Identifying feces as cat feces by their appearance is an unsavory challenge. However, this guide provides well-founded assistance with relevant information. You can recognize cat droppings by these 4 characteristics.
Identifying features at a glance
If you are consulting this guide looking for confirmation of an initial suspicion, please take a look at the brief overview below. In order to clearly recognize cat excrement by its appearance, the following 4 characteristics are decisive:
- Size: 2-4 cm long, 1-2 cm thick
- Shape: oblong
- Colour: dark brown
- Consistency: firm, pliable, smooth surface
Did this short version put you on the right track to exposing a cat as a culprit? If so, please read the following explanations of what cat poop looks like, which will confirm your suspicions.
Explanations of the characteristics
Please note that all information on the visual appearance of cat waste is based on average values. After all, it is the excrement of a diverse animal species with countless cat breeds, many of which romp around in residential areas as outdoor cats. In addition, there are wild cats who are making themselves unpopular with their legacies in gardens. It is obvious that large, adult cats produce their excrement in different quantities than young house kittens on their first expedition into the neighbor's garden. Fluctuations below 2 centimeters and above 4 centimeters of 20 to 30 percent are within the tolerance range that Mother Nature specifies.
Elongated shape, dark brown color and pliable consistency describe the droppings of a healthy cat. This specific appearance is due to nutrition. Meat is at the top of the menu, preferably fresh and caught with your own paws. Equipped with a strong set of 30 sharp teeth, the food is thoroughly chewed and finally excreted in the structure described.
Consequently, if the animal suffers from health problems, this circumstance affects the appearance of the solution. Symptoms such as diarrhea make it impossible for even the expert to clearly identify cat feces. In this case, a laboratory analysis brings light into the darkness. Special laboratories offer a qualified examination of fecal samples to determine the genetic fingerprint. A professional sampling set is included in the price of around 60 euros. If you want to know exactly who is soiling the property with faeces, this is the last way to get certainty.
Tip: Cat droppings and marten droppings look confusingly similar. An important clue helps to distinguish the excrement. As pure carnivores, cats excrete faeces with an almost smooth surface. In contrast, the droppings of martens are permeated with coarse food residues such as seeds, fruit pits or feathers.
Note the risk of infection
Cats are prime hosts for toxoplasmosis, a common infectious disease. Cats excrete the pathogens via the digestive system. If a person comes into direct contact with the excrement, infection is often the result. In 90 percent of all cases, the disease runs its course without symptoms and unnoticed by those affected. For pregnant women, small children and adults with a weakened immune system, however, fatal effects are to be feared. These connections have a direct influence on the correct handling of cat feces. As a result, you avoid all risks:
- do not touch suspicious excrement unprotected
- Put on disposable gloves before direct contact
- Put the droppings in a bag, close it tightly and dispose of it in the household waste
A team of US scientists from the Stanley Medical Research Institute in Chevy Chase and the University of Baltimore has shown that toxoplasmosis pathogens remain infectious in the soil for many years. If you recognize feces as cat poo, safe disposal is not enough. Please always wear gloves when gardening. Replace the contaminated sand in your children's sandbox and use a cat-proof cover in the future.