A cat that won’t eat is on it’s way out. Period. You can take extreme measures, but they are only temporary measures.
Six years ago when that poisoned cat food thing killed my kitten and mortally wounded Bertie, I took to extreme measures. I put dried food in water and turned it to slurry. Then I used a small syringe to, in effect, force feed her several times a day. Last thing before I left for work in the morning, first thing when I got home at night. The kitten had died in early December, before anyone had any idea what was to come and how many pets would die. I had no idea why he died so suddenly. Bertie was made ill at the same time. I did this for nearly three months, until she finally died in early March. In retrospect, it was probably too much, and I should have let her go earlier.
But if you believe your cat will recover, it does work for short periods of time. It gets some calories and plenty of liquid into them.
If you don’t believe they will recover, then it’s best to make your peace with it and let them go.
Hello Again, would your cat nibble at shreds of cooked chicken or turkey meat? You could try moistening the dry kibble with low-sodium broth (instead of water) especially if it’s warm. There are also nutrition supplements for ferrets, which as obligate carnivores have similar requirements as felines. The ones I’m most familiar with come in a tube, like toothpaste, so you can squirt some onto your finger, mix it in with food, etc.
Has anyone ever had luck offering cod liver oil? That nasty shit’s gotta be good for something.
I just lost my beloved Ami-chan to renal failure, and while I see that flatline’s kitty doesn’t have kidney problems I thought I would post my experiences as an anecdotal reference.
Before trying an appetite stim, try medicating both anti-nausea AND stomach acid. If these are not addressed, all the appetite stims in the world won’t help.
Flatlined, I worry about insisting that kitty eat his normal amount. Again, this is only anecdotal evidence with a renal failure kitty, but forcing too much food may upset him more. As you say, not eating at all is a fast one-way ticket to fatty liver, but if you’re getting some food into him (and I agree about not worrying about taurine–even crappy food for a few days is better than trying to ram the good stuff into him), this should stave that off.
Having said that, I found I did need to assist-feed (isn’t that a nicer way of referring to it?) Ami-chan. I strained cat food, then switched to a powder intended for enteral feeding), and gave it to him very gently using a 10ml syringe.
If the cat isn’t barfing up the syringe feeding, that is an excellent sign. He is hungry, but for whatever reason can’t eat. I found that syringe feeding got us through some rough spots until he could eat again.
Always an excellent idea to get him examined for both bad, rotting teeth and mouth ulcers.
Always check with your vet before taking advice on-line–and that extends to everything I’ve said here. People (including me) tend to think that what worked for them or happened to them is applicable to all cats, and that simply isn’t the case. For example, some well-meaning people suggested I get a med compounded into a transdermal form–but this can be dangerous with some meds.
Having said that, doing what you did–asking doc about info found on-line–can be a good way of exploring options your vet may not have thought of. A good vet will check this stuff and be wulling to learn.
Not all vets are good. Getting a second opinion often results in a very different diagnosis. One vet insisted that my cat’s limping was due to overgrown nails. Turns out she had squamous cell cancer that had metastised into her hind leg. Oops! An extreme example to be sure, but one that illustrates the need for second opinions.
Make sure meds are given at the correct times. In Ami-chan’s case, activated charcoal and phosphorus absorbents absolutely had to be spaced apart so that one med didn’t absorb the other.
I found that cats can rebound–and go the other way–extremely quickly.
Flatlined, I’m glad your kitty is doing better! Hello Again, best of luck with yours! There are often options you haven’t yet considered.
When our older cat was dying of kidney failure last year, we started putting Slippery Elm supplement on her food to sooth her stomach and increase her appetite. It did seem to help for a while - she tolerated it well and ate the food we sprinkled it on.
Hello Again I’m so sorry that you are going through this. Your beloved kitteh really does need her meds, maybe you can talk to your vet about switching over to transdermal meds?
Our fuzzface is young and basically healthy, so what works for us might not work for you.
Suggestions for your furrybutt…Kentucky fried chicken strips seemed to be a big hit. Do you have a feed/tractor store around that has free bags of kibble samples? If so, grab a bag of each type and try them out. What works for a hyper-T cat one day might not work the next day, so small bags are good.
Your hyper-T kitty might be too hot for her to want to eat. Her body is running on overdrive now, poor girl. Maybe try feeding her on cool tile if possible?
How old is she?
(((KinkiNipponTourist))) I am so sorry for your loss. Thank you for offering up your very helpful advice for others who are going through what you did. You have a kind and generous spirit.
This is the second time I’ve had a young and healthy cat suddenly fail like that. Lucky, who was the one who started sneezing first improved within hours of getting his shot. When Baker stopped eating and started to look really sick, all I could think of was my healthy 8 year old giant breed stray who suddenly turned yellow and died during the time of bad cat food.
Kinki, how are things going with your rescue efforts? I do think of you and the critters often.
Ashes was coughing tonight and breathing open-mouthed so we took her to the emergency vet (which thankfully is just round the corner, closer than our regular vet actually). They found fluid on the lungs. They drew it out, did xrays and found a large mass in her chest. If she’s well enough, they will discharge her so that we can spend the night, and then we will put her to sleep tomorrow.
This is all consistent with my regular vet, who I spoke with on friday about the bloodwork. Her kidney & liver were both normal but her thyroid was sky high (inconsistent with only missing 2 days of felimazole) and with her numbers she should have been ravenously eating. The vet felt everything taken together pointed to an aggressive cancer and advised the Big Think about putting her to sleep (not if but when). But, we didn’t really get to make that choice as it turns out.
I really hope we can take her home tonight, still waiting to hear from the emergency vet. Poor sweet girl.
Hello Again I am so sorry It’s wonderful that your vet will do a housecall though, it does make a very hard day a tiny bit easier. Your sweet girl knows she is loved, and that’s something an awful lot of cats (and humans, for that matter) don’t have.
