Hair in Stool, urinating more

[MyCatPaulie]

Paulie urinated and had a bowl movement at 9:30 the stools was very soft now he just went both again and his stools was held together by what looks like a long piece of hair, what should I do, our vet is closed, should I call the emergency vet?
Also all summer he was on z/d and would only urinate once a day, usually he would wait to go right up until it was almost 24 hours since he had gone last. He is off z/d dry now and on wellness dry and all of a sudden he is going twice a day now. Do you think this is a problem? We took him off the z/d because he was throwing up and seemed very lethargic but now he's better but could there be a kidney problem?

[CatsMeow]

Get her to the emergency vet, she cold have a digestive disorder!.... and or kidney failure and a kidney infection or....

[MyCatPaulie]

Catsmeow, I'm so nervous. do you think it was just from the piece of hair. He is acting fine

[CatsMeow]

Catsmeow, I'm so nervous. do you think it was just from the piece of hair. He is acting fine

Well, there is another thing, he could have digested hair. But hair in stool IS a sign of digestive problems.

[MyCatPaulie]

I don't know what to do. I called the emergency vet by my house and they said unless he's throwing up he should be fine. Are all other vets closed on the holiday?

[Catty1]

All I can think is to keep him hydrated. Gently lift the skin on the back of his neck and let go. If it settles into place, he is ok for hydration. If it stays in position, or resettles slowly, get water into him, even if it takes a syringe or turkey baster to do it.

He MAY have swallowed a piece of string or even human hair that caused the soft stool.

You'd have to call around. Do you have a regular vet? They should have an answering service or an emergency # to call. Please try that.

[MyCatPaulie]

Thanks for your help! I do have a regular vet and there answering machine instructs you to call the emergency vet I tried, I don't know if I should look up other ER vets and call them even if I have to drive far or wait and see how he does. It looked like a human hair for sure so I'm hoping it just came out with the stool but I don't know why he would urinate twice in such short time.

[Karen]

You can always try Angell Memorial, they are in Boston, but have people available 24 hours a day. (617) 522-7282

[MyCatPaulie]

Thanks so much Karen! Is it ok if I call them just to ask a question?

[Karen]

Thanks so much Karen! Is it ok if I call them just to ask a question?

Yes. That's what they are there for.

[krazyaboutkatz]

Well I sure hope it's nothing serious. At first it just sounded like he/she had a hairball in his/her stool. Sometimes my cats will do this and it's normal. My cats urinate several times a day and this is also normal. A cat that holds their urine is more likely to get UTI's just like people that can't urinate very well. He/she may be drinking more water now so this is causing Paulie to urinate more. Try not to panic and hopefully the ER clinic will be able to answer any question you may have. Good luck.

[MyCatPaulie]

Thanks for the reply's everyone!
Karen, I called the clinic you suggested and they were very nice, they said if he's not throwing up and there isn't a piece of hair sticking out he should be fine. Thank you for suggesting to call there, it was a big help!
Catty1, thanks for the tip on being hydrated, I lifted his skin like you said and it went right back into place so that is great news.
krazyaboutkatz, thanks for the info. This happened at 11:30am unless he's acting different should I just wait and make sure he goes by 11:30am tomorrow. I hope he doesn't have a UTI, do you know the symptoms of that? Should I expect his stool to be back to normal or do you think it will still be soft when he goes again?

[Karen]

Thanks for the reply's everyone!
Karen, I called the clinic you suggested and they were very nice, they said if he's not throwing up and there isn't a piece of hair sticking out he should be fine. Thank you for suggesting to call there, it was a big help!

I am glad they were able to help you, they are open 24 hours a day year round just for this sort of thing. It's a wonderful, well-respected organization.

[MyCatPaulie]

I have never heard of them and they were very helpful, I apprciate you tellin gme about there service!

[krazyaboutkatz]

krazyaboutkatz, thanks for the info. This happened at 11:30am unless he's acting different should I just wait and make sure he goes by 11:30am tomorrow. I hope he doesn't have a UTI, do you know the symptoms of that? Should I expect his stool to be back to normal or do you think it will still be soft when he goes again?

Some symptoms of a UTI are when a cat strains to urinate and nothing or very little comes out, being in pain while trying to urinate, peeing very little (more like little dribbles than a normal round pee clump),sometimes there can be blood in the urine too. Just because he's been peeing a bit more than normal dosen't mean he has a UTI.

Since you've been changing his diet a lot, this is probably why he's making loose stools. I think that most or all of the Wellness food is also grain free so sometimes in the beginning a cat's body needs to adjust to this and they will either have some diarrhea or loose stools. It should become normal again within a week or two. I wouldn't worry too much unless it continues longer or he becomes dehydrated.

You can always call your normal vet tomorrow with any more questions that you may have. So is Paulie your first cat?