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Hoots : Why does about 4 week old kitten have orange diarrhea? My kittens are starting to grow up, they are almost 4 weeks old. I'm not sure if they are supposed to start potty training or not. They have a mother (not orphans). - freshhoot.com

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Why does about 4 week old kitten have orange diarrhea?
My kittens are starting to grow up, they are almost 4 weeks old. I'm not sure if they are supposed to start potty training or not. They have a mother (not orphans).

My issue is, they seem to have a serious diarrhea. For example, my kid grabs a kitten and kitten spills diarrheic excretions everywhere, which are very orange in color. The kittens of course do not eat or drink, but are still breastfeeding. They appear healthy and happy. They play and do not seem sick.

I don't know what to do or think. I hope someone with veterinarian record answers this, because I was planning to take them to the vet only after they become a month old, so I get a deworming as well as vaccinations at the same time. Vet is far, I don't want to make a visit too early and have the veterinarian tell me he can't give them shots because they are very young.


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Deworm the kittens. Kittens have worms unless proven otherwise. It's always worth taking a fresh stool sample on your trip to the vet for fecal analysis, so the vet knows exactly what parasites to treat.

There are many causes of diarrhea in kittens, but start with the easy things such as deworming and fecal, then further tests if no improvement.

Kittens with diarrhea can become very sick from the dehydration alone, so do not leave it too late to be treated.

For vaccinations it is likely too young at 4 weeks, but it depends on your location what vaccines are recommended. Each vet or practice may have their own protocol, which may differ slightly. The most common protocol is the feline herpesvirus/calicivirus/panleukopenia (FVRCP or F3) vaccine given starting age 8-9 weeks, and 1-2 additional boosters 3-4 weeks apart. In rabies endemic areas, rabies vaccine is given as early as 12 weeks. For feline leukemia I typically give the first dose at about 12 weeks and booster about 3-4 weeks later.

Bottom line is it may be too long to wait until they are vaccine age to take them to the vet. If diarrhea continues or worsens until then you may have a very sick kitten, even if they appear well now.


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