HELP... my cat is not eating...

I have just brought home a male neuter aged 1yr from the animal shelter.
He is not eating.
The vet has diagnosed him with earmites and is treating him accordingly.
He has been vaccinated.
He has been wormed.
He has been tested for leukemia - and he has tested negative.

The vet says he won't be eating for some time, as the worming may have given him a tummy upset...

I am not really satisfied with this explanation as to why he is not eating...

I would appreaciate any information on how to feed a sick cat.
Thank You.

It could be the food your feeding him. What kind of food was he eating at the shelter? He could just be mighty finicky. Have you tried wet food? He could just be shy of his new surroundings as well. If he keeps refusing his food, try asking the vet for more help. Maybe the vet can put him on a special food.

I'm feeding him the same type of food as they were at the shelter...
I've tried everything..
wet food
dry food
fresh food

he takes a little nibble
and that's it

I may have to start force feeding him if he doesn't eat by this evening...

Hmmm... My cat Tigger did that once. He got sick and wouldn't eat. I put the dry food in his mouth and closed his jaw, he chewed it up and then he started eating on his own. Did you try feeding him through a syringe? Just take some wet food, mix it with water and fill a large syringe (if you have one). Open his mouth and push the food out slowly. If you don't have a syringe try using a baby spoon. These are just some of the ways I've gotten my cats to eat when they refuse to eat on their own. Also, you can put cat milk into the syringe. Most cats won't refuse milk. Give it a shot!

ALSO remember that you have just brought a cat into a whole new enviroment. Your new cat needs to feel comfortable before he'll eat or even use the litter box. Your cat is not going to starve overnight. Just as long as he drinks water he'll be fine. If tomorrow comes around and he still isn't eating go to the vet!

Bad teeth or sores in the mouth will slow down even the best eater! Hope things are better!

Kitty is in a new place, has been to the vets (very stressful) and given poison (worming medicine) depending on what worms he had, he may just not want to eat for a bit. As long as he is drinking water and eating little bits, I would not worry. Keep his litter box scrubbed clean, give him fresh water, you can dribble some tuna juice, or clam juice in the water to encourage him to drink.

His world just suddenly changed, let him adapt to the new situation. If he was not eating anything, then I would say he needs a vet call. Try warming his food up a bit- even the dry kibble, nuke it in the microwave. Mix a little bit of baby food with his kibble and see if that helps.

I agree with Hissy (as always). I would not try to force feed him at this point. He is still too traumatized from all of the scary things that have happened in the past few days. So forcing food into his mouth will be even more traumatic. My cats can't resist the water that tuna fish is packed in. As Hissy said, a little tuna water may be all he needs to get him back on track.

Bravo to you for rescuing an adult cat from the shelter. I wish there were more people like you out there!

Please let us know how he is doing. And...what is his name?

One thing I would like to say is everytime I read about someone telling another cat person to force feed a kitty with a syringe, I am reminded of a lady I tried to help a long time ago. She also came on a board with problems about her cat not eating, and someone told her to forcefeed her kitty some wet food but to make it watery enough. Nothing was mentioned about the DANGER of forcefeeding, and if you do it to fast, you can drown your kitty and kill it. So she went ahead and force fed her kitten some watery gruel, and in a matter of minutes, the kitten choked and died in her arms.

Please try and not tell someone to forcefeed a cat unless they are instructed on how to do it safely by a professional. To many things can happen when you do it wrong, or if you measure incorrectly or get in a hurry, because you have to go to work, and this kitty has to eat!

Ok, that's all- lecture over for now. Just something that concerns me a great deal when I see a post that says fill a large syringe and feed your cat. You never use a large syringe when you force feed, no matter what the age of the cat.

Thats a good point Hissy, I cannot imagine force feeding a cat, I would be to afraid to do it without the help of a vet!

When we brought Cleo home last weekend, she wouldn't eat, either, for a few days. We were giving her the same thing she was given at the shelter but found that she apparently did not want that! When we tried giving her something else, she did eat it.

Now...Angel wouldn't eat for like DAYS on end for NOTHING, but she was also nearly 19 and well, that is all just another story altogether. ((I miss her!!))


ANYWAY....everything everyone said above is wonderful. I wouldn't force feed, either, as much as you really want the cat to eat. Going back to the vet is a good idea if the cat doesn't eat here soon. They tried to give Angel a Valium shot to get her appetite back as it has worked in cats before. It didn't work with her for other reasons, but I am sure the vet has options try to help remedy this

Happy Mew Year ....

As it turns out,
Sylvester has the flu.
So he wasn't eating because he couldn't smell the food.

He will be on anti-biotics and reiki for the next 9 days...
I'm sure he'll be eating soon.