I had pretty much that exact thing (a tiny bit worse) happen to my one female after she went a year(ish) without going. After you put the PrepH on it will likely look fine..the problem tends to come a few hours after it has been applied, at which time hers would start to look worse again. I ended up using PrepH every other day and putting a bit of tape over her vent. Took me about a week and a half to get it to stay in, and she has been defecating fine since then...no issues at all.