I’m at my wit’s end; my three-and-a-half-month-old kitten won’t stop rubbing his bottom on the floor—doing the 'scooting' thing—after using his litter tray. I adopted him two weeks ago and I’m exhausted because the problem is he isn't properly house-trained yet, meaning he doesn't clean himself back there. Scooting when he's clean is annoying enough, but doing it when he's got poo on his bottom is an absolute nightmare, let me tell you.
I’ve tried everything. As for him not cleaning himself, I’m being patient because I know he’s still a kitten and although he's fully weaned, he still needs to learn, but I can’t cope with the other issue anymore. He’s leaving skid marks everywhere and I have to clean them up... whenever I spot them... bearing in mind he goes to the toilet 5 or 6 times a day!
I’ve seen suggestions that it could be worms or perhaps blocked anal glands. But we’ve been to the vet twice; he was wormed as soon as he arrived two weeks ago, and the vet expressed his anal glands 4 or 5 days ago, but nothing has changed. He’s still at it, and my vet—along with another I consulted over the phone—is stumped. I’ve tried it all: worming treatments and emptying his glands. Plus, I feel so sorry for him because I imagine he’s not doing it for a laugh; it really breaks my heart.
Please, is anyone else in this situation?! Or does anyone have any leads for me, because this whole situation is becoming very stressful. Thanks.
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Evening all, I’ve also got a 6-month-old kitten who is doing exactly the same thing and it really is unbearable! I’ve been to the vet twice; they told me it was worms, so I treated him but it’s just carried on. I went back again and they also emptied his anal glands, and it’s still happening! I went in again this week and they’ve given me a paste that he has to take twice a day for a week, but so far it isn’t working… I don’t know what to do anymore… I feel like he’s in pain too, and feeling so helpless is just awful! If any of you have any advice regarding food or treatments, I’m all ears! Thanks for your replies.
Evening,
Is it a long-haired or short-haired cat? Long-haired cats often have what I call a 'litter tray accident' when they have soft stools, as it gets stuck in their fur and they end up scooting to try and get rid of it. This then makes them quite sore, so they try to scratch the area.
Just follow Ulalie’s advice to help give him some relief.
Hello, thanks for all your advice.
So, it’s true I didn’t do a long transition; I actually switched his dry food on the first day and he had diarrhoea that day. I’ve since done some research and started the transition properly the following day.
I'm going to try doing it this way and hopefully it works.
Hi,
I agree with Ulalie, you should change their diet using a slow transition. Not all cats get on well with grain-free dry food. Try Royal Canin Kitten dry food; kittens usually find it quite easy to digest.
I would also change his food because his bottom must be irritated and it's a bit of a vicious circle: the soft stools irritate the area, he scratches, and it just carries on... If he’s already been wormed and had his anal glands expressed, I don’t see what else it could be. He probably needs a specific type of food, and you’ll need to make the transition very gradually.
You can clean his bottom with a tissue dipped in lukewarm water, pat it dry, and then apply some Vaseline to soothe it.
A cat's poo shouldn't be soft; it should be firm and well-formed.
Did you change their diet after the adoption? Did you do a gradual transition?
My cats don't digest grain-free food well, especially one of them.
Thanks for your reply, @Kelinda. His stools are indeed quite soft, but he’s still dragging his bum even when his bottom is clean (either because I’ve cleaned him or because he’s tidy after doing his business).
As for his diet, I’m feeding him grain-free kitten dry food.
He was properly weaned as he stayed with his mum for three months and a few days.
He’s probably got soft stools. My adult cat has done that before, but only when he had some left behind, so not when he was clean. Mind you, he doesn’t clean himself very well either, there are always some bits left over. That tends to happen with cats that haven't been properly weaned because it’s the mother who teaches them that, but mine lived with his for almost 10 months, so he was definitely well-weaned.
Are his stools not soft? Normally, dry or wet food that’s properly digested shouldn't result in poo getting stuck to their bum. So maybe try changing his food.
