12 year old cat soo skinny

marieack

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I have two cats Tom and Jerry well Jerry is a chubby cat and Tom has always been a normal size cat. Well starting about July 2010 we noticed Tom was losing weight. His personality has stayed the same the other difference is, is that he CONSTANTLY begs for food. He wants whatever you are eating. I finally took him to the vet in January 2011 because he wasn't gaining any weight. We paid 300 bucks and had them do all kinds of blood tests and they said everything was normal. They said he has a slight bit of blood in his urine but nothing to worry about. He is so bony and his ribs stick out and he never lays on his side. I don't know what to do. I don't wanna go back and pay another 300 bucks but I don't want him to die either. His brother jerry is fine, he is actually gaining all the weight Thomas lost. When we took him to the vet Tom weighed 7 lbs. Has this happend to anyone else's cats?
 

gardenandcats

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There has to be a health reason as to why he is losing weight like this. I would get a 2nd opinion at another vets. Its all you can do if your vet could not find the problem then try another vet...
 

aqua315

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This sounds very similar to what happened to a cat I had when I was little. He had always been overweight his entire life and when he got older he suddenly started losing weight and wanted to eat everything in sight. We found out it was hyperthyroid disease and unfortunately there was nothing more we could do but make him comfortable until we decided it was his time. One thing that happened with him though is that because food was going straight through him, he was constantly using the litter box. I got so bad in the end that he couldn't even make it to the litter box in time and messed all over the house. If Tom has been using the litter box often too then I would suggest having the vet check his thyroid. My cat was too far along to help him once he was diagnosed but if they catch it maybe your cat will have a better chance. Sorry I don't have better news for you. I wish you all the best.
 

jcat

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A second opinion is definitely called for. It might be hyperthyroidism, which is treatable with daily medication or radioactive iodine therapy. You could ask for copies of the test results to take to another vet, so she can see what has already been looked at.
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by jcat

A second opinion is definitely called for. It might be hyperthyroidism, which is treatable with daily medication or radioactive iodine therapy. You could ask for copies of the test results to take to another vet, so she can see what has already been looked at.
Many times Thyroid is a separate test that a vet may not run unless asked by you
 

my4llma

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You should bring him to a different vet. It could be something like Hyper Thyroid. Or it could some kind of worm/parasite. That happened to
Lynxx
after he killed a mouse. He began eating everything in sight, but not gaining any weight, constantly hungry, constantly begging for food. We took him to the vet. They said he had some worm/parasite, and gave him pills.
 

otto

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Blood in the urine is nothing to worry about? Blood in the urine is something to worry about.

Find another vet, fast.
 

violet

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Oh my God, YES!!! Find another vet fast!!!!!!!

Blood in the urine is a LOT to worry about. Worst possibility: bladder cancer.

Not life threatening: UTI, inflammation without bacterial infection, crystals.

Potentially life threatening: bladder stones.
 

sophielew

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When our Sophie lost weight after herfirst upper respiratory infection the vet put her on Hill's A/D to build her up along with a vitamin supplement called "nutrical"! She put a pund on in about 1 1/2 weeks!
 

the_food_lady

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I agree with others. You should SPECIFICALLY confirm with your Vet that proper testing for Hyperthyroidism was done. Regular senior bloodwork doesn't automatically include it. The tests are: T4, Free T4 and TSH. A basic T4 is not enough....Free T4 is a lot more sensitive, particularly in older cats. Hyperthyroidism is very common in older cats and a very common cause of weight loss. Left untreated it can be life-threatening. It can be treated with medication or radioactive iodine treatment. Please don't assume that these tests were done................confirm that they were and if they weren't get them done.
 

feralvr

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UMMMM, blood in the urine and the vet said don't worry about it????!!!! Get a copy of all of the tests you had done at that vet. Take them to another vet to look over.
Need to get some help for you kitty
 
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