Help! Spiffy is dying

It pains me to write this but I cant sit back and do nothing. My cat, Spiffy started getting thin so we took him to the vet and he said that he is suffering from heart failure. I moved out of my house recently so my mom had to take him. I dont trust her to listen and really try to figure it out, that is why I'm here. She's the type to only hear the dying part. We have him on two meds, i dont remember their names and they are at my moms house. One is a liquid and the other is a pill. I know one is a diaretic (spelling??). My main worry is that he is getting thin. The meds will hopefully help the heart problems but he wont eat. He has always been a fat cat and ate EVERYTHING. Now, i give him food and he walks away. Does anyone know if this is realted to the heart failure, is there anything i can do to get him to eat? Please, link or inform me of anything you have on heart failure or the eating issue.

I have no advice to offer. I wish I did, this must be heartbreaking for you! Someone else should be along soon who has something constructive to add. Have you tried all sorts of canned foods? Solid Gold Blended Tuna(if you can get it) seems to go over well with sick kitties....

If the meds cause him to have diarrhea, and he is not eating, he is getting dehydrated. Cats deteriorate really fast when dehydrated. You need to get fluids into him and get him eating. If your mom won't do it then you need to get over there and do this.

You need to get him eating something, anything really. Offer tuna water warmed up, the stinkier the better. If he goes more then a day without eating or drinking I would get him back to teh vet immediately and have the vet give you suggestions. I would think he might have to be on fluids. My neighbors cat recently passes away from heart failure. At one point he stopped eating and drinking and got really dehydrated. She got him on fluids and had to do it 2x per day at home until they eventually had him euthanized.

Good luck and take your cat back into the vet please.

I am so sorry that this is happening to Spiffy.
I would consider his not eating an emergency.
Please discuss his lack of appetite with your vet.
If he won't eat, he must be hand fed but first, you need to know why he won't eat.

I am glad you are here at TCS where you will receive a lot of support.
Please keep us updated.

How old is Spiffy? If he's an older kitty, he could have a medical condition, like hyperthyroidism, diabetes, or chronic renal failure causing his inappetance and weight loss. I would ask the vet about appetite stimulants and try to get food into him. Sometimes cats who aren't eating will start to eat on their own if you "prime the pump" by syringe feeding or finger feeding some food. If your kitty won't eat regular food, you can try some plain meat baby food (make sure it doesn't have any onions or other spices).

Sorry I have no advice as I've haven't had a cat with heart failure.
There has been great advice offered above.

Just want to say I am sorry your kitty is going through this.
Sending lots of good vibes Spiffy's way.

Check with your vet about getting Spiffy on a appetite stimulant. My Sheba has heart failure and renal failure, and has an appetite stimulant mixed in with her liquid medications. She still has times when she's feeling crappy and won't eat, but iti's mostly when she needs her dosage adjusted.

My emergency go-to food is Fancy Feast Crab Shrimp and Sardines, mixed with a little Pedialyte so it's soupy and warmed in the microwave. It's very rare that she'll turn her nose up at it.

I'm assuming that if your Spiffy is on a diuretic he must have an excess of fluid in his chest. I've never had a kitty suffering from heart failure (at least, not that I know of), but I do know that you must get your boy to eat. If, as Lorina posted, he has an off day & just doesn't feel like eating it's not really a big deal. A cat that doesn't eat for several days, tho, is in danger of developing liver problems, and that's the last thing Spiffy needs. There's a lot of info on this site about assisted-feeding; there's also a yahoo group (just type feline assisted-feeding in the search box).
Sending loads of good wishes to your boy; I'm so sorry you & Spiffy are going thru this.

Loving headbuts and wish we could help licks from KittenKiya's Clan.

Have you tried using some strained baby meat, beef is best, mixed with a little water, sucked up into a syringe and fed that way for a while? My cats have always loved the beefy taste.

Thanks for all the great wishes and advice!

I am going to call my vet this morning and see if he can offer something to boost his apetite. He is kinda old, about 13 I believe. I was young when he showed up at my door (stray) so the timeline got lost somewhere. He has always been a large cat and now I can feel his bones.

Libby, that is something that the vet said. He has an excess fluid around his heart restricting it. He's drinking water so I hope he isnt getting to dehydrated.

Any more advice is more than welcome. Thanks again everyone! I'm going to try some of the appetizing combo's listed here and see if he gets munching.

-P

Any news on Spiffy? Has he had a chance to grab some burgers and fries?

I would see about getting bloodwork done. He could be hyperthyroid. Some hyperthyroid cats also have cardiomyopathy (thickening of the walls of the heart), which can cause congestive heart failure. If you can keep the heart failure under control, you'll need to treat the underlying condition as well to keep him healthy.

Here are more sites about Hypertrophic CardioMyopathy (HCM):
http://members.aol.com/jchinitz/hcm/
http://dsl.org/hcm/
http://www.newmanveterinary.com/felhcm.html (warning, sound present)

Have you called the vet? I am hoping s/he can offer some advice & the next time you post you'll be telling us you got Spiffy to eat.