Expert: Dear Tabbi - 1/24/2009

Question
Dear Tabbi,

I was given the most wonderful gift of love from a Very Dear Friend: a beautiful, sweet male kitten who has happily joined my 3 other female cats.  He is my first male.  But I have noticed his poop is particularly smelly.  I mean we are talking Some Seriously Stinky Poop!  His stools are normal and well formed for a 5 month old kitten.  Is there a reason HIS poop smells SO much worse than the other?

Thank You Most Kindly For Your Time,

Tracy Present

Answer
Tracy,

What a nice gift! It sounds the kitten has a loving and caring new owner. He's a lucky kitty.

Your sweet kitten's stinky poop can be caused by Giardia, which is a parasitic organism that is in the lining of the intestine. Hookworms can cause stinky poop too. You can get Flagyl or Panacur from the vet to treat either. I've heard good things about the results from a three day treatment of Panacur.

Coccidia is another organism found in the intestinal tract that makes poop stinky. It is common in kitten less than 6 months old. Vets usually give a sulfa antiseptic medication for 10-14 days for this one.

Giardia, and usually Coccidia, do not show up on fecal exams.

Your kitten can be getting too much or too little fiber.
Also, do not give him milk, a lot of cats are lactose intolerant. You can try giving him a little Sweet Acidophilus (it's in the dairy case at the grocery store). It helps with gas in cats too.

Diet has a LOT to do with smelly poop. Dry food is better than wet food. Make sure it's a high quality, preferably with the first ingredient on the bag being meat, chicken, or chicken meal. Look for rice too. Avoid by-products as the first listed ingredients. The more fillers (grain/corn etc) the stinkier the poop. Innova Evo, Wellness Indoor Health, and Nutro are some good choices of dry food.

On the other hand, Aleda M Cheng, D.V.M. says the complete opposite:
"Try including a good probiotic (good digestive bacteria) such as I-Flora, and digestive enzymes in the cat's diet. I would do it through their vet and not on their own. I would also try converting your cats to wet or canned food which contains no grains. Cats do not need grains in their diet. Canned diets usually do no contain as much grain as dry diets."

I cannot say I agree with her, but I wanted to include it so you can make up your own mind.

Tabbi