worried

i have just adopted a little kitten well shes 7 months old so not so little, she came from a flat that had 6 other cats includinga male they said they kept the male away from her during the night but i know it don't take long for things to happen. anyway shes a very pretty little thing but shes extremely timid and runs away from everything, i have only had her a few days but in that time she only comes out after 8pm and then stays awake most of the night. i know shes scared and have left her alone to settle in only thing is i have tried everything to get her to eat, i have tried lots of different foods: go-cat kitten complete, felix kitten, felix adult, whiskers, hi-life and even science diet from the vets and i haven't seen her eat anything in the 3 days shes been here and i'm getting worried now, shes quite a skinny little thing anyway and don't want her to lose more weight
is there anything i can do to tempt her to eat?

If she hasn't eaten at all in three days you need to take her to the vet right away. Not eating can cause serious fatal issues for cats so its important to get her checked out if she really hasn't been eating. Once she's eating there are great tips on here about socializing cats and getting them used to their new environment but if she's not eating at all she's in trouble!

she has an appointment with vets tomorrow morning was just hoping there was something i could do for her tonight

Yes, please get her to the vet ASAP. It's dangerous for cats or kittens to go several days without eating because their liver can start to shut down quickly.

Oh okay, that's good. Have you tried Fancy Feast or even some tuna? One of those might work.

Has your little sweetie been to the vet? As it is, she's old enough to be spayed, and really should be.

It's very natural for her to be afraid. Cats are very territorial animals, and she's in a new territory. Until she makes it hers, feels comfortable there, she will be very timid.

It's actually best for her if you confine her to just one room at first. Give her hidey places. Put a litter box on one side of the room and her food and water on the other. Just sit in there with her as much as you can - don't try to interact with her. Just let her get used to you.

For food, for now, maybe put out some kitten glop for her (in addition to leaving her dry food out for her to free feed on: http://www.hdw-inc.com/glop.htm

You can also try boiling some chicken, and put out the plain broth with some shredded chicken in it for her.

You can also try purchasing chicken baby food and putting that out for her.

But here's a good read on bringing home new cats (make sure to click on the page 2 and page 3 continuations):
http://www.thecatsite.com/Care/18/Br...a-New-Cat.html

You really ought to get her to a vet ASAP. As it is, she really should see one to make sure she doesn't have parasites or an infection. And she really should be spayed.

Laurie

Try plain baby food, chicken or beef. Or try warming up her food and dripping a bit of tuna juice over it maybe?

I was posting while the other posts went up. I'm glad you've got an appointment for her! In the meantime, give some of the food ideas a try.

Laurie

i haven't heard of fancy feast, but tried some tuna last night and she just turned her back on it and walked away, i have put food in two places for her to eat and she does sniff at them but don't eat


eta: she will be getting a complete check up tomorrow and i'll be arranging for her to be spayed, at the moment i know shes ok as theres no chance of another male cat getting to her. she is currently residing in the lounge, and seems to like my OH better at the moment

Can you find out what she used to eat before you got her?

Originally Posted by Larke

Can you find out what she used to eat before you got her?

Click to expand...

Are you sure she's not eating when your asleep or not watching her?
Have you tried leaving down a bowl of dry food for her to nibble on whenever she wants.

she was on felix or whiskers they said so i was feeding her that. i had two places for her food one near to where she was hiding and one near her litter tray both with water bowls which i changed twice a day.

took her to vets today and he said she was under weight but he thinks shes been eating, and he said to give her time and she'll soon start eating properly

also he said to leave her a couple of weeks before getting her spayed as she needs to feel comfortable in the house so if anything happens to the stiches i'll be more likely top see quicker than if she was hiding

Im so glad she is eating, but one piece of advice...

Move the food and water away from the litter box!

Also, try measuring out her food and before you give her more measure it again to see just how much she is eating. I would also suggest giving her a feeding place where she has a good view of the room she is in and at the same time has an escape option if she feels cornered. A little hard to find such a place but one that worked for our shy kitten was near a bed so she could eat and if it felt too scary she could dive under the bed and hide. Eventually she got over her shyness and we could move her food to the kitchen.

Good Luck!
Anjya