Talking about diarrhea is about as painful as when your cat has it. You might go out of your mind with worry that she’s sick, in pain, or losing her appetite, which could lead to more problems down the road. Not to mention cleaning her smelly, messy litter box is sure to be a nightmare!
The best way to help treat feline diarrhea at home is to get your cat on a special diet with cat food specifically targeted toward diarrhea or gastrointestinal issues. Now if you’re not aware of which brands and types of cat food are ideal for digestive problems, don’t worry – we’re here to help. We’ve come up with the 5 best cat food for diarrhea which will help firm up her stools and provide relief for her upset tummy.
Top Rated Cat Foods for Cats With Diarrhea
1. Royal Canin Digest Sensitive Wet Cat Food: Best For Cats With Loose And Foul-Smelling Stools
Cats who have sensitive stomachs may be unable to process hard-to-digest ingredients, allergens, and additives found in most cat food brands. As such, they may suffer from recurring bouts of diarrhea or stinky stools.
Royal Canin Digest Sensitive Wet Food is made specifically for your cat’s sensitive stomach! Loaded with easily digestible proteins, it helps reduce the odor and improve the texture and consistency of your furry friend’s stools. It’s also formulated to allow her digestive system to absorb more nutrients and restore balance in her intestinal tract.
This wet food features a blend of vitamins and minerals that will not only aid in clearing up your cat’s diarrhea but also boost her overall gut health and wellness. Best of all, its taste and texture appeal to even the pickiest cat eaters, ensuring that your feline friend will have no trouble eating it up even when having an upset stomach makes eating difficult.
Pros:
- Helps clear up smelly, watery stools and promotes firm stools
- Optimizes digestive health and nutrient absorption
- Great for weight management
- Ideal for cats with sensitive stomachs or recurring diarrhea
Cons:
- Expensive
- Not gluten-free
- Needs to be paired with dry food for complete nutrition
2. Ziwi Peak Canned Wet Cat Food: Helps With Allergy-Related Diarrhea
Made with select, naturally sourced ingredients, Ziwi Peak Canned Wet Food is a holistic pet food designed to improve digestion and offer relief from food allergies that can cause diarrhea. Venison features as its main ingredient, with the liver, lung, kidney, heart, and bone parts serving as excellent sources of protein.
It also contains very few ingredients and has no fillers or preservatives, reducing the risk of allergens triggering digestive issues in your feline friend. Better yet, it’s grain-free and low in added carbohydrates, which makes it both easy to digest and ideal for weight management in overweight cats.
Because this wet food is moisture-rich, it can help restore the nutrients and electrolytes that cats lose when they have diarrhea. Its recipe also includes green mussels, which contain chondroitin and glucosamine that support joint health. Plus, it’s free from carrageenan, a food stabilizer and thickener that’s been linked to inflammation and inflammatory bowel disease.
Pros:
- Enhances proper digestion and allergy-related diarrhea
- Features easy-to-digest and nutrient-rich proteins
- Moisture-rich and grain-free recipe
- Supports joint health and improves overall health
- No preservatives, fillers, and carrageenan
Cons:
- Expensive
- Contains carbohydrates from chickpea ingredient
3. Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Skin and Stomach Cat Food: Designed For Sensitive Stomachs
High-quality protein ingredients with a preservative-free formula make up the Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Skin and Stomach Cat Food, which is one of the most ideal products for cats with food sensitivities. It contains real fish, along with a rice and oat blend, that’s easy and gentle on your furry friend’s sensitive stomach.
This wet food also features natural prebiotic fiber, which promotes the nourishment of good bacteria in the gut to improve overall digestive health. It also contains fatty acids for a complete and nutritious meal, including omega-6 fatty acids and linoleic acid to improve skin and coat health.
Each bite of this protein-loaded wet food is made to be tender and flavorful, helping cats with upset or sensitive stomachs regain their appetite. Pet parents of picky eaters applaud this product for its rich flavors that encourage their fur babies to eat more, as well as its ability to help relieve digestive issues such as gas and diarrhea.
Pros:
- Rich in protein from meat sources such as ocean whitefish and liver
- Contains prebiotic fiber and essential fatty acids
- Promotes easier and healthier digestion
- Improves overall gut health
- No artificial flavors or preservatives
Cons:
- Contains meat by-products
4. Blue Buffalo Blissful Belly Dry Cat Food: Recommended by Veterinarians
Veterinarian-recommended for cats with diarrhea, the Blue Buffalo Blissful Belly Dry Cat Food offers a highly digestible formula that’s suitable for sensitive stomachs. Its recipe was created by the company’s vets and animal nutritionists, ensuring that it has only the highest-quality natural ingredients to boost your cat’s digestive health.
This dry food features a blend of chicken, fruits, and vegetables for a nutritious and wholesome formula that’s gentle on your cat’s stomach. It promotes firmer, healthier stools and helps reduce nausea and frequent vomiting.
It’s also free from soy, corn, wheat, artificial flavors, and preservatives that could worsen digestive issues and lead to more health problems. Instead, it’s enhanced with vitamins, minerals, prebiotic fiber, and antioxidant-rich ingredients. These not only boost gut health, but also promote skin, coat, and immune system health!
Pros:
- Created and recommended by pet health experts
- Provides relief from diarrhea and promotes proper digestion
- Contains only wholesome grains, fruits, and vegetables
- No preservatives
- Supports immunity and improves skin and coat health
Cons:
- Not grain-free
- May not be appetizing to all cats
5. Hill’s Prescription Diet i/d Digestive Care: Highly Effective For Digestive Problems
If your cat is experiencing chronic diarrhea, your veterinarian may recommend a prescription diet for him. Hill’s Prescription Diet i/d Digestive Care is one of the most effective and nutritious dry foods for cats suffering from digestive problems, formulated by nutritionists and veterinarians to improve loose and watery stools.
This dry cat food consists of highly digestible ingredients and natural fibers to promote better digestion, optimize nutrient absorption, and improve bowel movements. It also features prebiotic fiber and essential fatty acids that encourage the growth of good gut flora, which aids in energy metabolism and boosts immunity.
Better yet, its formula helps replenish electrolyte and nutrient loss that occurs when cats experience diarrhea, especially when it keeps coming back. Pet parents of cats with IBD or inflammatory bowel disease may benefit from this product and can consult with their veterinarians to see if this product is right for their kitties.
Pros:
- Improves stool quality and consistency
- Relieves diarrhea and restores lost nutrients
- Contains omega-3 & omega-6 fatty acids and antioxidants for better overall nutrition
- Promotes good bacteria growth in the gut
- Suitable for kittens and adult cats
Cons:
- Requires veterinary prescription for purchase
What To Do When Your Cat Has Diarrhea
Besides feeding your cat wet or dry food specifically targeted toward sensitive stomachs or digestive issues, there are a few things you can do to help provide relief for her diarrhea.
Here are some of the measures you can take to help improve her stool quality, reduce the frequency of her trips to the litter box, and make her upset tummy feel much better.
Switch to a different diet – gradually
Your cat’s diarrhea may be a result of her sensitivity to certain ingredients in her food. Now other pet parents or online sources may advise you to have her fast before changing up her diet, but experts say that withholding food can worsen the problem.
Instead, buy cat food formulated for felines with gastrointestinal issues and give it to her in increasing amounts throughout the week. Making the transition too quickly can result in more unmanageable diarrhea, so start by mixing her regular food with the new food, then gradually add more of the new food until it makes up more than half of her plate.
As she gets used to the new food’s flavor and texture, you can assess whether it’s helping clear up her diarrhea.
Give your cat bland food
If your cat is having trouble with different types and brands of cat food, you can try giving her bland food for a few days before introducing her to a new type of cat food until her stool firms up. Boiled skinless chicken with rice is an excellent choice for bland food.
Note that this is only a temporary solution, and it’s still best to feed your furry friend cat food on a regular basis.
Offer probiotics and fiber supplements
Studies have shown that giving cats probiotics can result in firmer stools. This is because probiotics contain good bacteria naturally found in cats’ gastrointestinal tracts.
By improving the gut microbiome and increasing the population of good bacteria in cats’ digestive systems, they help promote better digestion and provide relief for diarrhea. There are plenty of probiotics for cats on the market, but make sure to buy one approved by your veterinarian and trusted by other pet parents.
Fiber supplements or natural sources of fiber may also help treat diarrhea and firm up your cat’s stools. Pumpkin and psyllium fiber are great sources of fiber that you can buy easily, but take note that some cats may be allergic to the latter.
Take your cat to the veterinarian
If specially formulated cat food and home remedies still can’t keep your cat from getting the runs, it might be time to see your veterinarian. They can get to the root of the issue, prescribe certain medications or diets, and provide electrolyte solutions for severe diarrhea.
Remember to bring your cat to the veterinarian immediately if her diarrhea is accompanied by other alarming symptoms like fever, bloody stools, vomiting, and lethargy.
What To Look For In Cat Food For Diarrhea
Feeding your cat regular cat food without looking at its specifications may not help relieve or treat diarrhea, especially if she gets it often. Cat food for diarrhea has to meet certain criteria to ensure that it addresses your cat’s digestive troubles.
So before you buy cat food to help relieve your furry friend’s diarrhea, make sure to check the label for the following ingredients:
Fiber
Cats’ gastrointestinal tracts cannot digest fiber. While this may sound concerning, it’s actually beneficial for cats in that it serves as dietary bulk. This means that it helps food move more easily through your cat’s digestive system.
Most high-fiber cat foods contain both soluble and insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber absorbs excess moisture in the intestines, leading to firmer stools. These fibers also boost your cat’s overall digestive health.
Nutrients
When your cat has diarrhea, her body loses the ability to absorb the nutrients she needs. High-quality cat food for diarrhea typically includes natural ingredients that will help replenish these lost nutrients and increase her body’s capacity for nutrient absorption.
Grain-Free
Some cats may be sensitive or allergic to certain grains found in regular cat food, leading to loose or watery stools. Switching to grain-free cat food can help resolve this issue and reduce diarrhea caused by allergic reactions.
No Gluten, Lactose, Preservatives & Flavorings
One of the leading causes of diarrhea in cats is food intolerance. If your cat suffers from chronic diarrhea, ingredients like lactose, gluten, preservatives, and artificial flavorings in her food may be to blame. Not to mention these ingredients may affect her overall health negatively, so it’s best to ensure you get cat food that doesn’t contain them.
In Closing
If your cat is experiencing diarrhea, you can try any of the cat food options we’ve gathered above to see if changing her diet relieves her symptoms. Diarrhea is not an immediate cause for concern, but it’s important to remember that firm stools and regular bowel movements are essential to your cat’s health – and, as a bonus, you won’t have to clean up accidents or messy litter boxes!