My new kitten has loose stools and is on antibiotics. Should I worry?

Congrats on your new kitten! Since Stella was on Hill's before, it's not likely the cause of her soft stools. Intestinal parasites are common in young kittens, and that could be a cause of her soft stool. Check with the shelter to see if she has recently received a deworming treatment, and if she has not, I would give her one. If she is up to date on her deworming treatments, keep an eye on her stools and if they become diarrhea, have her seen by a vet. Best of luck, I hope this helps.

I would recommend that you take Storm to see a veterinarian. Common causes of diarrhea in a kitten are intestinal parasites like worms, coccidia, or Giardia. You can take a fresh (<12 hours old) stool sample with you so they can test it - called an intestinal parasite screening. If it is not parasites, other causes of diarrhea can be poor nutrition, food allergy, bacterial or viral infection, among a few others.

The soft stools could be cause by trauma from the fall, a parasite, or an infection. The best thing would be to have a vet examine him to see if he has any injuries from the fall. If you can't get him to a vet and he is otherwise acting normal then you could deworm him with a broad spectrum dewormer, feed him a bland gastrointestinal diet, and add a probiotic to his food and see if that helps clear up the soft stools.

Hi there. Some pets may have some mild GI upset after vaccinations, so this certainly could be normal. If he's acting normal otherwise (eating and drinking fine, no vomiting, etc.),. then it should be okay to just monitor for now. If it doesn't resolve in the next 2-3 days, or if he develops any other symptoms such as vomiting or not wanting to eat, then I would recommend having him checked by your vet to make sure nothing else is wrong.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I want Mittens to get checked out but it's not an emergency. The fact that he is eating and acting normally is huge and a very good thing. It could be that his GI tract has just been very upset by the antibiotics. While you gather the money for a recheck appointment, try a probiotic like Purina FortiFlora (use as directed on the box). You can also add a fiber supplement like Benefiber powder (tasteless- 1 tsp with each meal). Stay on the GI diet given by your vet as this is likely also helpful. If this seems to fix the problem, great! If not, get into the vet as soon as you are able to get other medications for the diarrhea. Best of luck to you and Mittens!

Poor kitty. Sudden food changes can certainly cause a pet to have loose stool. Since you have dewormed then you can try giving Milo a bland diet of boiled plain chicken, tuna, or ground turkey and white rice to ease the stomach. You can also give probiotics --> https://www.chewy.com/purina-pro-plan-veterinary-diets/dp/49853 If this does not improve the stools within 3-4 days, then its best to get Milo seen by your vet for further testing (i.e. fecal exam) and treatment (i.e. antibiotics, etc). Not all dewormers will treat for all potential intestinal parasites. I hope that your furry friend Milo resolves his loose stools soon! Best wishes and take care.

There can be lots of causes for diarrhea or loose stools in a cat, including food intolerance or allergies, intestinal parasites, inflammatory bowel disease, intestinal lymphoma, among other things. If Vinnie is eating well and has a good activity level, I think it is ok to wait until things outside start to clear up. Vinnie may need to go on a hypoallergenic diet, try other prescription medications, have an abdominal ultrasound, or special blood work to determine what is going on.