Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My 10 year old cat (We estimated her age- found 9 years ago-)was horribly attacked by one of my dogs in my house over 2 weeks ago. I thought she was going to die but after rushing her to the emergency vet and then to my own private vet she has amazingly pulled through. My private vet took x-rays of her jaw because she wasn't closing her mouth properly and he said that her upper top palette was fractured as well as her bottom jaw which was causing the problem. He said he had never seen such a thing and that he would do what he could. Well he put some metal wires in her mouth which are very small and non-obtrusive to keep her jaw in place while it heals and it's definitely working because she's almost completely able to close her mouth and she meows A LOT, and will purr when pet. After 2 days of returning from the vet she seemed great and was even licking at some wet food and drinking water. However, then all of a sudden she stopped eating. Now she will drink water, that has not stopped but she won't eat at all. I've tried tuna fish, every soft wet can food available, even chicken noodle soup- I've tried everything and she won't touch it. Now, she's still drinking but at this point I'm starting to get really scared. It's been over a week and she has definitely lost weight and even though she still meows and purrs, it's not cool that she won't eat anything. I've forced fed her with a syringe a little chicken broth and some wet cat food diluted but it's not enough. And she hates when I do it. My vet said cats can go weeks without eating and not to worry unless she stops drinking water but I can't help but to worry. I quit giving her medication thinking that was the problem but that hasn't helped. She only had one more dose of antibiotics anyway and she was also prescribed cortisone for swelling which I also stopped. SHe seems to feel better not being on the medication but she just wont' eat. Does anyone know of any wet liquid cat formula out there that I can try to either force feed her or that she may try to lick on her own? I'm sorry for being so long winded I just wanted to get out all the information pertaining to my cat so that I could get the most accurate feedback regarding my case. Any advice would be most helpful!!

The antibiotics may be upsetting her stomach. In any event, she needs to get food in her. Try watering down some of the canned food so she can lap that up. Baby food (chicken or turkey) are often accepted when a cat doesn't feel well. If she's still not eating, talk to your vet about a food syringe so you can force some of the food in her. You might also pick up some a/d from the vet as that is a high calorie food and can be mixed with water and fed via the syringe.

Thanks for your advice...I did try A/D already and she won't touch it. And she's been off the antibiotics for over a week and there has been no change. I even tried watering down some Friskies wet can food and I used a syringe to get some of that in her but it's very difficult due to the fact that I don't want to mess with her jaw that much and she just hates it. I will have to call the vet today though and just see what else he can suggest. I will also try baby food and see how that goes. I just hope I don't have to feed her with a syringe for the rest of her life. I really hope she gets better. Thanks again.

You need to get the cat to another vet for a second opinion ASAP. It is not true that cats can go for weeks without eating. Just a few days without eating can bring on a serious liver condition!

Continue the force feeding until you can get her in! Good luck!
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Smile, it will make them wonder what you are up to!

Another one of our members cats wouldn't eat. Her vet gave her a medication to improve appetite. It was called cyproheptaine. You could ask your vet about that.
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Jaime owned by
Mya the dog
and the cats:Crash, Moxie, Gabby and sometimes Tucker

The med is called Cyproheptadine (with a "d" in it). (I'm the poster Jaime mentioned)

The vet can prescribe an appetite stimulant that sometimes works with cats. It works on my two boys. It is called Cyproheptadine. Within an hour of giving it to my boys the started eating food (they both lost their appetites due to being sick or major surgery the past year). Definitely have talk to the vet -- there are appetite stimulants and very palatable foods to entice sick cats, such as Science Diet AD. If neither of these two work, you may need to feed Science Diet AD or chicken baby food by syringe. Talk to you vet thru this so the vet knows what is going on. If your cat still hasn't eaten, call ASAP. The vet may need to give IV or SUB-Q fluids if the cat is dehydrated.
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Tammy
Stanley and Pookey

I thougth of something else. Pookey was my worst case. He didn't eat for about 5 days after his leg was amputated. Primarily a combination of antibiotics and other meds and he picked up a cold (URI) at the vets.

I fed him chicken baby food by syringe the first couple days, watered down enough to use a syringe. Your vet can give you a larger syringe to use for feeding if you are using a small medication size (such as what you get for antibiotics). There are larger syringes that are easier. I fed him about every 4-6 hours by syringe for two days. Then I used watered down Science Diet AD for a couple more days, by syringe every couple days...

Then I thought of Tender Vittles. Small semi-moist food like little pills... I was able to pop in quite a few each feeding (letting him chew between putting a couple in his mouth). He let me cradle him and feed him several that way each feeding. It is a firmer food... The vet had given me Cyproheptadine shortly after, and that seemed to pretty much cure him. He ate dry on his own within about an hour of the first dose of Cyproheptadine.

You may want to try Tender Vittles (force feeding). They are easy to manipulate, pop them in like M&Ms while cradling your cat -- allowing for chewing and swollowing. Also definitely try the Cyproheptadine. Works on both my cats...
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Tammy
Stanley and Pookey

Is she totally isolated from the dog that attacked her? Are you feeding her in a room different than where the attack took place? Things to consider. Isolate her and make her feel safe.
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Tammy
Stanley and Pookey

Hi there! I just got all your messages, I'm glad I decided to check the thread. I'm sorry if it seemed as if I was ignoring your messages- I appreciate any and all advice. Ok, well first, I will try the tender vittles- see how that goes along with using baby food and if I could dilute A/D enough to pass through a syringe I will try that as well. I'm going to the vet today and will discuss every option possible. I am amazed to hear of that appetite pill. I can't believe your animals responded so well to it. That would be a miracle if mine would as well. And as for my dog that attacked her, I had to put her to sleep which was one of the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life- I've never done that before and if I would've had any other option, I would've used it. My dog- her name was Yoko, was a 9 years old lab/rottweiler mix and had attacked every single one of my other animals including my 15 year old toy poodle, my 10 year old rat terrier (over 5 times at least) and my husky and had repeatedly stalked my other cat in the house. SHe had never attacked (Ma-Mi) my other cat before until 2weeks ago and that was all I could take. Life was becoming too chaotic. I'm also pregnant for the first time and so I knew that I had no choice. I cry all the time over it seriously, but I know I made the right decision. SO no, the dog that attacked her is no longer a threat to any of my other animals. Sorry about the rambling...I will update on the thread after my visit today with the vet- Thanks for listening and for the advice!

I have an appointment with the vet Thursday and if I could've brought her sooner, I would've. In the meantime, I've been force feeding her gerber's baby food (chicken and beef flavored)and I've been giving her major love and affection. It's amazing to me that she will lick and drink water, or milk, but will not touch her solid watered down wet food? And I know milk is not the greatest thing for a cat but she seems to somewhat like it and at this point I'm just glad she's consuming anything at all. I pray that her liver is Ok because like you said obviously without food there could be liver problems which I did not know. Wish me luck at the vet Thursday and thanks for the advice.

Another item you might ask the vet about is some nutrical and some supplements that are liquid. Part of her problem may be that her jaw or mouth hurt when she tries to actually eat vs drinking.

If you want to offer milk, look for the Catsip or one of the similar products made for cats instead of giving cow's milk as that tends to give many cats diarrhea.

I believe too that pain could be a contributing factor in why my my cat won't eat. I will mention this to my vet and see what he says. I will also look for Catsip- Is that something I need to get through my vet? I'm going to see him tommorrow and I hope he'll be able to help me fix her problem... She was so healthy and robust before this episode and It's heartwrenching to see her act like this. I even pulled out some catnip tonight to see how she would react and she didn't even budge. It made me wonder about her sense of smell? Obviously if a cat can't smell I wouldn't think that it would want to eat? I'll be definitely bringing up many questions to my vet. And praying for a speedy recovery! Thanks for the advice...

Catsip is often available at pet supply stores and some supermarkets. And you are correct, if a cat cannot smell, likely it won't eat. Vets are also now more aware of pain management in small animals, so discussing these problems or possible solutions with your vet is a great idea.

Just a word to cheer you, my family had an indoor/outdoor cat many years ago. He was the great hunter. Apparently he tried to catch a deer and came home one night with multiple severe injuries including a jaw that was broken in several places. He was not eating well and absolutely would not drink water or anything. Plus he still wanted outside. My brother took him out, and happened to take him down by the pool. He got excited, and my brother held him over the pool and he drank his fill. Silly guy wanted to drink the pool water instead of the fresh tap water in the house. For the next few weeks, someone took him out a few times a day for his drink. He recovered from the broken jaw and the loss of an eye and did quite well for several years.

I will look for Catsip today but I must say I've never seen or heard of this before around here. Then again, I've never had a need to. Since I've started the baby food force feeding which I've gotten down to a science now, I think she looks a little better. I read a lot last night about fatty liver disease in cats and was horrified because my cat was definitely an overweight cat and she may very well be developing this. I've been vigilant about getting food in her and without doing so I'm now convinced she would've died. Hopefully we caught it in time. I've learned so much about animals the past ten years being that I have a slew of them, and I'm always amazed at the ability they have to heal. Your story definitely cheered me up. What an amazing thing- I can't believe the pool water wasn't harmful? Hey, whatever works! I appreciate all your advice and it's nice to know there are other people out there who love their pets as much as I do.

Just for those who asked: I brought my cat yesterday to the vet and he said she does not have any signs of fatty liver disease- thank God! He noted the weight loss and we talked extensively about her case. He put her on an appetite stimulant, it's a hormone that as a side effect makes animals eat a lot. He said this has been very successful in his experience and if that doesn't work, we'll try the cyphropedine (If I spelled it correctly) He had heard of the cyophropedine but never used it. I told him that I heard it's been very useful in helping animals eat. We shall see. Thanks for all the advice and hopefully there will be progress and healing.

I'm glad the vet is being more helpful now. Let us know how she is eating over the weekend. BTW do you have any pictures of your animals?
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Jaime owned by
Mya the dog
and the cats:Crash, Moxie, Gabby and sometimes Tucker

Keep us posted as to her progress! I hope the new treatment works!
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Smile, it will make them wonder what you are up to!

Thanks I will.

Hey Jamie! Well Ma-Mi (my cat) still isn't eating on her own but I'm in this for the long haul and I know she will resume eating one day...I really think it's more of a pain problem than anything. Once her jaw heals and the wires in her mouth are removed which the vet said should be in like 2 weeks, I really think that'll make the difference. I'm hoping at least that it will. Let me clarify though, her mouth is not wired shut, she just has a few pins put there to help stabilize the jaw. God Bless Her. And yes I have pictures of my animals- I'll try to post a picture of Ma-Mi I just need to find a scanner. I'm so glad I found this forum, I'm very grateful for everyones concern and feedback.

I can't wait to see the pictures. And hope she is healed nicely in two weeks or sooner so she can get those wires out of her mouth.
I'm sure it must be very uncomfortable.
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Jaime owned by
Mya the dog
and the cats:Crash, Moxie, Gabby and sometimes Tucker