My cat stopped eating...I thought he was going to die

My cat "Monkey" stopped eating earlier this week. Very little on Sunday and nothing on Monday. He seemed very ill, just laying on the bed like he was dying. I've had cats all my life and I've seen what the last days look like...thought it was over for him.

Thanks to al the reading I did on forums like this, Monkey is alive and well.

Tuesday morning I took him to the vet. He had a slight runny nose with a little bit of blood. They did blood tests, x-rays and gave him fluids. There was nothing un-remarkable in his blood tests. His x-rays showed an empty belly, which I already knew. One of his kidneys is smaller than the other but the vet didn't think this was the problem. She showed me his x-rays and thought something might be pushing on his stomach....maybe cancer she told me.

They gave him Anti-biotics and Mirtazapin to give him an appetite. She asked that I bring him back for an ultra-sound/sonogram and sent me home with him.

When I got him home he just went right back to his spot on the bed and lay there all day and night. Still not eating, drinking or using his litter box.

Frustrated and sad that I might lose my buddy, I took to the internet and did as much reading as I could about cats not eating. I read MANY articles about Fatty Liver disease, and was very worried that he was going to develop this dangerous condition. Thankfully, there were many posts from people in the same dire situation. Many spoke of syringe feeding to keep their cat alive. The vet never suggested this to me. So I took my cats health into my own hands, went back to the Vet's office and got a few syringes and got the highest calorie kitten food I could find. I could not find the Hills A/D that everyone spoke of...or the Eukanuba Maximum Calorie food. Kitten food is higher in calories than adult cat food. So it had to do...

I watered the food down, warmed it a bit ( just a little and then let it cool ) on the stove and also mixed in Nutrical. I read it tastes great to cats. He hated it. He is a big cat but not a biter, fortunately. I wrapped him in a towel and syringe fed him every 2 hours for Tues night until I got just short of a can of food in him. Wednesday I was able to get a can and a half in him by late evening, feeding him every 2 hours with the syringes. Each time I first tried to get him to eat on his own. Each time he declined. Thursday I got a can and a half in him this same way. He still looked like he would die...

Friday morning I gave him his first syringe feeding. RIGHT after we were done, he walked over to his dry food and ate !! It was like the heavens opened up for me !! And him, since the syringe feeding was about to end. I am writing this on Saturday evening. His once healthy appetite has returned and he has been eating on his own for 2 days now. I took him back to the Vet and saw a different doctor today. She said he looked fine and to just keep a close eye on him.

I REALLY want to thank all the people who post in here and on other forums. Without you I may not have taken the initiative to syringe feed my cat. Monkey may have become more ill or even passed. I am still nervous since we never really put a finger on why he stopped eating, other than he may have had a Flu or mild Calicivirus.

I hope by posting this I can help someone to help their own cat get healthy again.

That's wonderful news.  Good for you and good for Monkey!

So glad you were proactive and took to the internet to find help for you kitty.  Good job!!  Glad you found TCS and the information was able to help you.  One thing I've learned from this site is that you are not alone in living with your cats and there is knowledge out there from others who have been where you are or who are also walking the same road and are willing to share what's working for them.  Glad your kitty is back to normal health!