Cat not eating

But there is no change in her energy or personality. Pico is on a raw diet. As of last week (when I tried to introduce bone in meat) she has stopped eating. She will lick some of the wet food I put on as bribe (but not all of it).

Last week she had an eye ulcer and I noticed she had stopped eating before that. She still drinks water. Her eye is completely healed now, but she still will eat treats but not food...

Any advice?

Is is a dangerous thing for cats to stop eating. They can develop fatty liver disease. You need to take your cat to the dr. If you have a blender you could puree some food and feed your cat with a syringe or medicine dropper.
But if the cat is not eating there has to be a reason and the vet needs to check him over.

Well it's critical that she eats so if she's stopped eating raw, for whatever reason, you need to give her something else. If she's wanting to eat canned food, then feed it. It's critical for kittens to eat, and for cats in general if they go for more than a couple of days without eating it can seriously impact their liver (fatty liver disease).

She is eating the wet food, but not the regular amount. Maybe about a large tablespoon full.

Again, she's still being very normal energy wise... any tips on how to entice her to eat a little more or how to get back on the raw feeding track?

Originally Posted by Nolia

She is eating the wet food, but not the regular amount. Maybe about a large tablespoon full.

Again, she's still being very normal energy wise... any tips on how to entice her to eat a little more or how to get back on the raw feeding track?

Click to expand...

Nolia, get her whatever she will eat - this is the bottom line. A table spoon of food is not nearly enough... It is absolutely CRITICAL for her to eat - no matter what. As posters above said, she can develop fatty liver disease, and that can happen fast. And when that does happens, she can die. So, please, feed her whatever...
Fancy feast, friskies... get her to eat. Then you think about raw - now get her to eat. Whatever it takes, get her to eat. Do NOT get hung up on raw right now... NOT the time... It's been too long without her eating.
Warm up her food a bit... That helps. Mix it with a bit of clam juice... That can help too... Or just force feed her - yes, put it into her mouth. But she HAS to eat. You can also shred some freeze dried meat on top of the food to entice her to eat...
There are some members here who lost cats to this disease, and they will tell you to hurry up.
Please do so.... Do not leave it up to her...
Sorry if you think I am being dramatic here, but I have seen this picture happening here before, and it is something that is totally preventable...
Good luck...

She will eat some wet and treats. I just force fed her three syringe-fuls before she squirmed out and ran to hide. I'll feed her again more in the morning.

Are there any signs I should be watching for?

She still seems pretty normal to me energy wise. I'll double check the amount of poop tomorrow.

I know every says that they are financially tight and don't want to take them to the vet etc, unfortunately I'm on social assistance right now and I'm really afraid that I won't be able to afford whatever fancy tests they might have to run on her to find out what's going on. =/

I wish there were more holistic vets around with natural remedies and approaches here. Should I keep her separated from the other cat?

Originally Posted by Nolia

She will eat some wet and treats. I just force fed her three syringe-fuls before she squirmed out and ran to hide. I'll feed her again more in the morning.

Are there any signs I should be watching for?

She still seems pretty normal to me energy wise. I'll double check the amount of poop tomorrow.

I know every says that they are financially tight and don't want to take them to the vet etc, unfortunately I'm on social assistance right now and I'm really afraid that I won't be able to afford whatever fancy tests they might have to run on her to find out what's going on. =/

I wish there were more holistic vets around with natural remedies and approaches here. Should I keep her separated from the other cat?

Click to expand...

Hi Nolia, we have the same case. My cat is not eating too, he eats but only a few and don't seem to be weak. I'm going to send him to vet, thanks to Carolina.

Maude crossed the bridge due to liver failure because she stopped eating and we didn't notice in time(all 3 bowls were empty, then I realized I hadn't seen her at the bowls recently and neither had Paul. It only took at most a week.) Her liver had almost completely failed by the time we got her in. We were too late to save her. I have moved the bowls into the living room so now I can make sure Attitude and Nuts are eating. I feel guilty and I know Paul does too because we noticed too late.

She has to go to the vet. HAS TO, not needs to has to. I'm a single mother and my only income is child support but if one of mine is sick they go to the vet. If it requires a fancy test then make a choice then but she HAS TO go to the vet.

Maude was diagnosed by a plain old blood test.

Chances are she doesn't have anything contagious so I wouldn't separate her from your other cat.

Also, feed her whatever she will eat, even if it's crap food give it to her if she doesn't eat and soon her liver will fail and she will either die or have to be put down. The treatment for liver failure is a lot more expensive than a blood test. Paul couldn't afford to get Maude treated and her liver was so damaged she might have had at most weeks and if she was lucky months.

Taryn

Thanks for your input and stories guys.

I've syringe fed her this morning. I'm going to give her some dry food to see if she'll eat that on her own, if not I'll take her to the vet.

Mystery, please keep us posted, let me know what the vet says.

Taryn, did you know the approximate cost of the blood test? I have to make room in my budget for it.

I love Pico very much, wouldn't know what to do without her. I'm trying my best to exhaust all avenues before going to the vet. I'm going to ask a vet friend also for advice, but I personally have some hesitations about vets in general, but now is not really the time to voice them.

Update: I'm feeding her dry food now. She's eating most of it. It's the most I've seen her eat all week.

It's good that she's eating, but is this a case of pickiness?

Nolia, what wet food are you feeding her? Get the crapiest, smelliest, tastiest food - Fancy Feast, warm it up, and give it to her. Do not think quality right now... Think calories...
DO NOT hesitate about going to the vet either...

Here is a coupon for Banfield - free vet, at Petsmart

Here is a coupon for a free visit at VCA Animal hospital

Exams and meds are extra... Now please, take your cat to the vet...

Originally Posted by Nolia

Update: I'm feeding her dry food now. She's eating most of it. It's the most I've seen her eat all week.

It's good that she's eating, but is this a case of pickiness?

Click to expand...

My cat did the same thing to me - seemed perfectly healthy but refused to eat. I changed her food, and she immediately started eating again. I was shocked because she has always been such a chowhound, nothing could come between her and her food. Surely she wouldn't prefer to starve versus eating food that she was bored of? Well yes, the stubborn mule was just tired of the old food. I did take her to the vet too, before I changed the food, and they wanted to run all kinds of expensive tests. So first I checked this site and read about cats getting bored of their food and refusing to eat. I changed the food and voila, problem solved, no expensive tests needed, and this was many months ago!

Thanks Carolina. But I'm in Canada, I'm not sure if those offers apply.

MissMyra, thanks for you input. I'm going to feed her dry for the next day or so, then try dampening it and transition her back to wet to raw.

=_= Stubborn kitty. I checked her poop today. Her urine and poop were normal consistency, she did everything fine. Just that it was less poop.

When a cat stops eating a food she has been eating all along, I really don't think, in most cases, it is a case of boredom.

I think it's often a case of, the manufacturer has changed the formula slightly, or used a different (meaning cheaper) source for ingredients, or it's just a "bad batch". Cats are that sensitve, they know if the food has been changed, and if it's not to their liking, they will not eat it. Yes they will starve to death rather than eat it.

I know SOME cats will not eat the same thing every day, but that's something you usually find out early in your life with the cat.

To the OP, what kind of raw food are you feeding. Are you aware there is a recall on a particular brand of raw food?

Nature's Variety:

http://www.naturesvariety.com/news/32

PS I agree with the others, your cat needs veterinary attention. Please let us know how she'd doing. We care.

.

It appears that you are determined not to have your cat checked by the dr.
This should have been considered an emergency by you. Nevertheless, I hope your cat will be okay. All of us who have cats have financial issues to deal with also. None of them has kept any of my cats from getting the medical attention they need.

Nolia, I'm not trying to come down on you for it, honest, but really, when you take on the responsibility of cat ownership, you gotta be prepared to provide vet care to the cat when circumstances like this come up.

The thing is, if your cat stops eating for a day but you switch up the food and they start eating again, then there's probably nothing wrong. But when the cat stops eating for more than a day, and you find yourself having to offer many different choices, all of which are also not eaten, then you really need to go see the vet.

Cats are extremely good at hiding when they don't feel good. And especially in a multi cat household, you don't always notice if one of them isn't eating. But majority of the time, it's one HUGE sign that something is wrong and the cat needs to be seen by a vet.

I am personally very sensitive to this right now because my cat's first signs that something wasn't right was when he stopped eating. And then when I'd pet him and really noticed how bony he was getting. I took him to the vet and probably spent close to $500 between the bloodwork, urinalysis, special food, meds, xray and special food to try to help him. But I'm telling you right now I didn't think twice about it cause he was the most important thing in my entire life. And when I finally had to put him down, it damn near killed me. But at least I know I tried, I did the best I could for him, and I don't have to look back on it feeling bad for not getting him help right away.

If it were me, I'd rather incur some debt that can eventually be paid off than to have to feel that awful regret for not getting him in to the vet sooner just to help him.

The vet can prescribe appetite stimulant pills which work very well. Those worked really well for mine when he was still able to eat his own. I had to syringe feed him his last 2 weeks of life but if he could have still eaten on his own, I know the pills would have still worked. They're great and they work very well. You should go get those ASAP.

I'm truly not trying to be mean, I know the economy is bad and everyone I know is having money problems right now. But please don't put this off because your kitty needs you to help her cause no one else can do it for her. You gotta bite the bullet and do it. That's what credit cards are for, so you can pay it off later!

Originally Posted by Ruby35

The thing is, if your cat stops eating for a day but you switch up the food and they start eating again, then there's probably nothing wrong. But when the cat stops eating for more than a day, and you find yourself having to offer many different choices, all of which are also not eaten, then you really need to go see the vet.

Click to expand...

Well... her cat stopped eating last week, according to her original post. That is at least 5 days, considering today is Wednesday.

The point of my post was that any time a cat doesn't eat for more than a day, it's time for the vet. Since her kitty hasn't been eating for more than a day, it's time to go to the vet.

She's not eating as MUCH as she used to. She didn't stop cold turkey.
I fed her dry today and she gobbled it up.

@ Otto: I cycle the raw she was eating so it's a different meat every few days (with some wet drizzled on as bribe). We are still transitioning to a full raw bone-in diet.

@ blueyedgirl5946: My cat has BEEN to the vet the week before to have her ulcer looked at. He prescribed medication for it. But since then I noticed a drop in her appetite. If you have not seen my past post, I am on social assistance. I just spent whatever money I had last week for her eye ulcer medication and exam. So ya, going to the vet is my last resort.

@ Ruby35: Ruby, I understand what you are saying and believe me, it's something I say to a lot of people who say it's for financial reasons. But I want to ensure that I have tried all I can on my end before jumping straight to the vet. Contrary to what many believe, a vet is not a god. There are good doctors, bad ones and some ones in between. Like I said, this is not the place for me to talk about my opinions on vet practices, I do have a vet friend that I've sent an email to. If she gets back to normal on the dry food, it should be okay, thanks for sharing your experience (and letting me know what it cost you) so I can maybe start to prepare for it. That's what I was looking for, advice, and experiences.

Fed her this morning, and feeding her dry again now. Seems like she's eating a little more closer to normal now.

I tossed a few treats into the dry food and if she finishes this dish, it will be about 1 cup of food today.