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Cat Waiting To Poop Until Owner Appears (This is Why..)

If you have noticed that your cat is waiting for you to come home to poop you may be wondering if this is really happening or just a coincidence.

Why do some cats wait for their owner to return to poop?

Cats may wait for their owner to return to poop because they feel more comfortable and safe in their presence. It may seem odd to us but cats feel that pooping is a vulnerable position and some appreciate you there to feel safe.

So, now you know why this happens. But, could this be constipation? Or lead to constipation? How often should cats be pooping? Keep reading to get these answers, and much more…

 

How long should a cat go between poops?

Cats are usually expected to poop daily. But, this is not always the case. For example, they may have not eaten much that day, which could easily affect the frequency of their poop. But, in any event, if 4 or more days pass and you see no poop, you need to be concerned and seek the advice of your vet.

Similar to us humans cats typically poop daily. But, as you may have experienced yourself even humans do not always do that. If it goes on for too long you could start to wonder if your cat is constipated or something else.

What is constipation?

Constipation is when a human, or cat, finds it hard to poo. This can either result in no poo over several days or straining and struggling to poo out a very small volume of poo.

If you have ever experienced constipation as I have, it is not very nice at all, right? It is painful and frustrating. Your body has a natural urge to push out your poo, but it is blocked and impossible to get out. You are literally stuck between a rock and a hard place if you know what I mean?

Thankfully, there are various remedies for constipation for cats and humans. So, your job as a cat owner is identifying the signs ahead of time.

What are the signs of a constipated cat?

The signs of constipation are mainly lack of poop or obvious signs of pain, or strain while attempting to poop. However, finding dry poop in the litter box is another early sign of this as well.

Usually, this constipation is a knock-on effect from another problem. For example, your cat may not be drinking enough water, been sick recently which drained its water levels, etc.

Lack of water in cats is quite a common cause of constipation because cats often drink very little water from a water bowl. This is why some cat owners invest in a water fountain (Click here to see my best one) to help with this.

Personally, I remember heading back from a funeral, it was approximately 1 hour away from home. It was quite early in the day and I felt like using the bathroom but decided to hold it. I also decided to reduce my water intake so I wouldn’t keep needing the toilet too.

Later that night I found out, the hard way, that this is not a good idea. You know why? I couldn’t poop (click here if your cat is guarding you), I was blocked! This went on for approx 18 hours. Resulting in much pain, frustration and discomfort,

Does wet cat food help with constipation?

Wet food does help your cat avoid constipation. This is because it has a high amount of water content. This is why some cat owners swear by it. Those that feed their cat dry food sometimes put water in it to hydrate it more.

Whatever you decided to do, use wet cat food, a water fountain, etc, the main thing is to try something and see how your cat responds.

Personally, since my episode of being blocked, I have made sure I increased my water, veg, and fruit intake to keep myself hydrated. Similar to cats wet food fruits and veg for humans give them more water through their food.

How do you stimulate a cat to poop?

If your cat is not just waiting for you to come home to poop and has problems pooping you can help it by offering more water, switching up its diet, or even getting more fiber into its diet.

These small things can make your cat poop more often and stimulate their poop. Another thing you can try is getting more litter trays.

Some cats are quite particular about their litter boxes and will demand a certain level of cleanliness, or location of the tray. So, if you have more than one it will allow it to decide which one is best.

Why cat hide their poop?

Cats naturally hide their poop instinctually. This is from their wild cat ancestors who used to use it as a form of life preservation. They wanted to make sure they were not detected by their predators in the wild so they hid their poop.

Obviously, domestic cats do not have these same concerns but they have adopted it as a habit from their ancestors. As for larger cats, like lions, they are known to do things the opposite way.

Big cats do things a bit different

Meaning, they may purposely leave their poop out to show their dominance and tell others to back off from their territory.

If you think about it that makes sense, right? Cats obviously can’t leave a written note or create a banner warning off their enemies so they rely on their natural signals like their sense of smell to send signals to their enemies.

Do cats poop themselves when scared?

Cats are known to poop themselves when they are scared. This is believed to happen because when they are shocked or scared by something, for example, a predator, they have to either stay and fight or run. During this knee-jerk response, their stomach muscles may seize up and relax their bowels.

Humans have a similar response as well. There have been countless stories of people pooping themselves in the face of danger or life-threatening situations. Often this is taken in jest on TV shows or movies. But, for cats, this is no joke.

How do you know when a cat is about to poop?

There are some physical signs that your cat, or kitten, is about to poop. This includes sniffing around the floor area, hiding in a secluded spot, etc. If it is your kitten you may need to redirect them to the litter tray because they may not have mastered using it yet.

If you have just come from work and your cat is giving you the vibe that they are about to poop you can use these signs to verify. Generally speaking, it shouldn’t be a concern, but maybe if it is a kitten that hasn’t been fully trained to use the litter tray.

Why do cats get the Zoomies after they poop?

The zoomies after a cat poops is believed to be related to their vagus nerve. This nerve is activated after the stool is released. And, is similar to how humans feel after releasing a large stool. A feeling of release and relief.

If you have heard of the “zoomies” before concerning cat poop (What about on a plane? Click here) you have wondered why this happens. These zoomies are a quick “high” that the cat feels after they release their stool.