Why did my cat eat poop outside the litter box? What should I do?

Is this a new behavior? Is the stool firm and hard? If it is firm and hard then it may be from her being constipated. If it is soft and she has diarrhea, she can have intestinal parasites or she could have eaten something that upset her stomach. I would recommend having a stool sample performed to make sure there are no parasites and to see the consistency of the stool. If the veterinarian says everything is fine then I would use at least 2 litter boxes with clumping litter. Make sure you have a box on each level. I would also consider medication to help with the behavior. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

This behavior is most likely dietary related. I suggest you try a diet change to see if that will help. My other suggestion is to feed her a probiotic for the next few weeks. I like Fortiflora but any probiotic made for cats would suffice. DO NOT give human probiotics or dairy (like yogurt). If these two things do not help then you will need to take her for a vet exam and fecal test to check for internal parasites. I don't think she would necessarily get sick from doing this but of course it can make her sick. Especially if she has type of parasite she will just keep re-infecting herself. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Issues with faeces such as these can be indicative of issues in the gut. It could just be inflammation such as gastroenteritis or colitis, but sometimes it can indicate problems such as inflammatory bowel disease or tumours etc. You could try adding a probiotic to both of their feed and see if that helps, but I think it would be worth taking them both to the vet for an exam if it continues for more than a day or so.

Pixie's litter box habits sound quite frustrating! Most cases of cats defecating outside of the litter box are due to behavioral causes. However, since Pixie had an irritated anus when you adopted her, she may have been having difficulty urinating in the litter box due to worms or anal gland issues. Make sure her vet has checked a stool sample for the presence of parasites and possibly performed a rectal exam to check her anal glands. Consider adding an extra litter box, changing the litter type, and adding or removing a litter box hood. Calming pheromone collars or diffusers (Feliway is one example) can be beneficial in some cases. If you have further questions or concerns, feel free to request a consultation and we can discuss this problem in more detail.

There could be several causes for Yokie having diarrhea. She would benefit from an exam with a veterinarian - take a fresh stool sample with you to the appointment for evaluation (litter on it is ok!). Some of the more common reasons for diarrhea in cats include intestinal parasites (which she could have gotten from eating outside critters), Irritable Bowel Syndrome, and intestinal lymphoma. Your veterinarian will be able to prescribe special dewormers based on her symptoms and may recommend a special food or other medications to try out and see if that helps with the diarrhea. You can also try "ProPectalin AntiDiarrheal Gel for Dogs Cats", but it should not be administered long-term.

Poor Meechi! Normal cat stools are firm and dark in color, so it sounds like she probably has a medical problem of some kind causing her soft stools. It's very common for cats to poop outside the litter box when they have soft stools or diarrhea, so the underlying cause for this will need to be diagnosed and treated in order to get her to use her litter box appropriately. I would recommend taking Meechi to the vet for an exam as soon as you are able to. He/she can do some diagnostic testing, which might include a fecal exam for parasites as well as blood work to screen for a systemic illness of some kind, to help determine the problem and get her started on appropriate medication to treat it.

I agree with your doc about an extra litter box or two. I always recommend at least one more than the number of cats. I do not think placing the feces in her box will help at all. It is a good sign that she is urinating in the box. I would be anxious to know what kind of food she is on and the consistency of her feces. Is she constipated or having loose stools, for example. I would start by trying the extra litter boxes and then go from there.