How Often Do Kittens Poop?

Like bringing a brand new baby home, getting a kitten is an exciting time. The new addition to the family will change your life in so many ways.

However, along the excitement comes the challenge of raising the kitten to adulthood.

Along the way, you will worry yourself sick. You wonder when the kitty is hungry or when she’s too full. Or if she is breathing well, developing as she should, peeing the right number of times, and so on.

Welcome to pet parenting where worry and concern for the pet never really comes to an end.

Thankfully, with the right information, you can become a better cat owner.

In this guide, we answer the question of how often kittens poop. It is a rich guide including several FAQs on the topic as well.

Frequency of Kitten Poop

Kittens have the same bowel movements as the rest of us.

Once the large intestine fills up, the brain sends signals to the body to prepare to expel.

The frequency of elimination depends on a number of things including the health of the kitten, dehydration (or lack thereof), care, and age.

On average, a kitten will go to the potty 1-6 times a day. Once in a while, the kitty will go for 24 hours without a bowel movement. Unless the kitty is constipated, this is perfectly normal.

When the kitten goes for more than a day, that’s when you should worry.

Bring the kitten to the vet to be checked. This is especially is the kitten is showing other symptoms such as bloating, straining, distension, and lethargy.

On the other hand, if the kitty goes to the bathroom more than you anticipate, rest easy.

Check the poop color and consistency (more on that later) and if it checks out, there’s no need to worry.

The issue arises if the poo is on the runnier side and bears a color change. Here, you might want to collect the sample of the stinker and take it to the vet for testing.

Kittens are easy targets for viruses, parasites, and bacteria as their immune systems are weak at their age.

If your kitten has an infection from any of the microorganisms, she will have runny stools that are very frequent.

Also if she’s very young, she will go more times. As her system gets the hang of digesting food, she will poop once or twice a day.

Adult cats only go to the potty once a day or in some cases, twice.

When Do Newborn Kittens Start To Poop?

Kittens are born without the ability to poop on their own.

If mum is around, she does the dirty work of licking the kitty’s backside to stimulate elimination.

As a newborn, the kitten’s digestive system cannot signal the body to pass stool. If there’s no mother in sight, it is upon you to massage the kitten’s anus with a soft damp cloth to get a bowel movement.

The kitten will learn to poop on her own when she turns three weeks of age.

By then, her system will have developed enough to know how to digest milk and other foods that come through.

How often should a 3-week old kitten poop?

A 3-week old kitten should go anywhere from 1-5 times a day depending on the factors previously mentioned.

A majority of kittens in this age bracket average 3-5 times with a few keeping it to once or twice a day.

In most instances, the kitten will defecate after every meal and snack.

How often should a 4-week old kitten poop?

There’s a slight difference between a 3-week and a 4-week old kitten.

 The frequency is still 1-5 times a day for month-old kittens. The average is twice or thrice a day at this point.

As the kitten gets the gist of pooping on her own, it is a great time to litter train the kitten.

Set patterns as the owner and teach your cat to stick to those. Get the litter box ready and begin potty training the little one.

Also, pay attention to the poop color and consistency.

At this age, the kitten will begin eating solid foods. As such, her poop color and frequency of elimination will change as well.

Record everything in a book and track any changes over the next couple of weeks.

The records will also help you know if your kitten is healthy or not.

How often should a 5-week old kitten poop?

At five weeks, your kitten will have made so much progress in her development.

By now, she will be teaching herself how to stand and walk. She will wobble at first like a human baby.

However, in no time, she will be walking and running without a problem. Her eyes are also fully open at this point and she wants nothing more than to explore her surroundings.

As for her poop frequency, expect anything between 1-4 times sessions a day. Some can go to five times which is still in the normal range.

The new food introductions may cause issues a bit but if the poop is normal, don’t worry about a thing. Offer enough water and make sure the kitty is well taken care of.

How often should an 8-week old kitten poop?

The eighth-week mark is when most kittens are adopted into their permanent homes.

By then, the kitten will be off her momma’s milk. Her entire diet will consist of solid food.

An 8-week old pup can feed on dry food albeit in small portions.

The regularity of pooping stands in the range of 3-4 times a day.

For the most part, pooping happens right after every meal. So if the kitten is fed four times a day, it is highly likely that she will pass stool four times a day.

What’s more, at this stage, vaccinations will start kicking in and may affect the frequency a little.

As usual, if everything seems okay, don’t panic if the cat goes less or more than you expected.

How to Make a Constipated Kitten Poop

Constipation in kittens is a serious issue. Apart from being incredibly uncomfortable, it can indicate a serious issue within the cat’s body. This includes a blockage of sorts within the cat’s system, dehydration, heavy parasitic presence, and diseases.

You can help your kitten to poop by doing what a mother cat often does to her young kittens.

Grab a soft cloth or a cotton ball and dip in warm water.

Squeeze the water a bit then rub the kitten’s anus in gentle, circular motions.

Do this a few times until the kitty excretes—first, she will urinate then she will poop.

If nothing happens after a few trials, discontinue and get the kitty to the vet.

If you keep going, you risk rupturing the kitten’s skin thus creating more problems.

What is normal poop for a kitten?

You can tell a lot about your kitten’s health by the color and consistency of her poop.

Normal kitten stool consistency is firm. It should look like mashed potatoes. When you scoop it up, it shouldn’t break apart.

Hard and dry stools may signify dehydration while too soft and runny may indicate a parasitic infection.

On the other hand, the color of the stool should be medium-brown or mustard yellow.

Gray indicates overeating while red and green may show symptoms of diseases and/or infection.

Also note that as the kitten grows, her stools will go from light brown to dark brown.

My kitten hasn’t pooped in 2 days: What does it mean?

A kitty that goes for more than 24 hours without a bowel movement is certainly constipated.

Perhaps she needs more water in her system or has a blockage in her GI tract.

Kittens are curious little beings and can eat the wrong stuff.

Constipation can also be a result of a huge amount of parasites that do not allow stool to pass through to the rectum.

No matter the cause, a constipated cat needs your help. You can try giving water then stimulate the kitten to poop. If nothing works, it’s time for a trip to the vet.

Closing Thoughts

How often your adorable little kitten poop is determined by several factors including age, health, diet, and care given to the kitten.

In general, expect anything from once to six times a day for kittens.

Unless the poop color and consistency are not in the normal range, don’t stress if the kitten doesn’t go for a full day. If it goes to two, make a call the vet.