (including protozoa, not just "worms," as many say) and gastrointestinal inflammation. Self-treating without a diagnosis is not recommended, as it's unclear how complex the situation is.
Myrrh
Good afternoon. My kitten (about 4 months old) has blood in her stool. The Brit food had more blood in it, and her stool was more runny and had mucus. I switched her to Ketchow. Her stool returned to normal, and the blood went away.
But a few days later, the blood returned. There's no vomiting, and I only dewormed her once, about a month ago. She's not lethargic; she's running around briskly. Water is always available, right next to her dry food bowl. Maybe I should put water bowls all over her? Maybe she doesn't have enough water, and she forgets to come and drink.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Cats aren't stupid. If they're thirsty, they go to their water bowl. Why did you only deworm them once? They need to be dewormed twice. But before that, you need to have a stool test done to rule out protozoa, which can cause blood in the stool. What kind of blood is it: dark or bright red? In drops or clots? What does the stool look like: hard or normal?
Rafina
Hello! My story is similar to many others. We adopted a 2.5-month-old kitten from a foster home. He was dewormed with Stronghold there, but when we took him home, a few days later we discovered small white worms, similar to those seen in the pictures, periodically appearing under his tail, or rather on his tail. We gave him a kitten suspension, and the next day they immediately passed out in his stool like strings.
After 10 days, the doctor told me to give him more Melbimax tablets. We gave them. Almost 10 days passed, and yesterday evening, after the kitten went to the bathroom, a slightly mucous, bright blood was running down his back paw from his butt. His stool was normal, maybe a little firm, and he had a slightly peculiar smell.
We feed Grandorf kitten food and Berkly wet food. She eats greedily and occasionally steals our adult cat's dry food when we forget to put it away. What should I do first? I don't see any blood in her stool, but it does come out a little later. Thank you.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! First steps: take your cat to the clinic for an examination. A complete blood count and biochemistry panel should be performed, along with a stool sample and a coproscopic examination (since the blood is bright red, the problem should be looked for in the "final" section of the intestine). The kitten's grooming items, litter box, toys, and bowls should be disinfected, and the floors at home should be disinfected (there may be worm eggs lingering somewhere, as the cat is constantly becoming infected). The intestines should also be checked. Try feeding only wet food and plenty of fluids; perhaps the stool is too hard?
Anastasia
Hello! My kitten is 3 months old and is on N&D food, but it's not for kittens. I bought it from a breeder. I didn't notice it right away, but she said it was okay and that it's also suitable for kittens. Two or three weeks after we got the kitten from the breeder, we started seeing drops of scarlet blood in her stool, but it's not noticeable with every bowel movement.
We dewormed him at 2 months, and a couple of days ago I gave him Milbemax and Fortiflora. I'm currently giving him that. We switched to Royal Canin. His stool has become lighter and softer, and there's almost no blood (no blood yesterday morning, no blood last night, and no blood this morning either). Could the wrong food cause this?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Of course it can. What does it mean that food for sterilized cats is suitable for kittens? Consider whether it's possible to give a baby kitten regular canned meat, like the kind we adults eat, instead of their baby meat. What will happen to the baby? Will their digestion be affected? Kittens need micronutrients, more calories for energy, and more protein for growth. But food for sterilized cats has less protein and is limited in magnesium and phosphorus, as sterilized cats are at risk of developing kidney stones. Feed them food that's appropriate for their age group.
Anastasia
Thank you for your reply! I told the breeder the same thing, but she assured me that everything was ok.
Daria is a veterinarian
This can't be the norm. Then why are there so many different food lines? Why do they balance each one according to its own parameters? It is not recommended to feed healthy cats medicated food, or non-spayed animals food for spayed animals, and vice versa, because both of these factors disrupt their metabolism.
Larisa Klipikova
The cat is 8 years old, on the third day the feces are half normal, then more liquid and on top there is a drop of blood the size of a fingernail. Before defecation, she notifies as usual, she meows 3 times. She eats dry food Friskies and wet food from bags, boiled fish with broth, drinks as usual, behaves normally. But I have another cat with whom they have been feuding for 4 years.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! First of all, stop feeding Friskies and other cheap junk. If you're going to feed commercial food, buy high-quality ones. Standard questions: when was your cat's last deworming and vaccination? What's his access to the outdoors? His general condition? His body temperature? How's the other cat doing? Were the cats neutered to make them "calmer"? Did you give him any medications yourself?
Elena
Good morning. Could you tell me what to do? I bought a Sphynx kitten second-hand. He's 4 months old. It's obvious from his appearance that he wasn't well-cared for. His ears are dirty and he smells like urine. His tummy is swollen. I thought he hadn't had a bowel movement in a while or had eaten too much food. I gave him some kefir to help him pee. He pooped blood. His poop is not runny and light brown, but it smells terrible, like a bedridden patient.
The owner said he'd been eating dry food for a while. I figured he wasn't chewing well or had swallowed it whole and was scratching his intestines. His tummy isn't bloated now. I give him kefir once a day and bought kitten food, soaking it in water. There's still some scarlet blood in his stool, but that's only been the second day. Should I keep an eye on him or take him to the vet? He eats so voraciously that I suspect he's malnourished. I feed him small portions 5-6 times a day. He's active, jumping and playing, doesn't meow, doesn't complain, and isn't lethargic. He pees normally, and there's no blood in his urine.
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! While food is in the gastrointestinal tract, it softens and won't scratch the intestinal lining until it turns red. Discolored, foul-smelling stool is a bad sign, and if there's blood, it's definitely time to take your pet to the vet as soon as possible. Deworm your pet (not just tapeworms, but also protozoa, which often cause blood in the stool).
Sphynxes are voracious eaters (watch the video to see them scooping up food), but feeding them small portions is a good idea. What kind of food do you feed them (brand)?
Elena
I bought Grandorf for kittens with lamb. I also have an older Siamese cat who also uses Grandorf for senior neutered cats because he's allergic to chicken. I bought this food for him too, without potatoes and legumes. Today, his tummy is normal, not bloated, and he's still playful and active. The breeder gave him a veterinary passport; his last deworming was in July. He's been three months now. Should he be dewormed now?
A veterinary passport could have been cobbled together on the fly; judging by the child's condition, she probably didn't do anything. She mainly breeds miniature dogs, and the Sphynxes are a byproduct, so to speak. I'm so glad I took the kitten; it's scary to think what such a life would have led him to. (((The stool is the same color as newborn babies - yellowish, not white, not gray, without mucus, but not fully formed.
Daria is a veterinarian
If the veterinary passport has the veterinary clinic's seals and the doctor's signature, it's not so easy to forge this document. If it's just stickers and handwritten without any seals, it's not a document. It's scary to even imagine how she breeds dogs. A reputable breeder would never allow themselves to neglect an animal, even if it's not the type of animal that "brings money." A living creature is always a living creature, not a "byproduct." Three months have passed—it's time to deworm.
Check if the food is too greasy (pour it onto a piece of paper, roll it around a bit, press it down, then remove it: will there be any greasy stains on the paper? This is not a good food to eat right now; it needs to be lighter. A 12-hour fast, water, charcoal/enterosgel, a course of Fortiflora probiotics, and deworming are recommended).
Elena
Grandorf super-premium food for kittens up to 1 year old, with lamb, soaked in warm water. It's quite high in calories and doesn't contain legumes or chicken. I also feed him this food, specifically selected for him. They have a good line of food for pets with special needs.
The kitten doesn't have any heavy discharge from his nose or eyes, and he doesn't sneeze. He doesn't vomit, drinks moderately, usually every 20-30 minutes after eating. I don't notice any extreme thirst. His temperature is normal, he doesn't shiver, isn't particularly cold, and doesn't hide in warm places. He gives a short meow before defecating, as a warning; I don't notice any pain or discomfort. His poop is a yellowish color like a baby's. There's no mucus, but there's a little blood at the end. There's no blood coming from the anus before or after.
Daria is a veterinarian
A kitten is too young to have unformed, yellowish feces. There are clearly underlying causes, which need to be identified and addressed. Since vomiting takes 20-30 minutes after feeding, the problem should be looked for at the beginning of the digestive tract: the stomach, pancreas, and, of course, the liver. Blood at the end of a bowel movement is also a symptom. If a full examination wasn't possible, I'd first rule out parasites and protozoa.
Elena
Thank you, let's go to the vet. And yes, the veterinary passport has only stickers without signatures or stamps... If she has a lot of dogs at home, and they go outside, who knows what they brought home from the street, all sorts of infections... Thank you for your answers!
Daria is a veterinarian
If there are no signatures and seals, it's not a document. They can whip one up in a jiffy. We don't even sign or seal anything unless we've personally injected or treated it. If there was an infection, there would be symptoms (including a fever). But be sure to show up. Don't let things slide.
Alya Novikova
Hello, my kitten has the following symptoms: bald spots and hair loss on his body, and his eyes are sticky. I thought it was arachnoentomatosis and treated him with Aversectin ointment for only two days. But the bald spots appeared about a week ago. The ointment didn't help on the second day; the kitten started to twitch, and by evening, his pupils dilated. I know you can inject Aversect, but are there any alternatives? And how can I treat the disease with the symptoms I described? Thank you for your reply.
Seymour
Good afternoon.
I would like to ask you for help.
We adopted a 2-month-old kitten. He had a lot of diarrhea. Then we switched him to dry food and brisket with rice once a day. I gave him 0.3 grams of Bifidum Bacterin before meals and an hour before meals. He had blood in his stool. The diarrhea stopped within a week. Now he has stool once a day. He eats and drinks normally, is active, and plays. However, he still has blood in his stool.
I beg you to help me
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Once the stool has returned to normal (at least three days without loose stool), try eliminating parasites. Give a regular anthelmintic (veterinary pharmacies are full of them, but I'd recommend buying a good broad-spectrum one that kills both cestodes and tapeworms). You could also eliminate protozoa—a metronidazole-based medication (also known as Trichopolum) will help. I don't know what medications are available in your region that contain metronidazole as the active ingredient.
Cats are prescribed 8-10 mg of the active ingredient per kilogram of body weight (with food or, if in solution, intramuscularly or even intravenously, but the first and second routes of administration are suitable for you) every 12 hours. If you find the drug and need help calculating the dosage, please write (you can find it in a human pharmacy if necessary). You can also add Ascorutin to strengthen blood vessels. If blood remains in the stool after such a thorough deworming, you will need to go for a checkup.
Christina
Hello! Please advise what to do. My cat is two years old, neutered, and doesn't go outside, but there are other stray cats in the house. We deworm him every three months. He was vaccinated last summer, but this year he didn't get any because he started getting sick. First, he developed bald spots on his face, which we treated with antifungal medication and had two injections. He sometimes scratched the area around his ears.
Bald spots still appear occasionally; we've been treating him for two months now. Along with this, I started noticing blood in his stool. We switched to Farmina ND with fish. He's feeling well, eating well, being curious, and playing occasionally.
The stool is hard, and there's blood mixed with mucus throughout the stool, in tiny droplets. Sometimes it's just a couple of drops, and sometimes I don't notice it at all. The stool smells strange, sour, somewhat reminiscent of borscht. The color is dark brown. Three weeks ago, a stool test showed coccidia. There don't seem to be any other symptoms of coccidiosis. I gave him trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole tablets for a week. It's been a week since I stopped giving them, and I still see blood in the stool from time to time. What should I do next?
Daria is a veterinarian
Hello! Retake your stool sample. Maybe you haven't eliminated the protozoa. There might still be some parasites. You need to get some exercise. It wouldn't be a bad idea to have a colonoscopy to assess your bowel health (check for ulcers and inflammation). And get your biochemistry done to see what's going on with your body. Check for bald spots by scraping, to rule out fungal infections and mites. Also, get a complete blood count to rule out an allergic reaction. Give Fortiflora or other probiotics.
Anna
Hello! I've noticed blood in my cat's bowel movements several times. The blood appears both initially (before the stool), with bright drops in the litter, and later, with mucus present. It takes a long time for him to get ready to go, asking to go outside. The weather is damp, so we don't let him out, so he has to use the litter box. We discovered this. He eats food and when he wants, and occasionally eats regular food. He's become lethargic at times. Yesterday we gave him deworming medication.
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! Your pet needs a checkup. We should rule out colon ulcers or rectal fissures, since blood appears before defecation. If your pet has hard stool, there should be blood afterward. A colonoscopy is essential to rule out tumors, intestinal wall injuries, and parasites, too. Have your pet received age-appropriate vaccinations?
ELENA
HELLO, PLEASE TELL ME WHAT CAN BE WRONG WITH MY CAT. PUS IS LEAKING FROM HER VAGINA AND THERE IS BLOOD IN HER FEECES. WE PICKED UP THE CAT FROM THE STREET A YEAR AGO. HER BREED IS A SIAMESE. I THOUGHT THAT SHE WAS IN HEAT SINCE SHE DOESN'T HAVE A MALE TOKEN BUT THE PUS WON'T GO AWAY AND THERE IS BLOOD. WHAT SHOULD I DO? WELL, THE CAT IS ACTIVE BUT SHE EATS BADLY AND ASKS FOR LIQUID FOOD AND DOESN'T EAT PLAIN FOOD.
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! Urgent, no, that's not right, URGENT!!! URGENT!!! VERY URGENT!!! to the veterinary clinic! Do you realize that the animal is leaking pus, not mucus or urine? It's PUS! That means inflammation! If it's coming from the vagina, that means it's accumulated in the uterus! And that's a hollow organ (cavity), not made of rubber. It could simply burst.
Then comes purulent peritonitis, bleeding into the abdominal cavity, and the animal dies! Get to the vet immediately! Have the uterus surgically removed! It's most likely pyometra. Your cat is a foster cat, not a breeding cat, so conservative treatment (medication for at least a month) to save the uterus is pointless. Therefore, surgery is the only solution. PYOMETRA AND OTHER PURULENT INFLAMMATIONS CAN'T BE TREATED AT HOME WITH ANTIBIOTICS AND WAITING FOR A MIRACLE!
Elvira
Hello! I adopted kittens from the street about a month ago. After a while, a drop of blood appeared in one of their stools at the very end of a bowel movement (the stool is soft, not always formed, 2-3 times a day, medium in color, sometimes light). After observing it for a few days, it went away on its own. Then the other kitten had the same thing for a couple of days.
Now the first one has had it again, then gone away. The kittens don't have access to any small inedible items other than litter. They were treated for fleas about a month ago, so it seems unlikely that's the cause, as so much time has passed. There are other animals in the house, and they haven't noticed any problems. The kittens appear healthy and playful, with an appetite that can be ravenous at times, sometimes just normal. One immediately refused dry food and eats super-premium canned food; the other eats dry food and also takes canned food.
They've been eating the same food for several weeks. I haven't given them any deworming yet, and I'm not sure if I should give them one now. They don't have a fever, and they don't drink water very often, but they do drink. They lick themselves sparingly, don't show any particular attention to their tail area, and haven't noticed any signs of discomfort.
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! What kind of food are you feeding? I recommend not mixing wet and dry food (there's a risk of disrupting metabolism and triggering urolithiasis). Give her a dewormer; the stool changes (sometimes there can even be blood in the stool) may be due to parasites. Give her a kitten dewormer (remember to administer it twice, 10-14 days apart). Observe her after deworming. If the blood doesn't go away, let us know, and we'll look for possible causes together.
Alice
Hello, we adopted a stray cat and had it spayed. A week after the spay, we discovered blood in her stool. Three days ago, we switched her from one dry food to another. She's active, eats and drinks well, and has had no problems with her litter box.
Please tell me what to do in this situation?
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! This could be a reaction to a sudden change in food, or it could be due to some underlying medical condition. Observe it for a day. If the symptoms persist or worsen, seek medical attention. If the blood disappears and no other symptoms appear, it's most likely a gastrointestinal reaction (have you dewormed your pet lately?).
Catherine
Hello. My cat has been having diarrhea with blood and mucus lately. We've noticed his stomach is swollen, and he's active as usual, running around with a toy. He's an indoor cat, and we give him deworming medication every six months. We've also noticed he hasn't vomited hair in a while, but when he did, it was only liquid. What could this be?
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! You need to deparasite your pet every three months, not every six months! Get your pet examined. Get an ultrasound, a stool test for parasites (including protozoa), and a complete blood count and biochemistry panel. Rule out intestinal ulcers, enteritis (including gastritis), and infectious diseases. It's impossible to tell what's wrong with your pet without an examination.
Natalia
My cat ran away from home (accidentally) and didn't show up for three weeks. Yesterday, I lured him in with food. He was very hungry. He lived in the basement of our house. The other cats didn't accept him and wouldn't share his food. There were no immediate symptoms. He ate a good amount of dry food and drank. He had a wet bowel movement. I cleaned him with lipstick and dry food and took him to the vet.
She didn't find anything wrong. She recommended observation. My current observations are as follows: lethargy, apathy, significant weight loss. After cleaning his ears, a little dirt appeared in the morning. He eats and drinks well, and even seems more alert after eating. His nose is sometimes warm and dry, sometimes cold and wet (it's very hot both at home and outside). He has very soft stools five times a day (the last two times have been bloody). His bottom has a red drop of blood in the middle after defecating. He has a bald spot on the left side of his neck measuring 6x4 cm with clear skin and no wounds or bites. His new fur is growing back. He's been bothered by lethargy and bloody stools for two days.
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! Your pet needs to be examined by a veterinarian immediately. They should be dewormed (but first, a stool sample for pinworms and protozoa should be submitted to the clinic). Even if no parasites are found, deworming should be performed! Don't touch the nose, but take the temperature rectally with a thermometer! Don't delay the examination. Infectious diseases should be ruled out. Blood tests and biochemistry should be performed, and based on the results of the physical examination, the animal may be referred for an ultrasound. What are you feeding your pet? What kind of dry food?
Olga
My 5-year-old cat had a drop of blood in her formed stool yesterday. Today, her son had a bowel movement with a softer stool and a stream of scarlet blood at the end. What is this and what should I do? He has another brother and their father, and everything seems fine. I haven't dewormed the one-year-old cats. Can you tell me what to do and what medication to use? Can I give him Prozintel?
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! Take your cat to a clinic, don't administer medication yourself. Rule out protozoan parasites (a completely different anthelmintic will be needed). Also, check for viral, bacterial, or inflammatory processes in the digestive system (maybe the food isn't of the best quality). Ideally, a complete blood count, biochemistry panel, and ultrasound will be performed.
Marina
Hello! My two-year-old cat periodically passes bright red blood at the end of her stool. There's no mucus, and I occasionally see hair in her stool. I give her toothpaste regularly, every day during shedding, and several times a week as a preventative. She's vaccinated, last dewormed in March, and generally every three months as scheduled. She's spayed, and doesn't go outside. She has a good appetite and eats Bosch Sanabelle Trout dry food. She drinks water well, uses the litter box once a day, and twice a day for bowel movements. Her stool is well-formed.
The cat is active and appears healthy. The vet said during the examination that the cat's walls were damaged by the food. There were no signs of protozoa. He recommended giving her sunflower oil! Blood still appears periodically.
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! The hair is coming out with the stool precisely because of the toothpaste. It helps the hair not get tangled in the intestines but pass naturally. Is the food scratching the intestinal walls? What kind of food can resist being soaked in gastric juice? Moreover, scarlet blood indicates fresh bleeding (bleeding from the lower colon, rectum, or the sphincter itself). The easiest way to prevent mucosal damage from the food is to switch to a wet diet. In general, it's essential to examine the lower intestines (to rule out inflammatory processes or ulcers).
Tatiana
Hello! My cat is 7 years old, spayed, and British Shorthair. For a couple of days, she's been passing small, hard stools more frequently than usual, and not only in the litter box (near the front door). Then, we noticed a clear, almost odorless mucus discharge from her anus. She frequently asks for food (we feed her Royal Canin dry and wet food), but we stopped feeding her dry food.
My cat passes hard, mucus-filled stools once a day, streaked with scarlet blood. Could you please tell me what's causing the mucus and how to help my cat? Parasite prevention has been a long time coming, at least five years! My cat is an indoor cat, always anxious, and is sensitive to strangers, not to mention the vet. What should I do?
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! First, deworm your pet. Then, if symptoms persist, despite the pet's fearfulness, get it examined by a vet. You read the article, right?
Blood in the stool can be a symptom of constipation, a foreign body in the intestines, allergies, intolerance to a food (component, medication), benign polyps, intestinal ulcers, chronic colitis, ulcerative colitis, enteritis, bacterial or viral infections, helminthiasis, giardiasis or other protozoa, intestinal obstruction, tumors, trauma to the anal sphincter or lower colon or rectum, or bleeding disorders. So how can one diagnose and prescribe treatment when so many other conditions need to be ruled out?
Anna
An 11-year-old cat has had mucus-filled, semi-liquid stools with hairballs for four days. Today, there's blood in her stool. It's burgundy and mixed with mucus; the clot is the size of a thumb knuckle. She eats liver sausage, fish, and meat. A year ago, we switched her to this food because she was vomiting. Before that, she ate dry food. A year ago, she was treated with bismuth medications, and everything returned to normal. Now she meows loudly before defecating. She has long hair. She shed heavily in clumps during the winter. Now, her fur is back to a thick, matted mess and doesn't shed.
She has a very strong appetite; she can't get enough food and constantly asks for more. She's gained weight. She constantly demands liverwurst—her favorite food. I've been diagnosed with ulcerative colitis myself. For the last month, my cat has been coming to me and lying on my stomach—it relieves the pain, even though for 11 years, nothing has tempted her to sit with her owners. What's going on with the cat? Could it be ulcerative colitis? Although it's an autoimmune disease, no one has proven the mechanism by which it occurs.
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! To confirm this diagnosis, your pet needs to be examined by a veterinarian. This diagnosis can now be made; a decade ago, the general diagnosis was enteritis. Modern veterinary medicine is advancing, and new diagnostic methods are emerging. Blood indicates intestinal bleeding (possibly an ulcer), especially if the clot is large. Without an in-person examination and testing, a diagnosis is impossible.
Lyudmila
Good evening! My cat has normal, formed stools once a day, but there's constant blood in his stool. The blood is dark and mixed with mucus. He eats, drinks, and plays. He's on Mealfeel premium dry food. He was recently dewormed with milprazon, but it didn't help; the blood in his stool remains. Can you tell me what this could be and what tests he should undergo?
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! Since the blood isn't bright, it's not a sphincter or rectal injury caused by hard stool. Since the blood in the stool is dark, the bleeding is most likely in the large intestine. The simplest tests are a blood test (general and biochemical), and a stool test for pinworms and protozoa. A more detailed picture can be obtained by X-ray or gastroenteroscopy. Polyps, intestinal tumors, ulcers, and other causes of bleeding must be ruled out.
GALINA
My British shorthair cat has soft stools (not diarrhea), and today I discovered blood in his stool. He eats solid food and Whiskas in sachets. He's reluctant to eat meat, drinks a lot of water, and frequently goes to the litter box to urinate. He also has soft stools several times a day.
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! Remove Whiskas from the diet! If you want to feed soft/wet food, choose super-premium, not budget. If the dry food is also Whiskas, then you'll have to change the animal's diet completely! What kind of blood is it? Scarlet?
Is it in drops or clots? Is it dark? What quantity is there? Are there any other signs (vomiting, refusal to eat, hair loss, lethargy, abdominal pain)? Has the animal been dewormed recently, and with what? Blood in the stool (especially soft stool) is a bad sign. The animal needs an in-person examination by a veterinarian, blood tests, and additional examinations.
Olga
Hello, I have a red spot on the roof of my mouth and loose stools with a drop of blood. What should I do? We adopted the kitten a week ago. He only had one normal stool.
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! Your pet needs an urgent in-person veterinary appointment. Blood, stool, and urine tests should be performed. Rule out protozoan parasites (since there's blood in the stool) and helminths. What are you feeding them? Where did you get the kitten? Did you find them on the street or adopt them? Are there any other symptoms? What's their temperature? Appetite? Are there any vomiting, watery eyes, itching, skin spots, runny nose, or wheezing? These little ones are very susceptible to infection. The sooner you seek IN-person help from a specialist, the better your chances of starting treatment early and saving your little one.
Elena
Good afternoon! My 2-year-old cat has been vomiting heavily since last night. He started vomiting food, then foam, and it's brown. He vomited water this morning. Yesterday, his stools were mucus-filled, but formed; it wasn't diarrhea. He's not eating right now, although he's clearly hungry and isn't drinking. He's been vaccinated with Multifel in August and dewormed around the same time. He's indoors and never goes outside. We suspect he ate chicken bones. We're planning a vet visit later today. What could be causing his discomfort?
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! A veterinarian can only make a definitive diagnosis after an in-person examination and a complete medical history. Deworming should be performed every three months, regardless of whether the cat is indoors or outdoors (you could bring in the pathogen on your shoes).
If your cat had chewed on chicken bones, you would have found some in the vomit (only if the fragments had severely damaged the stomach lining). At your doctor's appointment, be sure to tell them about their vaccinations, deworming (what they used to treat parasites), and feeding schedule (what are you feeding them?).
Olga
Hello. After taking Melbimax, my cat's stool still isn't working. He vomited worms, and I gave him the pill right away. After the medication, his stool was loose and had a drop of blood on it. Gradually, his stool returned to normal, but the drop of blood persists. He's active, eats well (on grain-free food), hasn't vomited, and appears quite healthy.
Dasha is a veterinarian
Hello! It's best to take your pet to the vet for an examination and tests. Blood in the stool can be a symptom of not only helminths (roundworms, tapeworms) but also protozoan parasites. Giardiasis, for example, needs to be ruled out. It requires a completely different medication. Was the anthelmintic given again in 10-14 days? Or was the parasite treatment done once? Does your pet go outside? Is it vaccinated?
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