Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi,

I have an almost-3 YO neutered male cat who has almost entirely stopped eating. CT is a big cat. He was 18 pounds before this, and it wasn't fat. Even being long-haired, he's always had a visible "waist." He's now lost about half his weight and looks & feels skeletal. I've had to take over his grooming since he quit doing it, and he's recently stopped purring when he cuddles with me, which tells me he's feeling worse.

I've had him to the vet and while some of the blood tests showed minimal elevations (5 points or less above "normal" in panels that would indicate problems with the liver or gall bladder, they were so close to normal that the vet can't guess at a specific problem. CT also seemed to have a very slight infection, so for lack of a clearer problem, the vet put my cat on antibiotics for a week. We stopped there, though, because there was no visible improvement, which suggested the infection wasn't the "real" problem. Vet also prescribed a Prescription Diet food that is low-fat to avoid fatty liver disease setting in.

I've got 4 cats at home, so until I had to isolate CT to feed him his special food, I didn't realize just how little he ate. He ate only a few pieces of the Prescription Diet the first day or two, then stopped eating it at all. I tried some regular canned food, and he eagerly licked up the "gravy" but wouldn't eat the soft chunks. I tried some wet "pate" style food next, and he wouldn't eat it.

Then I tried baby food, and finally found something he'd consistantly eat -some- of. He's up to about a tablespoon of baby food a feeding. He won't eat more, and he likes it better warm than at room temp or cold. He has an appetite -- he talks to me when I start fixing his food and dives eagerly into it. But by the time he's eaten about a tablespoon, his appetite is fading off.

His environment's been stable (no moves, new additions to the family, changes in my lifestyle, changes in diet) since August 04, and he's not my neurotic cat (I have one that licks his hair off when stressed). All my cats are strictly house cats and do not go outside, and all were tested for FLV/FIV before joining the household. There IS the possibility he's been stung by a scorpion; I do get scorpions in the house regularly, and he and my calico are always the ones who catch them. I've never seen any sign either of them have ever been stung, though.

A belly feeding tube & hospitilization aren't options. Either I find some alternative/natural treatment on my own to nurse him through this, or I have to put him to sleep. Obviously I don't want to have to do that, so I'm hoping someone here has some helpful ideas.

Thanks,
Kit

I would recommend getting a second opinion from another vet - preferably one who specializes in felines or in gastrology.

Good luck! I hope you can get to the root of the problem soon.
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Smile, it will make them wonder what you are up to!

> I would recommend getting a second opinion from another vet -
> preferably one who specializes in felines or in gastrology.

Good idea, although it'll take some digging. I don't know of any specialists in felines around here, but the city's big enough there likely are some. It'll have to wait until I can afford another vet trip, too. :/

> Is there a way to check and see if a scopion sting is the
> culprit?

Even if the swelling wasn't obvious externally, by now it should have been months gone.

> Also be sure that his teeth are checked - sometimes dental
> problems can cause not eating.

I still haven't heard back from the vet to confirm that they examined his teeth. He doesn't have obvious bad breath or gum disease up front.

> In the meantime, continue the baby food feeding and ask your
> vet if it is possible to get some sort of suppliment with
> taurine in it since that essential nutrient is lacking in
> baby food.

Good tip -- I hadn't thought about missing nutrients. :>

I'm wondering if possibly he has some sort of obstruction in his throat, now. I've got him eating some canned cat food now, and the edibility rule seems to be that it has to be soft enough to lap it into his mouth, and chicken flavor is strongly preferred. Anything crunchy, or anything chunky that has to be chewed, won't get eaten.

Last night he ate nearly half of one of those small-sized cans of food all in one sitting. When I was home over the weekend, I fed him several times a day, and now he's jumping up on the counter to ask me for food every time I walk through the kitchen. The appetite is definitely there, and while he still can't eat much at once, he's willing to eat several times a day. It's a start. :>

Have you considered force feeding your cat? I've had to force feed two when they got sick and found a good resource for it on the web:
http://www.mv.com/users/louise/post8.html . You just have to be careful not to force the food down or they can breathe it in.

It's also important to keep the cat hydrated. your vet can give him subcutaneous injections of fluid. For one cat I had to have a vet show me how to do this as I could not afford a hospital stay for the cat. After my cat got her fluids up she started eating again.

wishing the best for you and your buddy,
brian

> Have you considered force feeding your cat?

Fortunately, that wasn't necessary. CT's appetite revived once I found him something he could/would eat. Pudding-like seems to be the right texture. Thanks for the resource, though. Since I usually have several cats, I never know what's going to happen in the future. :>

It's also important to keep the cat hydrated.

That part's proving to be easy. Even when he won't eat a type of canned food, if I mash it up and add water, he'll at least lap up the "broth" part. Sometimes, he'll even get in a bit of the food, itself.

Now if I can just get him eating more in one sitting. Fortunately, I have holiday break coming and will be able to be home to feed him several times a day, most of the time.

Thanks!

Thanks for the suggestions and good wishes on CT's eating problem. I still don't know what is wrong, but at least now he's eating something. If I can get him eating enough to put some weight back on, he might get well enough to fight it off, or at least be strong enough for more aggressive treatment in the future.

My last batch of cats all lived to be 16, 17 and 18 years old, and I want CT around just as long.

Kit
& Calamity Tom, aka CT
(and Frostbite, Pudge & Madison, too)

Sorry I'm a little late. Glad to hear CT is doing better. I have no idea what could be wrong with him. But if he is eating the canned food that is a good sign. I would feed him in the morning before you leave for work. Then feed him right when you get home from work and once more before bed time. That at least should some food into him. How much is he eating in a sitting. I have found my cats Crash and Moxie both only eat 1/8 of a cup of food if that at a time. They would rather nibble a little here and a little there. That doens't work out so well for Moxie. She lives with a cat that has IBS so he can only eat a special food. We can't leave Moxie's food down. So I try to give her a few bites here and there when I'm home.
Good luck.
Do you have a picture of your CT? He sounds like a very Handsome cat.
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Jaime owned by
Mya the dog
and the cats:Crash, Moxie, Gabby and sometimes Tucker