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9 Best Cat Foods for Diarrhea 2024: Reviews & Top Picks

Written by: Christian Adams

Last Updated on March 14, 2024 by Catster Editorial Team

cat eating food at home

9 Best Cat Foods for Diarrhea 2024: Reviews & Top Picks

VET APPROVED

Dr. Paola Cuevas Photo

REVIEWED & FACT-CHECKED BY

Dr. Paola Cuevas

MVZ (Veterinarian)

The information is current and up-to-date in accordance with the latest veterinarian research.

Learn more »

cat eating food at home

When your cat has diarrhea, it affects the entire household. There can be additional messes to clean up and unpleasant odors to contend with. Generally, diarrhea is a short-lived experience and things will go back to normal in a short time, though that’s not always the case. Sometimes, your cat’s diarrhea is caused by something in their food, necessitating a dietary change in order to curb the squirts.

If this sounds like your situation, then you’re probably starting to feel desperate for some relief, just like your cat. In that case, you need a cat food that’s specially formulated to stop and prevent diarrhea. Granted, it might not be an immediate solution, but switching to the correct cat food could put an end to your diarrhea dilemma.

Luckily, we’ve gathered eight of the best cat foods that can help stop diarrhea, taking the guesswork out of it for you. The following reviews will compare these foods to help you determine which blend is best for your buddy’s backside.

Disclaimer: The foods reviewed here were chosen because they have certain characteristics that might help with some of the causes or consequences of this medical condition. However, they are not a medical treatment or a substitute for medical treatment. Keep in mind that each medical case is different and what works for some pets may not work for others. Your veterinarian is the right person to advise you on the best diet for your pet’s individual case.

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A Quick Glance at Our Favorites in 2024

Image Product Details
Best Overall
Winner
Smalls Cow Recipe (Fresh Cat Food Subscription) Smalls Cow Recipe (Fresh Cat Food Subscription)
  • Complete nutrition in every recipe
  • Fresh wet food for hydration
  • No artificial ingredients
  • Budget Buy
    Second place
    Blue Buffalo Sensitive Stomach Dry Cat Food Blue Buffalo Sensitive Stomach Dry Cat Food
  • Promotes healthy digestion
  • Uses mainly whole-food ingredients
  • Deboned chicken is the first ingredient
  • Third place
    Royal Canin Gastrointestinal Fiber Response Royal Canin Gastrointestinal Fiber Response
  • Supports urinary health
  • High in fiber to aid in digestion
  • Contains prebiotics for gut health
  • Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Stomach Canned Cat Food Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Stomach Canned Cat Food
  • Short ingredients list
  • Duck as the first ingredient
  • Multiple animal-based protein sources
  • Grandma Lucy's Simple Replacement Anti-Diarrhea Grandma Lucy's Simple Replacement Anti-Diarrhea
  • Bland meal replacer for cats with diarrhea
  • Only two natural ingredients
  • Gentel with the stomach and easy to prepare
  • The 9 Best Cat Foods for Diarrhea

    1. Smalls Cow Recipe (Fresh Cat Food Subscription) – Best Overall

    Smalls cat food is made with high-quality ingredients and processed in a facility that meets United States human food production requirements. The Fresh Cow recipe contains 90% lean ground beef, beef liver, and green beans, as well as fiber from spinach and peas to support good gut health, making it our top choice for best cat food for diarrhea. This cat food is minimally processed, which helps retain more of its nutrients. In addition, this food is generally highly appreciated by felines, even the most capricious ones!

    If your cat has diarrhea, it is essential to provide them with plenty of fresh water to avoid dehydration. Since Smalls wet food contains more water than dry food does, it can be beneficial for cats with diarrhea. In addition, this type of food is digestible and contains essential nutrients, vitamins, and minerals (especially iron and zinc, which are found in large quantities in beef).

    However, as you might expect, this type of food is more expensive than what you can usually find in stores or online and requires a subscription. But you can unsubscribe at any time and choose a less-expensive option once your precious feline has recovered from diarrhea.

    Pros
    • High-protein recipe with 90% lean ground beef
    • Meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO
    • 70% moisture content to help with hydration
    • Only made with human-grade ingredients
    Cons
    • Pricey

    2. Blue Buffalo Sensitive Stomach Dry Cat Food – Budget Buy

    Blue Buffalo is a brand that has long been focused on producing pet foods that aim to keep our pets in peak health. They’re one of the more affordable pet foods with a high-quality badge, and we think they offer the best cat food for diarrhea for the money. While many of the recipes on this list go for exorbitant prices, the Blue Buffalo Sensitive Stomach Dry Cat Food is priced reasonably and isn’t much more expensive than regular cat food.

    Formulated specifically for sensitive stomachs, this is a great food for cats with digestive issues. The first ingredient is deboned chicken, showing that Blue Buffalo used quality ingredients in this blend rather than cutting corners with cheap fillers and sub-standard protein. Most of the ingredients are whole foods, such as deboned chicken, brown rice, and peas.

    To help with your cat’s digestive problems, this cat food for cats with diarrhea is packed with prebiotics to promote digestive health. It’s great for any cats with sensitive stomachs as it is all-natural and devoid of corn, wheat, soy, and artificial preservatives or flavors. Still, it is not the best choice for picky eaters, as many of our pickier cats refused to even touch it.

    Pros
    • More price-effective than other options
    • Formulated for sensitive stomachs
    • Deboned chicken is the first ingredient
    • Uses mainly whole-food ingredients
    • Prebiotics promote healthy digestion
    Cons
    • Picky eaters may refuse this food

    3. Royal Canin Gastrointestinal Fiber Response Cat Food

    Royal Canin Gastrointestinal Fiber Response Cat Food

    Royal Canin is a popular brand for cats with health concerns despite the prohibitively expensive pricing that accompanies their products. The ingredients list also doesn’t start off so well, with brewers’ rice listed as the first ingredient. You’ll also find plenty of by-product meals in this blend, which many people prefer to stay away from. But the truth is that this gastrointestinal fiber response blend is great for stopping diarrhea and aiding urinary health.

    This food contains substantial EPA and DHA to help nourish the GI tract. There’s also plenty of fiber to aid digestion. Furthermore, prebiotics are included for optimal gut health. So, there’s a lot here to help boost your cat’s health and settle its stomach. And those by-products might not be so bad. After all, that’s all the parts of the animals your cat would eat in the wild. It’s just people who don’t deem them acceptable to eat.

    If you have any doubt about this product’s efficacy, it might be put to rest by the need for veterinarian authorization before purchase is allowed. This is prescription pet food, so you can’t just buy it on a whim, it must be prescribed by a professional, but even so this is definitely one of the best cat foods for diarrhea.

    Pros
    • EPA and DHA help nourish the GI tract
    • Supports urinary health
    • Contains prebiotics for gut health
    • High in fiber to aid in digestion
    • Requires veterinarian authorization
    Cons
    • Quite expensive
    • The first ingredient is brewer’s rice
    • Contains by-product meal

    4. Purina Pro Plan Focus Sensitive Stomach Canned Cat Food

    Purina Pro Plan Focus Sensitive Stomach Canned Cat Food

    Made with real duck listed as the first ingredient, the Purina Pro Plan Focus Sensitive Stomach Canned Cat Food is made specifically for cats with digestive and stomach issues. It’s got a short ingredients list as it’s meant to be easy for cats to digest, though it still doesn’t skimp on any vital nutrients. However, it’s not as high in taurine as we’d like, though it’s still made with plenty of quality animal-based protein sources, including liver and ocean whitefish.

    For wet cat food, this formula is rather low in moisture, though it still contains ample protein. To achieve that, Purina used meat by-products, which are listed as the third ingredient, so it’s one of the main ingredients. Many people dislike meat by-products because they’re viewed as low-quality ingredients.

    This food contains nutrients vital for a cat’s health, including vitamins A and E and taurine. That said, compared to many quality cat foods, this blend is pretty low in taurine at just 0.05%. In all, this is a healthy canned cat food that’s easy to digest; though it just missed landing in our top three, it’s still one of the best cat foods for sensitive stomachs and diarrhea.

    Pros
    • Priced reasonably for what it is
    • Short ingredients list
    • Lists duck as the first ingredient
    • Multiple animal-based protein sources
    Cons
    • Doesn’t contain much taurine
    • Contains meat by-products

    5. Grandma Lucy’s Simple Replacement Anti-Diarrhea

    Grandma Lucy's Simple Replacement

     

    We give the best overall to this unique product Grandma Lucy’s Simple Replacement Anti-Diarrhea Freeze-Dried Dog & Cat Meal Replacement specially designed to help your kitty’s tummy recover. This is a formula of only 2 ingredients: plain boneless chicken breast and white rice. While this is not a complete balanced diet this remedy is the perfect meal replacer for cats suffering from diarrhea. This is a simple and easy-to-digest equivalent to a bland diet. To feed it to your kitten you must rehydrate it using boiling water first, let it cool down, and use it as a meal replacement while your kitty stomach resets. In addition, this product is based on all-natural freeze-dried ingredients that are not GMO-produced.

    The only downside of this product is that some picky eaters will refuse to accept it and that it can only be used temporarily as a meal replacer because it is not a complete balanced formula but rather a remedy.

    Pros
    • Bland meal replacer for cats with diarrhea
    • Only two natural ingredients
    • Deboned chicken is the first ingredient
    • GMO-free
    • Easy to prepare
    Cons
    • Picky eaters could refuse this food
    • Not a complete balanced diet

    6. Hill’s Prescription Diet Digestive Care Dry Cat Food

    Hill's Prescription Diet Digestive Care Dry Cat Food

    It’s pretty pricey, but that’s because Hill’s Prescription Diet Digestive Care Dry Cat Food is a prescription pet food produced by nutritionists and veterinarians to offer cats with digestive issues exactly what they need to live healthily and comfortably. This blend reduces the risk of struvite and calcium oxalate crystals while aiding digestive health and improving stool quality.

    Not only is it formulated specifically for cats with digestive problems, but it’s also packed with protein at 35%, coming from a variety of high-quality sources, including chicken and pork fat. Cats will thrive on this highly digestible formula, and diarrhea will be a thing of the past. This blend is so potent and effective at aiding cats with digestive concerns that you’ll need vet authorization just to purchase it.

    All in all, this is the best dry cat food for diarrhea this year.

    Pros
    • Vet authorization required
    • Optimally balanced nutrition encourages recovery
    • Reduces risk of struvite and calcium oxalate crystals
    • Specifically formulated for felines with digestive issues
    Cons
    • It’s quite pricey

    7. Blue Buffalo Natural Gastrointestinal Support Canned Cat Food

    Blue Buffalo gastrointestinal can food

    Another great product from Blue Buffalo is their Veterinary Diet GI Gastrointestinal Support Grain-Free Canned Cat. This recipe is made with easy-to-digest ingredients featuring chicken, chicken broth, chicken liver, whitefish, and potatoes as their base ingredients. Apart from being a grain-free formula, it is enriched with prebiotics for healthy gastrointestinal flora. Enriched with vitamins C and E, plus blueberries and cranberries for added antioxidants.

    The downside of this product is that it contains pea and some cats could be sensitive to it. As well, as with all veterinary diets, it is prier and needs a veterinary prescription to be purchased.

    Pros
    • Based on whole meat animal protein
    • Contains prebiotic fiber
    • Grain-free
    • Enriched with antioxidants and vitamins A and C
    Cons
    • Contains peas
    • Pricier

    8. Halo Holistic Sensitive Stomach Dry Cat Food

    It’s up there in price, especially for a dry cat food, but the Whitefish Recipe Sensitive Stomach Dry Cat Food from Halo Holistic contains nothing from factory farms, so if that’s a major issue for you, then this cat food might be a great fit. Looking at the ingredients list, you can instantly tell that this food is a healthy option for any feline since the first two ingredients on the list are whitefish and salmon.

    Naturally, the fish used for this cat food is all sustainably sourced. Likewise, the produce used to produce this blend is all non-GMO. We’re fans of that, but we’re not big fans of the soy products used in this cat food. There are also far more carbohydrate ingredients contained in this food than we like for cats, who are obligate carnivores and don’t thrive on a heavy diet of carbohydrates.

    Still, there’s a lot in this dry cat food for diarrhea to boost your feline’s health. It’s loaded with taurine, vitamin E, and omega fatty acids, which are essential to keep your cat in top shape. Halo has a good product here overall, but it’s not one of our favorites.

    Pros
    • Contains nothing from factory farms
    • High in taurine, vitamin E, and omega fatty acids
    • Whitefish and salmon are the first two ingredients
    • Made with sustainably sourced fish and non-GMO produce
    Cons
    • Contains soy products
    • Many carbohydrates listed in the ingredients
    • It’s one of the pricier options

    9. Purina Pro Plan Focus Adult Sensitive Stomach Dry Cat Food

    Purina Pro Plan Focus Adult Sensitive Stomach Dry Cat Food

    Despite containing loads of protein from quality sources such as lamb, which is the first ingredient listed, the Purina Pro Plan Focus Adult Sensitive Stomach Dry Cat Food is priced quite affordably. It’s certainly one of the most affordable options we tested. Even so, it’s packed with nutrients that are essential for your cat’s health, such as vitamins A and E or taurine.

    While we’re quite happy with lamb as the first ingredient in this recipe, we’re less thrilled with the ingredients that follow. Ingredients such as rice, corn gluten meal, soybean meal, and soybean oil don’t fill us with confidence that this food is formulated for peak feline health.

    At 40% protein, this sensitive stomach cat food sure isn’t lacking. However, it’s pretty low in fiber, with just 2.5% max. There’s plenty of omega-6 in this blend, but the ingredients list is longer than we’d like and filled with many supplements rather than nutrients from whole-food sources.

    Pros
    • High protein formula
    • Lamb is the first ingredient
    • High in vitamins A and E and taurine
    • Priced reasonably
    Cons
    • Corn gluten meal is the second ingredient
    • Contains multiple soy ingredients
    • Very low in fiber

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    Buyer’s Guide: Selecting the Best Cat Food for Diarrhea

    We’ve covered eight of the best cat foods for cats with diarrhea, but these are far from the only options on the market. You can take the easy route and rely on our recommendations for choosing a new cat food, or you can learn more about how to compare these cat foods so you can make an informed decision yourself. In this buyer’s guide, we’ll cover the information you need to prepare you to do just that.

    Traits of the Best Cat Foods for Diarrhea

    When looking at all these different cat foods, it’s easy to get lost in the advertising. Every food claims it’s the best for cats with sensitive stomachs, so how do you tell which one is actually the best? Of course, you could test every one of these blends, but not only would that be time-consuming and expensive, but it might also be really hard on your cat. Instead, compare the following traits. These are common to all of the best cat foods for diarrhea, so you can’t go wrong choosing a cat food that meets all or most of these qualifications.

    Vet Authorization Required

    It might seem like a pain in the backside, but a lot of our favorite cat foods for diarrhea require veterinary authorization before purchase. Though this definitely requires extra steps, it’s also a way to ensure that the quality of the cat food is up to veterinary standards. If your vet is recommending and prescribing a particular food for your cat’s problems, then you can be at least somewhat confident that it’s a good choice.

    Contains Vital Nutrients

    Your main goal when choosing food for a cat that suffers from diarrhea is to find food that will curb diarrhea and bring some solidity and regularity to your cat’s bowel movements. But this doesn’t mean that you should look for this at the expense of everything else.

    At the end of the day, the primary important trait of any cat food should be that it meets your pet’s nutritional needs adequately. For cat food, this means that certain nutrients must be present. Some of these vital nutrients include taurine and vitamins A, B12, and E. Your cat can’t synthesize these nutrients, but they’re necessary for its health. If you provide a food that doesn’t offer adequate levels of these essential nutrients to your cat on a regular basis, then your cat could become deficient and will suffer the repercussions.

    Easy to Digest

    cat eating food_ Seattle Cat Photo, Shutterstock
    Image Credit: Seattle Cat Photo, Shutterstock

    Obviously, if your cat is suffering from diarrhea and you’re looking for a solution, your cat has some digestive issues to deal with. The last thing you want to introduce to its system is hard-to-digest cat food, which can easily make matters worse. Instead, you’re looking for something that’s easy on a cat’s digestive system.

    Boosts Digestive Health

    Being easy on a cat’s digestive system is all well and good, but it doesn’t help solve the digestive issues your cat is dealing with. That’s why you must also look for a blend that aids digestive health. This way, it not only goes down easily, but it also helps to soothe your cat’s stomach and gastrointestinal tract so that it can feel better and the diarrhea will stop.

    Price

    Though your cat’s health is the top priority when looking for cat food to curb its diarrhea, price is still a factor worth considering. Some of the cat food blends we tested were outrageously expensive. Even if your only concern is your cat’s health, the price of such products will add up quickly. With other options available that can also aid your cat and solve its digestive problems at a much more affordable price, it can be hard to justify the high cost of certain blends.

    Want to see more cat food reviews? Check out our review page here!

    Hepper 360 Cat Feeder, Stainless Steel, Anti-Chew...
    • NO MESS - The 360° tray on this cat food and water bowl set has a raised design to catch and...
    • WHISKER FRIENDLY - Shallow and wide metal containers with flat bottoms ensure your kitty can enjoy...
    • CHEW-SAFE MATERIALS - Kittens and cats love chewing on silicone and soft rubber - but it's a choking...

    Feeding your cat a high-quality diet is important for keeping them healthy and happy. But it goes beyond the food you choose; the dishes they use also matter. The Hepper NomNom Cat Bowl is our favorite for its unique, five-star design that protects from whisker fatigue and promotes good posture which also aids in better digestion. As an added bonus, it’s beautifully crafted and offers a modern take on the traditional cat bowl that fits seamlessly with all home stylings. Learn more about the NomNom by clicking here.

    At Catster, we’ve admired Hepper for many years and decided to take a controlling ownership interest so that we could benefit from the outstanding designs of this cool cat company!

     

     

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    Conclusion

    There’s no shortage of pet food brands and blends available on the market. But cats with sensitive stomachs can’t eat just any old food you pull off the shelf. These felines will suffer from diarrhea. Luckily, you can use our reviews to help find the perfect food to stop your cat’s stomach issues. To help you, we’re going to summarize our top choices for best cat foods to help with diarrhea once more.

    Our number one food recommendation for cats with diarrhea is Smalls Fresh Cat Food; they offer several choices to help settle your kitten’s stomach. It offers complete nutrition for your cat without any added fillers, preservatives, or artificial ingredients. Smalls offers novel protein options like turkey and duck for kittens with sensitivities to certain meat proteins.

    For a more affordable option, we suggest the Blue Buffalo Sensitive Stomach Chicken Recipe Adult Dry Cat Food. It’s more price-effective than other options, though it’s crafted for sensitive stomachs with prebiotics for healthy digestion and nutrient absorption.

    Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Gastrointestinal Fiber Response Dry Cat Food is our third pick. It’s prohibitively expensive, but it contains prebiotics for gut health, lots of fiber to aid digestion, and is loaded with EPA and DHA to help nourish the GI tract.

    Related Reads:


    Featured Photo Credit: Africa Studio, Shutterstock

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