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My 7-week-old kitten has diarrhea. Is it her wet food or diet change?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | American Shorthair | Female | unspayed | 1 month and 21 days old | 1.4 lbs

My kitten is 7 weeks old and around 1.6 pounds. I found her in a building by my work after a flood. I've had her for a little over a week and I have been feeding her a mixture wet food 3 times a day and dry food put out all day. She had been having some issues with diarrhea, and I'm wondering if it's the wet food or just nutrition change.

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4 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Sara Farmer, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on July 2nd, 2017

She's adorable! I would be a little more concerned that she might have intestinal parasites or another disease causing her diarrhea. I would recommend seeing a veterinarian if you have not taken her in already. They can check a stool sample and she may be old enough for vaccines at this point. If there does not seem to be a medical issue you could try seeing how she does on just wet or just dry food - kittens sometimes do better on one vs. the other.

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    Answered By Lauren Jones VMD

    Veterinarian

    Published on June 7th, 2017

    You are doing the right thing by feeding Lela three time per day at this young age. Young kittens need to eat frequently to help maintain a normal blood sugar. She may have vomited and had a slighy softer stool as a result of eating too much at a time, due to parasites, a virus, or stomach upset from eating new foods or treats. If she is still vomiting and crying in the morning, she will need to go to the vet for evaluation. Dehydration won't be an issue after one episode of vomiting, but can certainly be a problem if her vomiting continues. I hope that Lela feels better soon!

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    Answered By Catherine Stecyk

    Veterinarian

    Published on June 16th, 2019

    Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Any diarrhea and/or vomiting in kittens may be due to gastrointestinal parasites, or worms. I recommend consulting with your veterinarian about what dewormers they carry that can be given to your kittens that are having diarrhea and/or vomiting. It is also possible the diarrhea is from the diet change, and will just require time to resolve. If you are concerned that any of your kittens are poor doers and not thriving, I recommend having them evaluated by your veterinarian. I hope this is helpful!

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    Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

    Veterinarian

    Published on March 9th, 2017

    Because the kittens haven't been fully weaned, their system won't be used to the solid food just yet. It may have been too much for them just yet, and a sudden change in diet can lead to GI symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhea. They could also be suffering from intestinal worms, which are common in kittens and can cause vomiting and diarrhea. I am concerned that two are vomiting and two are having diarrhea, and I think they should be seen by a vet right away. They likely need medication for their symptoms, and maybe fluids so that they don't become dehydrated. Make sure they are all up to date on their deworming treatments. At seven weeks old, they should start to be weaning onto kitten food, and I can give you a method to start weaning the two who aren't sick at the moment. Weaning kittens: To help them wean and to get used to dry food, I would soak a high quality kitten formulated dry food in warm water until soft. Then mix that with kitten formula such as KMR to make a mush the consistency of oatmeal. Over the next two weeks, gradually increase the amount of dry kitten food and decrease the amount of water and KMR you use until they are eating the dry kitten food only.

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