My 11 week old kitten has diarrhoea/loose stools. It’s been

Hello there,

Welcome to Just Answer. We are an online advice service. You are through to Dr Coles. I am a UK based vet. I am sorry to hear you are having problems with your kitten.

Also, please note that we experts are not employees of Just Answer, but independent here. As such, we are not aware of when you posted your question and I apologize if there has been a delay. I will get back to you as soon as I can, there can be a delay (especially with time difference) however I will respond to you. Can you tell me a little more about what is going on?

What type of food was your kitten on and what did you switch him onto? When you switched him did you do this suddenly? Is he keen to eat still or is he off his food? has he been vomiting?

Ah, yes, kitten milk can be quite rich and can definitely cause diarrhoea. It sometimes upsets the normal gut flora, so i would recommend the use of a probiotic, such as canikur, prokolin or fortiflora. It is good that he is eating well. I would put him back onto the food he was on previously, but try to change slowly, so as not to cause an abrupt change. The diet can be very individual and not always affect both cats the same. sometimes it can trigger episodes of colitis (inflammation of the colon). I would also ensure they are up to date with worming treatment, including parasite treatment such as giardia treatment. Usually we use panacur. Kittens with diarrhoea do get dehydrated very quickly and often lose weight easily, so i would advise getting him checked over by your vet as soon as possible so that they can rule out any other more serious problem.

Signs of dehydration would include sticky (tacky) gums, a skin tent and sunken eyes, but these are usually only present late on when an animal is very dehydrated.Any change in behaviour such as being lethargic etc then i would advise to get him seen ASAP.