Blood and mucous in cat stool

Hi!
I was wondering if anyone had an answer to my question or had run into this before. Yesterday I found some fresh blood and mucous in my cats’ stool. The stool was soft and it smelled really horrid. I have never seen this before. I have 2 male nurtured cats: both indoors 100% of the time, they have both had recent physicals, have gotten shots, are active, eating well, and seem to have no other problems. They have a stable diet of Purina One Sensitive System dry food all the time and rarely get treats (I added Oxyfresh to their water 2 days ago, could this be the cause?). I don’t know which cat it is and every website I go to says it is either a minor problem or life threatening.

Cat 1: 10 years old and had full blood work done a month ago as well as shots and physical. Had developed a sensitive stomach 3 years ago, but has been successfully treated with diet.
Cat 2: 5 years old and had physical and shots last week.

Anyone have any ideas? Is this a one time thing, or should I be concerned? I took the Oxyfresh out of their water yesterday, so I hope that makes a difference. :shock:

 

Hi. If it was my cat I'd probably take him to the vet or at least take a stool sample so they could test it. I don't think the Oxyfresh is the cause, but you never know. Perhaps you could stop using this for a bit. Blood in the stools can be caused by so many things. Give your vet a call, since you just took them there and see what they have to say.

 

Thanks for replying. My cats are my family. I was stressed all day at work. My mind always goes right to the worst case scenario. My husband tries to keep me from overreacting. I guess that is why we work well together. We decided to be “observant” and “logical” about it. Who doesn’t enjoy digging through cat pans and examining nuggetty findings like some kind of poo-poo private eye? :lol:

If I see it again, we will get more aggressive with treatment. We have been checking the cat pan and all stools look completely normal now from both cats. If I see it happen again, I plan to take that sample down to the vet to have tested. Then, I will also isolate each cat to try to figure out who the “problem child” is and will make an appointment for them.

I stopped the Oxyfresh right after I saw the blood. I think I may have I put too much in their water. *doh!* It is 1 Teaspoon per Quart. I felt like an idiot asking the VetTech just how much a “quart” is because I use metric. She said just to add a teaspoon to their water dish and it would be fine. After the blood in the stool, I looked it up the conversion to metric online. There is no way a CAT water dish is a whole quart!! If feel so stupid that I did not double check it myself. 99% of a vet visit is followed up care at home, so if we don’t know what to do that can be a big problem!
Hopefully that was all it was, we shall see. Thanks for the feedback!

 

sometimes the stool smell/color can indicate what parasite it might be - I have the paperwork at home for things to watch for so I don't recall.
But I know that a light colored brown that is very loose and stinks to high heaven can sometimes be related to coccidia (parasite) and if that goes on too long there can be blood in the stool.
Sounds like it's hasn't been long though.
But a vet check would definitely be in order - at least bring some offending stool to the vet for a fecal exam. If it is a parasite separating the cats wouldn't matter. If they share litterboxes you would have to treat both of them

 

light brown? check
loose? check
smells like it could melt steel? check
Sounds like a winner!

I already put a call into my vet today and I am thinking that $25 for a stool test is worth it, regardless if I see blood again. It would put my mind at ease. Better to eliminate the possibility than to just ignore it and hope it is nothing. Thanks because I had totally dismissed this as a possibility, due to their lifestyle. They are house cats with no exposure to other pets, good food, clean water, clean environment...hmmm.

I suspect it is the older cat because he has had digestive issues for years due to his sensitive tummy, including occasional diarrhea. He just got tested less then a month ago for all this stuff (so I thought), which is why I wanted to talk to the vet. Anyway, thanks for the tip. Let’s hope you are right and it is something that can just be cleared up with some meds.

 

another strong possibility is IBD (irritable bowel disease) do a google seearch on that. That could be a strong chance on that

 

Just thought I would give you an update and thank you all for the help. It turns out my older cat likely has IBD, as you guessed. My vet put him on a prescription food to try to get it under control. Hopefully it will take care of the problem. Thank again!

 

my dog was recently diagnosed with IBS (syndrome, not disease yet - disease affects stomach and upper intestine along w/lower) anyway I, at this point, only need to add fiber to her food.
I took her to the vet last week for this and in the past week she's only had one bout of "dire-rear" (I'm talking ground absorbing stuff - quite the treat when one is on the other end of the leash :roll: :shock: ).
I am putting FiberAll cereal in with her dog food. Vet suggested I go on a hunt for dog food that is high in fiber but she likes her food (she's quite anal and quite picky) so rather than deal with switching her over to something else she probably won't eat I was told to try adding fiber to the food she does eat. Seems to be working.
Thanks for the update on your cat - helps us all learn

 

What a big change!

Actually, you maybe right that my cat does not have IB”Disease” yet because the symptoms seem to be only lower intestine related. I did not bring him in for an exam because why is the point? The end result is the same - “make kitty’s tummy feel better”. It makes me wonder though - what are they putting in this commercial pet food that so many animals have this issue?

Thank goodness he has never been a picky eater (which is clear, considering he has a housecat potbelly! haha!). It was the funniest thing too because the Vet said he may have a hard time adjusting to the new food, so to mix it with his regular food for the first week. As soon as I put it down, he ate AROUND is regular kibble!

The vet said it may take a month to see improvement, but already the cat pan has been far less stinky and less loose stool AND the 10 year old senior cat has suddenly become like a kitten again! He used to just lay on his side when I would try to play with him and bat at the toy only when it got in his face. Now he is actually chasing the toys and jumping in the air like he used to years ago. I never expected such a change! Woot! Maybe now we can work off that potbelly ...

 

that's wonderful....it's always heartwarming to know we have done something to make our furkids feel better. A quick simple fix and his life, along with yours, has been bettered.

 

The vet said it would take up to a month in order to see if the prescription diet is successful.
So, I have a quick question about Aries and his new diet:

He has been vomiting a clear liquid (sometimes with fur, sometimes without) a couple days this week. He is kind of a puker anyway. He used to throw up his food with it, but since the food change it just looks like saliva or something. I know it has to be better then tossing his breakfast, but it sounds so uncomfortable when he does it . I just don’t know enough about cats to know if clear liquid is something to be more concerned about than food? Why do cats vomit anyway??

He is eating normally and is overweight anyway. His loose stool has been less frequent and has had no blood in it since the food change. Also, his activity level has improved (as I said before), and he seems far more comfortable being touched and held (meaning less discomfort?). I wonder if his IBD has just moved up his digestive tract and the vomiting is just something he will have to live with. Hopefully, the improved strict diet will help him out.

On a side note, since the vet said, “Absolutely no treats or junk food!” I have had to stop giving him “snacks” from my plate (I know, I am bad!). Anyway, it has been a hard behavioral adjustment for the “Aries Monster”. I dropped a crouton the other day and I have never seen a cat run so fast for a dry piece of seasoned bread in my life! By the time I got my hand down to pick it up, it was gone!! Oh, well....I guess we start the food trial from scratch again!

 

Pepcid AC....could be she has an upset stomach from the food change or the food could simply be disagreeing with her tummy.
Does she gnash her teeth before upchucking? That is usually a sign of upset stomach rather than just hairballs or vomiting for the pleasure of it.
1/4 tablet of Pepcid AC (pepcid AC only - not the chewable things like regular Pepcid) or store brand of Pepcid AC (that's what I get). And you won't see any puke for days or weeks even.

 

I thought I would give you guys an update. I have been trying this prescription food with Aries for about a month now. He seems to behave as though he is healthier (more energy), but he still has chronic bouts of diarrhea and throws up clear liquid about once every 3-4 days (which I am sure now that it is an upset tummy!). On the plus side, at least the blood in stool has stopped and he is not throwing up his meals. He eats & drinks well and does not appear to be losing weight. My vet decided to try an oral steriod for 1 week to see if the problem is, in fact, due to inflammation, or if it is something else - possibly more serious. I love my little guy and I just want him to feel better. I know he puts on a good front, but I can’t imagine chronic diarrhea for months on end is good for him or comfortable. I have heard that IBD can be so frustrating to figure out, so I am being patient and hoping we can get to the bottom of it - no pun intended. I will keep you guys posted.