Have you ever wondered why kittens don’t get digestive upsets when feeding on their mother’s milk? Many adult cats, on the other hand, may vomit and/or have diarrhea with milk intake. Milk contains a sugar called ‘lactose’. During digestion, lactose needs to be acted by an enzyme called ‘lactase’ so they can be used in the body. The digestive system of kittens produce enough quantities of lactase, thus, they don’t develop digestive upsets with milk consumption. However, When kittens are weaned from their mothers, many become lactose-intolerant. This is attributed to the fact that after weaning, production of lactase goes down significantly, thus when a cat drinks milk, there is a high risk of vomiting and diarrhea. Lactose in milk is not converted into forms that can be used in the body because of the lack of the lactase enzyme. While in the gastrointestinal tract, milk is acted upon by the microbial population and undergoes fermentation which eventually lead to digestive upsets.
If your pet’s diarrhea doesn’t let up within a day, you should contact your animal hospital Ashburn VA.
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