# Cat won't eat or drink **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 29, 2012, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230 "2012-09-29T13:55:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/1 "2012-09-29T13:55:54Z")
Before anyone says it, of course I already took her to the vet as soon as I noticed something was wrong. A few days ago, one of our cats started acting pretty lethargic, stopped eating and drinking, and look like she’s having an all around bad time of it. Threw up a load of green bile. Diarrhea last night. Took her to the vet, and $400 later, after running every test known to veterinary science, the diagnosis was… Vet stumped. Except for the no eating or drinking, lethargy and aforementioned green bile throwup and diarrhea, she’s apparently the picture of health 😕 Vet gave her subcutaneous fluids and a prescription diet (which she’s so far turned her nose up at) and said call if it doesn’t get better. Not sure why i’m posting this. We’ve had her for 13 years. Poor kitty. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/2 "2012-09-29T14:07:12Z")
Poor kitty, indeed. Hope she feels better soon. ---
**Author:** ![Avarie537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@Avarie537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avarie537)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/3 "2012-09-29T14:52:54Z")
What kind of testing was done? Blood test, u/a, radiographs, ultrasound, etc? Depending on where you are, there’s usually a specialty / referral hospital or university nearby who has advanced diagnostics if you have the means to pursue additional testing (meaning money … it’s not cheap!). ---
**Author:** ![tapu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@tapu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tapu)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/4 "2012-09-29T14:55:30Z")
Hillbilly trick to get a cat to eat (tho not sure that’s the best goal here): Let her lick karo syrup off your fingers and then put her near bland food. It works to get half-dead kittens going, but who knows? I wish the best for your kitty. ---
**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/5 "2012-09-29T15:24:59Z")
> [@Avarie537](#): > > What kind of testing was done? Blood test, u/a, radiographs, ultrasound, etc? Depending on where you are, there’s usually a specialty / referral hospital or university nearby who has advanced diagnostics if you have the means to pursue additional testing (meaning money … it’s not cheap!). All of the above. Took her to a proper animal hospital. ---
**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/6 "2012-09-29T15:27:01Z")
Oh dear. Sending healing thoughts. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/7 "2012-09-29T15:28:47Z")
> [@mozchron](#): > > the diagnosis was… Vet stumped. One reason I love my vet is that “stumped” is not a diagnosis, but rather a reason for more intense investigation via referral to a specialist, etc. (if economics permit, of course) ---
**Author:** ![Sahirrnee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sahirrnee/32/13937_2.png) [@Sahirrnee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sahirrnee)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/8 "2012-09-29T19:31:30Z")
You could try Nutri-Cal. I used it for a sick kitten that didn’t want to eat. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/9 "2012-09-29T19:46:31Z")
My cat is the same age, every once a while she will get sick as yours did but seems to recover in less than a week. This has happened a couple of times now. I was watching her pretty close but didn’t take her to the vet. I am always worried about her eating a poisened mouse or licking up antifreeze. In your case anitfreeze would be my first suspect as you would need to act on it quickly or possibly now just wait it out. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/10 "2012-09-29T20:43:45Z")
> [@badger5149](#): > > My cat is the same age, every once a while she will get sick as yours did but seems to recover in less than a week. This has happened a couple of times now. I was watching her pretty close but didn’t take her to the vet. I am always worried about her eating a poisened mouse or licking up antifreeze. In your case anitfreeze would be my first suspect as you would need to act on it quickly or possibly now just wait it out. If the cat had consumed antifreeze, it would be seizing, moaning in pain, and most relevantly, dead by now. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/11 "2012-09-29T20:49:13Z")
> [@Hello\_Again](#): > > If the cat had consumed antifreeze, it would be seizing, moaning in pain, and most relevantly, dead by now. I believe cats are more sensitive to small amounts of antifreeze than are dogs and can have somewhat prolonged affects resulting in kidney failure and death. One of my cats licked up my rooting hormone residue in the greenhouse and it ended up killing her from kidney failure almost a month later. I saw her lick it but didn’t think too much about it till two weeks later when she started showing symptoms. ---
**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/12 "2012-09-29T22:01:01Z")
No antifreeze; she’s a 100% indoor cat. ---
**Author:** ![Sudden\_Kestrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Sudden\_Kestrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sudden_Kestrel)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/13 "2012-09-29T22:32:04Z")
My first thought would be bowel obstruction or even a torsion of the bowel. When my 17-year-old cat had similar symptoms and my old vet threw up his hands, my new vet (who also did not consider giving up to be an option) suggested massive doses of hairball preventer like Petromalt. Since the cat would not eat, we put a 1 to 1.5-inch strip on a finger and scraped it against the back of her top teeth so it stuck to the roof of her mouth. This resulted in a very pissed off kitty who _had_ to swallow the Petromalt to get it off the roof of her mouth. After a day of multiple applications of Petromalt we added in wet food administered in the same fashion, and ultimately _that_ resulted in a considerable release of stool and consolidated hair and 5 more years with a much happier—though more suspicious—cat. Now understand, IANAV and our cat was at the point where we had to choose either this drastic procedure or death. You might want to find out if that $400 included any examination specifically for bowel issues. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2012, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/14 "2012-09-29T22:49:55Z")
> [@badger5149](#): > > I believe cats are more sensitive to small amounts of antifreeze than are dogs and can have somewhat prolonged affects resulting in kidney failure and death. One of my cats licked up my rooting hormone residue in the greenhouse and it ended up killing her from kidney failure almost a month later. I saw her lick it but didn’t think too much about it till two weeks later when she started showing symptoms. I think you mistook me. Yes, cats can be very sensitive to toxins. In particular, the fatal dose of antifreeze is less than a teaspoon. I don’t know what was in whatever your cat consumed, but a cat that has consumed ethylene glycol, in other words, antifreeze, will normally be dead within 48 hours unless prompt, aggressive medical intervention occurs. This cat is still alive after “a few days”, ergo, it isn’t antifreeze posioning. ---
**Author:** ![\_Olive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/4af34b/32.png) [@\_Olive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_Olive)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2012, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/15 "2012-09-30T01:51:48Z")
My first thought was bowel obstruction also. ---
**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2012, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/16 "2012-10-01T19:31:25Z")
Well, kitty deteriorated over the weekend, wouldn’t eat or drink. We kept her hydrated with a syringe and took her back in first thing this morning. Vet repeated bloodwork, and subcu fluids and did an Xray. Bloodwork completely normal, no evidence of poisoning. Thankfully, liver functions still normal in spite of the weekend fasting. Nothing on Xray. Did a barium swallow. Completely normal, no evidence of bowel obstruction. But kitty still won’t eat or drink on her own. Vet has a couple more things to test today. If those don’t pan out, its specialist time. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2012, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/17 "2012-10-01T20:46:50Z")
Sending out wishes for a full recovery! ---
**Author:** ![Sudden\_Kestrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Sudden\_Kestrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sudden_Kestrel)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2012, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/18 "2012-10-01T20:57:42Z")
> [@mozchron](#): > > Well, kitty deteriorated over the weekend, wouldn’t eat or drink. We kept her hydrated with a syringe and took her back in first thing this morning. > > Vet repeated bloodwork, and subcu fluids and did an Xray. Bloodwork completely normal, no evidence of poisoning. Thankfully, liver functions still normal in spite of the weekend fasting. Nothing on Xray. > > Did a barium swallow. Completely normal, no evidence of bowel obstruction. > > But kitty still won’t eat or drink on her own. > > Vet has a couple more things to test today. If those don’t pan out, its specialist time. I’m not sure whether I should say “Good!” or “Oh damn.” It’s never easy to not know what you’re dealing with. The only other suggestion I have (and I’m not familiar with this disease in cats so I could be completely out of line) is Addison’s disease. I’ve seen it in a couple of dogs and the symptoms include refusal to eat or drink, often without any other signs. I know vets don’t routinely run the proper test for it in dogs because it isn’t very common—and it’s considered rare in cats—but it might be worth asking your vet if it’s a possibility. ---
**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/19 "2012-10-03T12:49:17Z")
Well, we have a diagnosis: Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Specialist took new images, saw that colon was about 5 times normal thickness (it looked huge), but no masses. Cat now on prescription diet (which she hates) and steroids (which from reading, I hope won’t make her hair fall out). She’s doing a bit better. Still won’t take water unless you force her, but actually ate a little on her own (her old food which she snuck from the other cats). ---
**Author:** ![Aquadementia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aquadementia/32/555_2.png) [@Aquadementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aquadementia)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230/20 "2012-10-03T13:20:06Z")
How do you force a cat to drink? A syringe full of water? Maybe some extra water mixed into the food would get more into her. But I’m sure once the steroids do their job she’ll start feeling like her old self. I remember reading catnip helps an appetite. Don’t know if it’s really true or not, or if you want a sick cat getting high. Hope she gets well soon. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-wont-eat-or-drink/636230.md?page=2)