Had severe diarrhea last night

[TyrionAndSasha]

Last night, my girl has severe diarrhea followed by a mucus that looked like spit in her poop. I looked it up, this could be from her diet. I just switched to raw, and I give them dry food too.
This morning she was meowing from bed for no reason, so something is up.
Do I-
1)switch her back to wet food for a couple days to firm up her poop, make sure the food is the issue, then get her back in raw later.
2)just get rid of dry and keep her on raw
3)is it just expected sensitive stomach?
4)take her to the vet?

 

[TyrionAndSasha]

I'm thinking to be safe, take them both off raw for a couple weeks.

 

[TyrionAndSasha]

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2013/04/15/raw-food-diet-part-3.aspx

They mention not to mix raw and kibble. That could be the problem.

Issue now would be it's gonna be a long week at work, and I won't have time to monitor every poop. Not sure what to do. My vet wasn't stoked on the raw food idea when I told her a while ago I was thinking about it. I feel telling her would just prompt her to say to switch back to regular for a while.

 

[Catzzzmeow]

I do not feed raw, but I have seen many say no kibble with raw as well. I hope some members who feed raw will have some advise. My guess is definitely the food is causing her issues.

Patti

 

[susi794]

You shouldn't feed raw and kibble at the same time. They digest at different rates and can cause gastrointestinal discomfort. You say you are raw feeding, but you don't mention what method you're using. Are you feeding something commercially prepared or making your own? Or are you feeding the prey method? Are you certain the ratio between muscle meat, organ meat and bone is correct? There could be many reasons for your baby's issue. Raw food is listed as the best diet for cats if done properly, but as the worst if not done right. So, before you stop the raw, make sure you're using a well balanced plan with the correct ratios, then give it a chance to work. But you know your baby better than anyone..if you feel a vet visit is in order, then you should go. Praying it is nothing serious.
Much love,
Susi

 

[TyrionAndSasha]

I have been using Stella and Chewys chicken 2X a day, plus a cup of dry in the middle of the day. They each get a bowl full of raw, which is about the full amount they can eat each time I feed them.

 

[TyrionAndSasha]

Maybe today I'll remove the dry food, try feeding them raw 3X, and see how she does. If she is still having problems tomorrow, I'll switch back to wet canned food.
Since the switch to raw, the oily smell they got after a week went away, their eye goop started to be clear instead of dark colored, and their poop didn't smell anymore. All good things.

 

[andreanar]

Stop the kibble! That's most likely the issue. You gotta choose raw or dry. I'm not familiar with Stella and Chewy, but I took a quick look and the ingredients seem ok. Try doing just the raw, no treats, no soft, no hard food for a few days.

 

[MollysMom]

Molly gets that clear mucus when she has runny poop as well. My vet said it is just a by product of intestinal irritation, and short term is not really anything to panic about.

Switch them back to straight raw. Try and get some forti flora probiotics (I get mine at the vet) to sprinkle on to help her get back to normal. It usually takes a day or 2 to get things ok again for us on the forti flora.

If your vet is really against raw, in my experience it was always an issue when we went in. They were always blaming whatever issue we had on the raw diet, instead of looking for the real cause. I now have a vet that accepts it, and life is easier.

 

[zoinks]

I would cut out the kibble.. it is not needed, perhaps replace with a 3rd feeding of the raw. Been feeding all different flavors of Stella & Chewy's for the past 6-8 months and only had runny poop when they snuck into something they weren't supposed to.

Every cat is different, but from all the research I have did it is rare to see severe diarrhea on raw unless there is something else going on.

The only other thing is to make sure not to leave it out too long and give the bowls a good scrubbing to avoid bacteria issues.

 

[TyrionAndSasha]

I took away the raw, fed them this today a couple bowls. I took it away after 30 mins so they get on a schedule. Having the free feeding, I didn't need to be so strict with the feeding times. If I'm doing all manual feeding, I'll need to get them trained when to eat. I'll do 5am, 11am, and 5 pm. Those are the only times I'll be available. I that 12 hours space going to be ok?

 

[susi794]

Are these kittens? They need to eat frequently....but if these are the only times available, it should be ok. Monitor their weight closely though. And when you take the dry away, they may cry for food. But if they are getting enough, don't give in with giving them the dry...give another raw meal instead.

 

[TyrionAndSasha]

Since they are kittens, and I'm not home as much as I'd like, (the main reason I got cats rather then dogs) (I grew up with both), I am going back to canned and dry food. I plan to switch to raw later on. Maybe when they are a little older and can go a little longer without eating then they should now.