Can anyone help me? What's wrong with my cat

I've had my cat since she was a kitten for about a good 4 years now. No health problems to speak of ever. She's always been pretty quiet and keeps her distance from strangers, but has always been affectionate to me. About 1 1/2 years ago I moved out of my old house and moved in with my aunt who owns 2 cats and a dog. One of the cats has never gotten along with my cat since and they always used to fight, not crazy fights but they force eachother into corners. Regardless here's what's going on. I had her fixed almost a year ago, haven't had any problems up until recently, and I don't think it has anything to do with her being fixed, she was given a checkup and bloodtest before that and had no problems. Just recently she's started to act very strange. I feel bad saying this but I've been neglecting her these past few months as far as attention. I work full time and am attending college, so when I get home I'm beat, but that never really phased her as she was always waiting in my room for me or would always come when I called her. Now she just lays around all day, I can't monitor her to see if she's eating or not, she hasn't been throwing up as far as I know, her breath smells really bad (has never smelled before whatsoever), it seems like her skin in her ears has turned yellow, I'm assuming this might be jaundice? I can take pictures if needed. As soon as my aunt gets home I'm going to discuss taking my cat to the vet immediately, I'm just trying to see if anyone has had the same problems. She doesn't seem to respond to being brushed like she used to, that was her absolute favorite, now she won't even pur, won't lay with me, just sits up staring off into space, she meows and responds to me still, but she just seems completely lethargic. She became a healthy weight if a bit chunky after being spayed (as most cats do) but now she's lost alot of weight acutely over the past few weeks, now I can feel her spine and hips when I pet her. She used to be really firm when I would pet her you know? Like she would resist my hand and feel strong, now she sorta slinks under it when I pet her, I know something is definitely wrong...

Please get her to a vet ASAP!

She could have very serious problems, such as liver failure. If she has yellowed skin and is acting lethargic I would consider this an emergency.

Bad breath and losing weight are also serious symptoms. I hope she will be ok. Please let us know what you find out at the vet.

Originally Posted by AlleyGirl

Please get her to a vet ASAP!

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seconded.

please take her right away. there's something wrong.

Your cat is showing some very serious symptoms. Please go right away to the vet. Don't wait. The only sign my cat, Speedboat, was showing was decreased appetite. We were really shocked when we took him to the doctor and his bloodwork was all fouled up. He lasted 13 days. Please for the sake of your cat, GO.

Yes, please, please, please, hurry to the vet. I lost my Julius to liver/kidney failure and it is agonizing to watch them suffer. I'm not going to tell you what my vet said, every case must be different. My heart goes out to you.

This sounds scary, I hope your kitty is okay
I agree with everyone, she needs to see a vet, but I also hope when you take her in it isn't anything too serious and I'm sending lots of vibes...

Please do not wait one more day... Hurry her to the vet!

I pray you have taken your cat to the Vet by now. It definitely sounds like she has major serious issues with her liver, eg: fatty liver disease (from losing too much weight too quickly), or liver failure, etc. Her only hope of surviving is PROMPT Vet assessment, bloodwork and proper treatment. To forego a trip to the Vet will surely result in her suffering even further than she has, and death, sorry to say. I once had a cat who develop fatty liver disease (aka Hepatic Lipidosis) due to sudden weight loss caused by a move to a very hot climate in which the home I rented didn't unfortunately have air conditioning and he wasn't eating as much, had been a big cat for years, lost too much weight too quickly. One day I noticed his face looked thinner, I weighed him and nearly died when I realized he'd lost 5 lbs in 2 months. I rushed him to the Vet fearing Fatty Liver Disease and sure enough, it was. He had yellowed inner ears and the whites of his eyes, too. Lethargic. His prognosis was grim but he pulled through and went on to live another 10 wonderful year (cancer ended up taking him).

Please let us know what you ended up doing and how your cat is doing.

hope she's at the vet now, please come back and update us when you can, we care .

Thank you for all of the replies guys it really means alot to me. I have an appointment first thing Monday morning with a family vet who's taken care of all of our animals who's very good. The only reason I've waited so long was because the guy wasn't open over the weekend, and none of the other vets in my area are any good. As far as my cat goes I think she's about the same. I think I over-dramatized alot of things on her symptoms, but I know she's not well for sure. I went and bought her some Fancy Feasts and she just mowed one down like she hasn't eaten in days. I'm starting to think there's some kind of territorial dispute going on between her and this other cat we have, she might not be letting her eat, they all have their own seperate bowl in one room, I've seen standoffs before so I think that's whats up but I don't know because I'm not around enough to monitor that, but if that is the case I'll just move my cat to a daily feeding schedule instead of leaving food out. Atleast she's eating, I've kept an eye on her and have given her as much attention as possible. Luckily my aunt will help me foot the bill at the vet Monday, so I'll get whatever is needed done and paid for. I just really want to see a vet I know and trust, that's the only reason I've waited so long. I hope I'm not offending anyone by my untimely responses to the situation, but this is the best I can do in my current position which isn't a good one.

Okay so she just chowed down 1 1/2 cans of Fancy Feast (the kind in the plastic container, hopefully as good as it can get at the grocery store, it's like 1.25 per, pure ingredients), I hope it stays down. I haven't seen her vomit nor have I been told she's been vomiting. We'll see what the vet has to say. Has anyone had a cat just stop eating it's food because it no longer likes it? My cat has always eaten what we fed her for the past year, so either: she's sick and it's affecting her appetite to start with, 2) she no longer likes her food, 3) the other cat is stopping her from eating somehow. Again, we'll see what the vet has to say about this, if it's wet food from now on then that's fine with me, we've kept all of our animals on dry diets but appearantly that might be the cause her, we will see.

#1- She needs a vet NOW, it doesn't matter of the others are not any good this is an emergency, it can't wait.

#2- Fancy Feats appetizers(which is what you have and are honestly a royally huge waste of money) are for supplemental feeding to go along with regular cat food, you need to get her real food. They don't contain what(or anything) she needs to be healthy. It doesn't matter what she eats as far as proper cat food, if she eats it give it to her. It doesn't matter if it's 25 cent vending machine cat food as long as it has what she needs vitamin and mineral wise and she eats it. When mine get canned food it is usually Friskies or some other canned crap, but it's the only kind they really like. I feed mine Natural Balance dry so I do care about what they eat but canned is different and besides your cat needs to eat, it doesn't matter what.

Maude died of fatty liver disease because we didn't notice she wasn't eating(all the bowls were empty so we assumed everyone was eating) until it was too late.

I'd say it territory and not anything else. Move her food bowl away from the other cat's, they need their own space to eat. It took a while before I put all the cats' bowls in the same area(of course in my case I had them separate to keep Maude who was leukemia negative from eating out of their bowls, but once I saw she was I gave up and put them all together) but they still need their own eating space since obviously the other cat won't let her eat.

Like I said she needs a vet NOW, this can't wait.

Taryn

Kyle, I'm not trying to scare you at all, but I hope you know that this is a dire situation. If you kitty has a yellow tinge to her skin and/or mucous membranes (gums and the lining around the eye), this is SERIOUS. This can indicate liver abnormalities. Please get your kitty to the vet now. The sooner you catch liver problems in kitties, the better their chances. I am a veterinaray technician, and I've seen liver disease in cats many times, and they can go downhill very quickly without medical help.

Again, I'm not trying to scare you, but you need to get your kitty to the vet A.S.A.P.

I hope all goes well.

Okie

I called the vet and had her in yesterday on everyone's recommendations, I told the vet that we've been going there for some time and that I really need him and he was happy to meet me there. He gave her an IV to hydrate her, and some kind of shot, don't remember what. Got a few cans of some wet food, she's been eating 3 times a day. Also got some amoxyclin or whatever it's called that I've been giving her twice a day. She seems completely different now, I think I caught these problems in time, but only time will tell. Did some bloodwork, results came back negative for Lukemia, so that's a big relief, they're doing another test tonight for something else, gonna have results tomorrow. Like I said, she's responding much better, purs when I've been brushing her and is just alot more active, not a complete turnaround but a huge change, I think she'll be okay, definitely vigilant now, got everyone in the house to keep an eye on her, someone is almost always home, so she's being fed on time and has been eating. I'll keep everyone updated for the next few weeks.

So, what did the vet say? What does he think?

Originally Posted by Carolina

So, what did the vet say? What does he think?

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I asked a bunch of questions, he won't give me a definitive answer until the tests are done, the tinging of the skin is liver problems yes, but until he pinpoints it he won't tell me, but he did mention fatty liver, prolly what it is. She's eating like a champ right now, not throwing up either.

Originally Posted by KyleV

but he did mention fatty liver, prolly what it is. She's eating like a champ right now, not throwing up either.

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That's what I thought... It is crucial for her to keep eating... eat eat eat eat... eat eat eat.... That is the biggest medicine for Fatty liver disease, and for a while... You guys will have to be very vigilant now... :vi bes:

New test results today. Appearantly the liver isn't that bad, they said there might be some kind of blockage going on between the liver and small intestine causing bile buildup. She has been eating, and I've moved all facilities to an isolated room so she can do whatever she has to do in peace and just recover. Still giving her wet food, I actually add a little water to it so it's almost like a paste so she's hydrating a bit better. Went and got 2 more meds today at the animal hospital, S-Adenosylmethionine and Silybin A+B, small blue tablet, that's for the treatment of the blockage, and another antibiotic, so right now she's on 3 meds twice daily. Scheduling an appointment 10-12 days from now for more bloodwork to see if anything has improved. Basically like the doctor and everyone else has said, as long as she's eating which she is, otherwise hospitalization is going to be the next step but I think we're steering very clear of that.

I'm glad to hear she's eating, I hope the tests results are better next time

Originally Posted by KyleV

New test results today. Appearantly the liver isn't that bad, they said there might be some kind of blockage going on between the liver and small intestine causing bile buildup. She has been eating, and I've moved all facilities to an isolated room so she can do whatever she has to do in peace and just recover. Still giving her wet food, I actually add a little water to it so it's almost like a paste so she's hydrating a bit better. Went and got 2 more meds today at the animal hospital, S-Adenosylmethionine and Silybin A+B, small blue tablet, that's for the treatment of the blockage, and another antibiotic, so right now she's on 3 meds twice daily. Scheduling an appointment 10-12 days from now for more bloodwork to see if anything has improved. Basically like the doctor and everyone else has said, as long as she's eating which she is, otherwise hospitalization is going to be the next step but I think we're steering very clear of that.

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If that's Denamarin, it's an excellent thing for her to be on. My Tolly has liver damage from taking seizure medicine, and his numbers have gone way back down on the Denosyl (which is sam-e only, you have sam-e and milk thistle)

It's wonderful that your whole household is taking an interest in keeping her fed and happy. Please keep us updated on her (what's her name? Sorry if you already told us)