How to Feed My Pet

Reading a puppy or kitten's stool

Dogs & catsBirth – 16 weeks·Sources checked September 13, 2026
This is general information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot diagnose your animal. Very young puppies and kittens deteriorate quickly — when something looks wrong, contact a veterinarian rather than waiting to see if it resolves. Medical disclaimer

Stool is one of the few things a caregiver can check several times a day without equipment, which makes it genuinely useful — and also easy to over-read. Consistency and colour describe what is happening. They do not name the cause.

How we label our evidence

  • Source-supportedStated directly in the cited institutional publication.
  • Our editorial guidanceA conservative reading of the evidence applied to a caregiver decision. Not a validated clinical protocol.
  • Evidence gapWe could not verify this in our approved sources, so we have not invented a number.

The consistency scale

The Purina fecal scoring chart runs 1–7 and is the reference most veterinary teams will recognise if you describe a score over the phone. Score 2 is identified as ideal for a healthy dog or cat.

Purina fecal scoring chart, 1–7
ScoreDescription
1Dry, hard pellets; difficult to pass
2Firm and pliable, segmented, easily collected — the target
3Moist, formed, holds its shape when collected
4Very soft, formed at first but collapses when collected
5A moist, shaped mound rather than a log
6Unformed, with some texture
7Watery, no texture
Our editorial guidance
This chart was not validated for newborns, and it describes consistency rather than diagnosing disease. Do not change a nursing newborn's diet just to move it toward score 2. Use it to describe what you are seeing, not as a target to chase.

When to act

What the action labels mean

Emergency now —
contact an emergency veterinary service and arrange immediate assessment. Do not wait for the next scheduled feed or weigh-in.
Call now for triage —
telephone the veterinary service when you notice the sign. The veterinarian decides how quickly the animal needs to be seen.
Contact today —
get in touch when you notice the issue to agree on a time. This does not mean waiting until evening.

Emergency now

Substantial or repeated bleeding; bloody diarrhoea alongside illness; unexplained black, tarry stool; marked weakness; or a tense, painful abdomen.

Call now for triage

Watery diarrhoea in a milk-dependent puppy or kitten; fresh blood; vomiting together with diarrhoea; or refusal to feed. Dehydration moves fast at this age.
Evidence gap
General advice to observe mild diarrhoea for 48–72 hours exists for adult animals. It must not be transferred to nursing newborns, and we found no verified newborn-specific countdown to dehydration. We have not invented one.

What colour and texture can suggest

Possible interpretations — none of these are diagnoses
What you seeWhat it may indicate
Fresh blood or mucusCan accompany intestinal inflammation or parasites. Record it; do not try to identify a specific parasite from appearance.
Black, sticky, tarryPossible digested blood. Severe hookworm disease in kittens can produce this along with anaemia. Urgent assessment.
Pale, white, or greyBile-duct obstruction can produce unpigmented stool. Colour alone cannot confirm it; jaundice, weakness, or vomiting raises urgency.
Yellow, curd-like during formula feedingCan follow overfeeding of formula. Yellow by itself is not reassurance that all is well.

Puppies

Abnormal: watery stools, fresh blood, black sticky stool, persistent mucus, unusually pale stool, or diarrhoea with vomiting, poor feeding, reduced activity, weight loss, or abdominal discomfort.

Parvovirus: a puppy or unvaccinated dog with vomiting and diarrhoea should be tested. Stool odour or colour cannot establish that diagnosis — testing can.

Two misconceptions worth dropping: that a recent food change explains the diarrhoea and therefore rules out infection, and that bloody diarrhoea after deworming means "the medicine is working." Bleeding is not an expected treatment response.

Kittens

Abnormal: watery diarrhoea, blood, recurrent mucus, black or tarry stool, persistent pale stool, or stool changes with vomiting, poor feeding, weakness, or abdominal pain.

Feline panleukopenia can cause severe vomiting, diarrhoea, dehydration, and rapid deterioration, and young or unvaccinated kittens are especially vulnerable. Contact a veterinarian immediately for these signs.

Kittens can get loose stool while adapting to solid food, and abrupt diet changes are another trigger — but neither explanation rules out disease. Some over-the-counter treatments are harmful to cats, so do not medicate without instructions.

After deworming or a food change

A single softer-but-formed stool in an otherwise thriving, fully weaned animal can reasonably be recorded and watched while following your veterinarian's existing advice. Watery, worsening, or repeated diarrhoea, blood, vomiting, feeding failure, or weight loss should prompt a re-check instead.

Keep a note of the medicine, dose, time, any diet change, and a photo of the stool. It turns a vague phone description into something a veterinarian can actually use.

Source-supported
A single negative faecal test does not always exclude parasites, because shedding can be intermittent. "No worms visible" and "one clear test" are both weaker evidence than they feel.
Evidence gap
We could not verify a species-specific table of normal newborn stool colours, a neonatal Purina target, or a universal daily stool count. Record what you actually see alongside feeding, weight, and behaviour rather than matching against a colour chart.

Sources