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He's castrate, nearly 4 y.o, weights about 4kg(9 lbs), crossbreed of Siberian and unknown dad - very dense and long fur, lives indoor, quite inactive.

I trim him twice a year for almost zero in spring and late summer. The food and water are always there. For time to time I give him some milk, chicken.

The first 3 years of his life he ate varieties of "Royal Canin".

One year ago I switched for "ORIJEN 6 Fresh FISH" and after about 7 months he's got dandruff. On this nutrition he pooped once a day.

I decided to try "Acana Prairie Feast" and he eats it for 2.5 months now, the dandruff is gone, but I also bought him tablets "For skin&coat" so I don't know which has helped. And the pooping, on this nutrition it's twice a day and pretty smelly.

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  • The added volume helps to bring out the cat hair from his intestines, sorry about the smell :(
    – Esa Paulasto
    Jan 13, 2014 at 8:33
  • Are the current poops a normal consistency, or runny/wet? Smelly, wet poops could indicate a dietary sensitivity and I would suggest a food change.
    – Zaralynda
    Jan 13, 2014 at 16:41
  • Maybe a little wetter now than before, but it's pretty solid.
    – user2777737
    Jan 13, 2014 at 18:20
  • If the consistency has changed, even just a little (in addition to the smell), I'd recommend a trip to the vet for a check up. He could have an anal gland issue or have picked up a parasite. I'd recommend taking the skin & coat tablets & ingredient list for his current food along to help your vet in the case of a food intolerance.
    – Zaralynda
    Jan 13, 2014 at 18:53

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So, first, 1 to 2 times a day is not necessarily abnormal for a cat, though it's the larger cats that will be more frequent than that. The thing to know is that normal cat feces has a pretty high water level and that even a small increase in the water intake can lead to softer and more frequent stools. One of our cats has megacolon and we actually medicate him to close to a diarrhea state in order to ensure he can pass it, so I'm way more familiar with this kind of thing than I ever hoped to be. At any rate, my initial sense is that your cat's latest diet has a higher liquid content than prior options, hence the increase and, as a consequence, the smell.

Now, it may not be the food. There may be a medical issue here, so some things to watch out for, beyond the increase in frequency include:

  • Flatulence (persistent, the odd fart is not a problem)
  • Vomiting (some cats are a bit more prone, so if this is new, then it may be an issue)
  • Weight loss

If any of those are included in the change, then get your cat into the vet for a look-see. There are a number of possible concerns that could be in play here, though the best case is you switch the diet back. To quote @Zaralynda in this respect: "I'd recommend taking the skin & coat tablets & ingredient list for his current food along to help your vet in the case of a food intolerance." Good advice whenever your cat is not on their game.

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