Kitten litter tray and stools

[mabe]

Hello, just looking for some advice on a 3/4 month old rescue kitten.
He's been here about a week now and seems to be settling in well, he plays well and sits with me most of the time and doesn't hide too much, and he uses the litter tray just fine, but he doesn't dig or "bury" his mess and I wasn't sure if this was entirely normal as I've never known a cat not to do this (I've had a few years experience of adult cats and a kitten from an ex partner).

The other thing is that some days his poops are mushy, then others they're solid.
The first mushy poo I discovered I was a bit worried he was stressed out and upset, but then it went back to solid. But now every other day or so he has a mushy poop and I'm not sure whether to get him checked out at the vet as it's not continually mushy and it hasn't been runny at all and he has no problem controlling his toilet habits. I thought maybe it was his food, he's on the same stuff from the shelter and eating both wet and dry, but I thought perhaps the wet food wasn't digesting too well as it seems to be more occurrent after his breakfast?

Has anyone else had experience with these sorts of things and do you reckon I should get him checked out?

Many thanks

[Lilith]

Hi there and welcome

First of all many kittens/cats don't bury their motions, this is fine.

The stool texture - at that age he might be teething, which can cause soft/runny/stinky motions sometimes; again this is normal. Also, he's new, and will still be settling in. He sounds to be doing very well. I would say that at this stage, just keep an eye on him, but of course that's just my personal opinion; I'm not a vet and I'm not there with him like you are.

If you're worried by anything, it can be a good idea to ring your vet; most vets (and their staff) are happy to discuss queries and worries and will tell you whether a cat needs to be seen. Also, would the rescue people advise you? They too will be experienced re this sort of thing.

I take it the rescue shelter has wormed and de-flea'd him? If not this is something that does need doing and it's best to use stuff supplied by your vet, which will mean an examination first.

Food-wise, that sounds fine if you're keeping him on what he's used to, even if you plan to change it later. Some cats react to ingredients like cereal or fish but for now I'd just keep him on what he's accustomed to. Don't give him milk though, not even kitten milk.

Hopefully these uneven stools are just with him being a 'new boy' - and not all cats have solid motions all of the time; it's quite usual for some to be softer, or one cat to vary, even on the same food. But you're very right to observe and wonder about this, and hopefully more people will be along soon to advise. But hope this helps for now.

He sounds a contented kitty and I hope that you and he have happy and healthy future together

[mabe]

Hello and thank you!

Your response was very helpful
I am leaning more toward keeping an eye on him for the moment as he seems pretty happy otherwise and he was de-flead and wormed just before I took him home, but obviously if anything changes I'll call up the vet or even the shelter as they were really helpful when taking him.

Thanks for your help!