Cat Poop Problems: What Colour, Shape, and Frequency Tell You
Quick Answer
Your cat's litter box tells you more about their health than almost anything else. This guide decodes poop colour, consistency, frequency, and the signs that something needs veterinary attention.
Your cat's litter box tells you more about their health than almost anything else. This guide decodes poop colour, consistency, frequency, and the signs that something needs veterinary attention.
The litter box is a health dashboard
What normal cat poop looks like
**Colour guide**
**Dark brown:** Normal. Healthy digestion.
**Black or tarry:** Blood from the upper digestive tract (stomach or small intestine). This is called melena. Causes include ulcers, ingested blood, or tumours. See a vet within 24 hours.
**Red or bloody:** Blood from the lower digestive tract (colon or rectum). Causes include colitis, constipation straining, parasites, or rectal injury. Small streaks after straining are less concerning than large amounts of blood.
**Yellow or mustard:** Indicates liver or gallbladder issues, or food moving too quickly through the digestive tract. Occasionally caused by high-fat diets. If it persists beyond 2-3 stools, see a vet.
**Grey or clay-coloured:** Bile duct obstruction or pancreatic issues. The lack of bile pigment causes the light colour. This needs a vet visit.
**Green:** Can indicate the cat ate plant material (grass, indoor plants) or that food is moving through the intestines too quickly. Also seen with certain infections. Monitor for 24 hours, then see vet if it continues.
**White spots:** Tapeworm segments. They look like grains of rice. Deworm and treat for fleas (fleas carry tapeworm).
**Consistency guide**
Track this episode in Omelo. Know if it gets worse.
**Hard, dry pellets:** Constipation. Not enough water, not enough fibre, or a motility problem. Common in cats fed only dry food. Add wet food, ensure water access, and consider a fibre supplement.
**Soft but formed:** Slightly off but not alarming. Often dietary — a new food, a treat, or too much of something rich.
**Soft, no shape (pudding-like):** Diarrhea. Causes include dietary indiscretion, infection, parasites, food intolerance, or stress. If it lasts more than 48 hours, see a vet.
**Watery:** Severe diarrhea. Dehydration risk, especially in kittens. Causes include viral infection, bacterial infection, severe parasites, or toxin ingestion. See a vet within 24 hours. For kittens, this is urgent.
**Mucus-coated:** Inflamed colon (colitis). Can be caused by stress, diet changes, parasites, or inflammatory bowel disease. Occasional mucus is not an emergency, but persistent mucus needs investigation.
**Frequency changes**
**Pooping more often than usual:** Often indicates irritation of the lower bowel. The cat feels the urge to go but produces only small amounts. Common with colitis and parasites.
**Not pooping for 48+ hours:** Constipation. Common in older cats, dehydrated cats, and cats with megacolon. If your cat is straining in the litter box with no output, this needs attention within 24 hours.
**Pooping outside the litter box:** Almost always a medical or stress issue, not "misbehaviour." Pain, UTI, constipation, arthritis (hard to climb into the box), stress, or litter box aversion.
Litter box best practices
When to see a vet
Track litter box patterns
Track this episode in Omelo. Know if it gets worse.
