I cannot stress that enough. Unless the caller is sufficiently skilled to describe the situation perfectly, a phone call is worth about what you pay for it. And if you are sufficiently skilled to describe the situation perfectly, you probably do not need the call.
I have talked to people on the phone who have asked me questions, but they were the wrong questions. Based on my answers, they have elected to not be seen, only to have the animal die later.
We just got back from the vet. They gave him an antibiotic shot and a steroid shot for the URI and a fluid injection in his back since he was deyhdrated. When they took his temp, they thought there might be some blood so they want a stool sample. It looks like he’s down from 7.5 pds on the 4th to 6 tonight. They gave me a different food to try so we could see if he’ll eat. I’ll keep you posted.
A bit of good news, he’s been sitting at his water dish drinking almost constantly for the last few minutes. No food yet, but this is an improvement.
Good move taking him to the vet. Fluids under the skin can do wonders.
You can try microwaving the wet food ever so slightly to make it smellier. 5 or 8 seconds should do it, depending on how much food you’re nuking at once. Be sure to stir it and test it with your finger for heat.
I bet he’d love you if you gave him a heating pad to sit on. You can jury rig one out of a sock stuffed with rice or beans, or a ziplock baggie with water. Put it under a towel so he can’t scorch.
Poor little dude. Hope he’s feeling better. I can’t imagine being sick while recuperating from day surgery. (I guess it would be like having pneumonia right after having your wisdom teeth out.)
He’s finally eaten, not much but I’m just so relieved that he’s actually taking food. I was so worried I was crying on the way home. I just love the little guy so much already it’s been breaking my heart to see him like this.
Nursing kitties through URI is quite worrisome, isn’t it? Glad to hear that he is eating - if they are eating, that’s usually a good sign. **Pullet **gave great advice - a little nuking will help make the wet food stinkier. Stinky food will get through all the URI crud and hopefully stimulate him to eat a little more.
My cat Wren was at the shelter for months before I adopted her. She had a horrible URI that wasn’t getting better. I convinced them that I knew what I was doing, and got her out to a vet who changed her antibiotic - she had a horrible reaction to the stuff she had been on for WEEKS.
She is now a very healthy 10 pounds. Sometimes they just need to get the right meds to the kitties. Good luck with the little bugger!
My cat tends to get hairballs all the time, and she drools when she’s brewing up a big one. Maybe try a little hairball medicine if the vet okays it? Or just leave that until he’s healed up from everything else.
I’ve found that baby food is good if they really, really don’t want to eat. They sell some chicken junk that has nothing but chicken and starch and water (no onion or garlic - that’s important). It smells revolting. Cat’s usually LOVE it - I can’t imagine feeding it to a baby, that’s for sure.
Anyway, if they are being really stubborn, you can drip it into their mouth, or put it on their lips so they have to lick it off - especially if you mix it with some water first.
I’ve had a few fat, stubborn cats, so I worry more than the typical owner about them going on a foods strike.
You may want to try giving him food made specifically for kittens. Kitten food has more of some nutrients he needs while he’s growing. Switch him to an adult cat food when he’s grown up.
Or a hairball treat. My Katya recommends Friskies hairball treats. She didn’t like it when I tried to give her Petromalt, but she says the hairball treats are delicious.
I dunno if this helps (I’m having my own “cat eating” problems), but the whole downward spiral started when I switched my cat’s food from Neutro Natural Choice Complete Care dry kibble to the Wellness brand you described. She lost a lot of weight and her hair started falling out! I am not dissing Wellness - I still feed her the Wellness wet - but she clearly didn’t take to it, no idea why. Her general health and coat recovered quickly once I put her back on the Neutro. Maybe you need to try a different kibble, among the other things you are doing…
Yeah, cat’s are funny about their food. Our cats have been healthy and happy on the same kibble for years; as they’re getting older, we tried them on the senior food made by the same brand, and the diarrhea was never-ending. We’ve given up on that food - a food-switching problem shouldn’t last months, as far as I know. And I’m sure diarrhea for months isn’t good for kitty, either. We did all the food-switching things right, and it’s just not a go for our cats.
Update, his sinuses are draining so with any luck he’ll be ready to eat!