why does my female cat drag her butt across the floor?

Question

she's been doing it alot lately...she's fixed, i'm not sure why she's doing this.

Answer 1

It is her anal glands. My cat has this also. Take her to the vet, and he will squeeze them, and drain them. It smells really bad. I have to take my cat every three months, or so to have them drained. There are procedures the vet can do to help this, but I havn't had it done. One is where they will lance them, which casts under 100.00. The other is a very delicate procedure, which, if it doesn't go right, the cat could lose all control of her bowels and would have to be put down. If you take her to the vet, he will show you how to drain them yourself, but I would rather he do it, and I am willing to pay the $20. But I am sure this is why your cat drags her butt. I doubt it is worms. Good luck.

Answer 2

She may have worms, she may have some fecal matter stuck around that area (either just inside the anus or in the hair under the tail), or she may have decided that she likes the sensation and is just having a good old scratch!

That said, it could be something more serious worthy of a trip to the vet - this happened with my cat Snooker, and the vet gave the reasons I mentioned above for it. After a few days she was clearly unwell so I insisted on further examination from the vet, turned out that she had been swallowing lots of contraband (from paper to hair bobbins) and they were impacted in her anus and she was trying to drag them out....

Always go to the vet when in doubt anyway...

Answer 3

Her anal glands are a high possibility. If a cat or dog live in the wild the anal glands would be used to spray a chemical to warn other animals "this is my territory" and they do have other ways to do this like rubbing their faces on things that belong to them (glands are there only on cats), spraying with urine, etc. Sometimes domestic cats and dogs will have these glands become full due to the lack of use. they just don't need to. It is highly uncomfortable for them and they drag their bottom on the floor or anywhere else to relieve the pressure. The only way to fix this is to "squeeze" the glands to force out the foul liquid. If you do not know where the glands are, what you are doing and don't want to have to deal with that gross odor, have a professional do it for you. I had a sister who was a vet technician who did this for her dog. Please do not do this yourself because you can cause serious harm if you do not know what you are doing.
Hope this helps you,
Andrea
P.S. Still a good idea to get a fecal sample to take to a vet for testing. You shouldn't have to take the cat to the vet for the test.

Answer 4

I worked in a vet hosptial for 12 years...and had hundreds of people call us about pets scooting....and 95% of the time ...it was NOT worms...don't know why everyone jumps to this conclusion. In dogs....it is usually the anal glands...in cats it is usually some fecal matter stuck to them and they are just trying to rub it off onto the carpet or floor. Many cats..especially if older have constipation problems and will not be able to quite get the entire bowel movement out...once again leaving some stuck to them. Cats can have anal gland issues..but this is much more common in dogs.

Answer 5

Cats will usually do this if
#1. They have worms, which can cause anal irritation. Solution, have the cat checked by the vet and dewormed if necessary.
#2. The cat has stool stuck to the anus or hair around the tail. This happens most often in cats who don't have worms if the cat is a longhaired cat with a pushed in nose like a Persian. Persian type cats cannot groom themselves well. Solution...clean off the stool and then gently clip the fur around the cat's anus short so that the stool is less likely to get caught in the cat's coat.
#3. The cat has become too fat to be able to reach around and clean his own rear end. Solution...the cat needs to lose some weight.

If the problem is due to a Persian type cat or fat cat having a dirty anus and being unable to clean it, after you clean the cat you can also put a little vaseline on the cat's anal area to help prevent stool from sticking again.

I've found the most common cause of this "butt wiping" behavior has been a cat that needed dewormed or had stool stuck and was too fat to reach around and clean itself.

Persian type cats who get into problems with stool stuck in their coats dont usually drag their butts but instead, are more likely to end up constipated if humans don't see or smell the mess in the coat and clip it out (or have the vet or groomer do it.)

Answer 6

Much like my dog and cat. She is almost certainly having problems with her anal glands, and you should take her to the vet to have them squeezed. Disgusting procedure, but it will stop your cat from being uncomfortble for a while (you will have to take her back in every so often for this to be done).

Answer 7

Usually the reason animals drag their butts across the floor indicates parasites. When they drag it is their way of scratching themselves .

Answer 8

Her *** itches, she has no fingers to scratch with so she and (dogs) sit on the floor and pull them selves across the room. If you think I am joking call the Vet. and ask them, but don't be suprised if they say come in for a worm check up. The Rubber Duck told you that.

Answer 9

Well, this may gross you out but here goes. Cats (as well as dogs) have anal glands on their rearend. They will drag their butts across the floor (normally on the carpet) to release the stuff in their anal glands. My mom's dogs and my cats all do it. Gross, but apparently normal behavior.

Answer 10

sounds like worms