Update on Max

maxamillion

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Hey everyone just wanted to update yall on Max. Four weeks ago he was diagnosed with lymphoma and he just went through with his 4th week of treatment. Over the past week, he has not been eating alot at all. Whenever I present food in front of him, the most he will do is lick the juices off the wet food and then turn away. Also, sometimes he will gag a little when he smells the food.

Lately whenever he would attempt to walk, he would have ALOT of trouble controlling his hind legs. He will wobble to where he is going and then fall to the side. I have looked at his legs for any injuries, but the only problem I see is that they have become very weak due to not eating. Very sad to see him unable to run around, especially since before the cancer he would be bouncing off the walls.

The doctors tech called me today after his treatment and she said that all seems fine with blood work/CBC and the treatment was administered successfully. She said the doctor also checked his body and she said he did not find anything abnormal. I then reiterated my concern that he has not been eating anything and his strength to merely hold him up was not enough. She told me that the dr has prescribed medicine which is an appetite stimulant which I hope will help out.

Has anyone ever been in this situation? Max did seem pretty chipper this morning but at the same time, I'm a little at a loss when it comes to his walking around and not eating....
 

sierra_k

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I have had experience with an appetite stimulant, and it was amazing! My cat ate like a little piggy while on the med, and gained back all the weight that he had lost while ill. It also helped with strength, because as you suspected, not eating makes them weak very quickly.
My thoughts and prayers are with you and your kitty.
 

the_food_lady

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Originally Posted by Maxamillion

Hey everyone just wanted to update yall on Max. Four weeks ago he was diagnosed with lymphoma and he just went through with his 4th week of treatment. Over the past week, he has not been eating alot at all. Whenever I present food in front of him, the most he will do is lick the juices off the wet food and then turn away. Also, sometimes he will gag a little when he smells the food.

Lately whenever he would attempt to walk, he would have ALOT of trouble controlling his hind legs. He will wobble to where he is going and then fall to the side. I have looked at his legs for any injuries, but the only problem I see is that they have become very weak due to not eating. Very sad to see him unable to run around, especially since before the cancer he would be bouncing off the walls.

The doctors tech called me today after his treatment and she said that all seems fine with blood work/CBC and the treatment was administered successfully. She said the doctor also checked his body and she said he did not find anything abnormal. I then reiterated my concern that he has not been eating anything and his strength to merely hold him up was not enough. She told me that the dr has prescribed medicine which is an appetite stimulant which I hope will help out.

Has anyone ever been in this situation? Max did seem pretty chipper this morning but at the same time, I'm a little at a loss when it comes to his walking around and not eating....
It's great to give him an appetite stimulant but if he's actually nauseated, it won't much help. I'd try to stimulant first, though....

I'd imagine his tummy is upset (acid build-up) due to not eating. You could ask the vet about giving him some Pepcid AC?

Maybe you'll need to assist-feed him a little, with a syringe, to start getting some nutrition into him (as long as he can keep it down) - if the appetite stimulant doesn't work or if he's still not eating that much?

what if you tried some chicken breast......boil or broil one, break it up and see if he'll eat it.......most cats love this and it's a good source of protein. Or Turkey breast. Or open a can of sardines and see if that is of any interest?

Has any other bloodwork been done? low potassium can cause hindleg and generalized weakness...and can be corrected with supplementation (Tumil K)

How many days has it been since kitty he's eaten decently?

You might want to pick some of this up, Nutri-Cal. It's in a tube, the same consistency as hairball stuff. Very tasty to cats, even ill ones. It's very high calorie, gives kitties energy and can often stimulate them to want to eat. You give according to their weight, directions on the tube. Some cats will lick it right off your finger, some won't.......you can try dabbing a little on top of front paw so cat licks it off..........or put dabs of it into the inside of their cheek. Can order it online or at store like PetsMart:

http://www.petsmart.com/product/inde...ductId=2752978
 
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maxamillion

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Great to hear Sierra! I spoke w/ the tech half hour ago and he said he will call the medicine in today for a liquid/topical form and it will be ready hopefully by tomorrow afternoon. I wish I could get him the medicine today, but the only form they have of the medicine at the moment is pill form and that's a wrestling match to administer him pills, with me losing 99% of the time.

Besides the weakness and lack of eating, they say he is fine. He doesn't have to go into the clinic next week and in 2 weeks he goes back for another treatment as well as ultrasound.
 

alleygirl

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You might ask your vet about the pepcid ac and syringe feeding. Its what I did with Riley when he stopped eating and it worked wonderful to settle his stomach and get him to start eating again.
 

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My cat has been receiving chemotherapy and also has reduced appetite. However, his oncologist sent him home with anti-nausea pills, which works well.
 
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maxamillion

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He does love to eat chicken breast, but he likes to eat it raw (would that be a bad idea in his condition?). I like the sound of the sardines as it seems that he is all tuna'd out (even though he does only lick the juices off). I also like the idea of the tube of food.

In regards to how long he has not been eating well, I would have to say almost a week. He stayed with my parents all last week and my mother told me he would come to the kitchen and keep meowing until she gave him tuna and would then eat a little bit of it.

Hopefully the tips you gave me will help. Either that or the appetite stimulant!
 

mews2much

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Meeko had the appetite stimulant when she was very sick last Jan but it did not help.
Hers was a shot.
I hope what your cat gets will help him.
 
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maxamillion

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When you speak of pepcid ac, are you speaking of the pepsid we take for upset stomachs?
 

the_food_lady

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Originally Posted by Maxamillion

When you speak of pepcid ac, are you speaking of the pepsid we take for upset stomachs?
Yes, that's the one..........Famotidine is the generic name. It has to be Pepcid AC forumula (not "complete"). Ask your vet about this, it's very commonly given to kitties if they have upset tummies (usually about 1/4 of a 10mg tablet but you should discuss dosage with your Vet, just to be on the safe side)

If I were you, I'd ask about Pepcid AC. That might be all you need, an appetite stimulant might not even be required.

As for raw chicken, I'm not sure about that one.......I know people feed raw diets......maybe start a new thread asking if it's okay/safe to feed raw chicken?

My cats go nuts for Sardines.

As for appetite stimulant, there's 2 that are used: Cypropheptadine and Mirtazapine (this one is newer). Works great for a lot of cats, sometimes you have to tweak the dose....sometimes you get away with giving less for it to work. With Taco, he once had to take the Cypro......and I found giving it to him about 2-3 hours before mealtime would be most effective........then he'd be starving!.........where for some, giving it causes kitty to be very hungry an hour later, really depends on the cat.

are there even any cat treats your kitty is especially fond of? sometimes just the start of them getting "something" into their stomach is the key to getting them to eat.
 

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I have also used the Cypro stimulant for my cats, they have GI issues at times. It works great, sometimes it takes a couple of hours and others they want food in about 15 mins. It is an antihistamine so it may make them a little sleepy till they get used to it. I give as little as I can to get the job done, usually just 1/4 tablet once a day but it depends on your cat. The Pepcid alone might be enough or both together. IMO it is better than syringe feeding if it works because it is less stressful to everyone and gets them back in the habit of eating.
 
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maxamillion

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Alright so I picked my boy up from the vet this evening and requested my wife to get me sardines and turkey as well as the nutri-gel. He smelled the sardines, did a small gag reflex, and then started to lick some of it and then walked away. I then dabbed some of the gel stuff on my finger and he turned his head away. Basically had to rub it on his mouth area so that he could get some type of nutrition into his body.

Tomorrow morning gonna pick up the appetite stimulator and pray that it makes him eat like the old Max....
 
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maxamillion

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So it seems like the appetite stimulator is working! Yesterday when my wife and I came home he just looked up at us and started meowing. As soon as my wife sat down next to him he started purring. I went ahead and opened a bag of deli turkey and as I ate it, he started flipping out. So I decided to put some near him and he devoured it and looked for more. I fed him a little more and did some last night as well.

I did attempt to feed him fancy feast this morning, but I think the smell is too strong for him as he did his gag motion again. After that, I dangled some turkey in front of him again and he ate that without hesitation.

So it does look positive that he is eating now, but I can not feed him turkey ALL the time since it does not provide the complete spectrum of cat nutrition. My question would now be this: Does anyone know of a wet cat food that doesn't have TOO strong of a smell?

Thanks!!
 

maxiecat03

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I'm glad to hear that Max is eating something! From my own nose's perspective.....I find that when I open cans of Wellness wet food, there isn't a strong odor. But I don't know what the cats smell.

Be a little careful of feeding Max the deli meat...it is so full of salt, preservatives and colour...bad things for a cat...but some food is better than none. I wonder if you bury a tiny piece of deli meat into a some canned food....do you think he'll eat the canned food in trying to get to the deli meat.

Good luck and I hope that Max is eating like a cat really soon!
 

the_food_lady

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Likely the chicken or turkey flavors of canned food are less strong smelling than, say, the seafood/fish/cod/sole, etc Fancy Feast makes a Turkey & Giblet pate, it's got green in the label (a dark moss green to be exact LOL).

If I were you, I'd go to the pet food store and buy a small can of a few different varieties. I know my cats go nuts for Nutro Max canned food, in the little orange cans.....there's a few chunky varieties with a bit of gravy to them....I usually take a fork and mash the chunks down (some cats aren't crazy about chunks)......they devour it. It will be a little trial and error.

Did kitty ever eat any type of dry food? At least if he'd eat some of that, he's be getting more nutrition than just the deli turkey...........and dry food is less smelly.

Those whiskas Pouches are quite tasty to cats.

I'd just try a few different varieties until you find one he likes.
 
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maxamillion

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Yeah I might go pick up some variety for him and do some trial and error. He was actually raised on Science Diet dry food and it does seem that he nibbles at that here and there, but not the way he used to.

I have noticed however that when he has been eating, he will grind his teeth a little near the end of the food portion. Baffles me a good amount and I hope he doesn't keep grinding down till his teeth start wearing out.
 
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