NEED HELP WITH CAT'S (SNOOPY) APPETITE

We have an approximately 3 year old female that we call Snoopy.  She is a feral cat that we were able to catch, spayed and have been taking care of.  We have been feeding Snoopy and some other cats canned cat food.  For the past couple of months Snoopy’s appetite has seemed to be getting less.  She also has been getting thinner.  But she can still jump up 2 ½ to 3 feet with no problem.  She is still very friendly and alert.  We would try to feed her extra away from the other cats by getting a can of chicken or a can of tuna (we try to keep the sodium levels down).  The extra feedings worked earlier but they do not seem to be working as well now.  We have also checked her poop for worms and have not seen any evidence.  Her poop is very soft and sometimes runny.  It seems like she is more interested in eating the juice or gravy rather than the actual meat. 

We would appreciate it if anyone has any opinions on how we can improve her appetite or if there is something else we should be looking at.  

We have had cats get thin before but pulling them aside and feeding them cat food, chicken or tuna has helped them improve.   After about a week or two they appear to be heavier and normal.  

Any opinions and advice will be very appreciated.   We   have been able to help other cats in the past but we are just not sure what is going on with Snoopy.  

Thank you,

cook65

since snoopy is about 3 years old, she's probably too young to have developed chronic kidney disease. though it's possible she could have developed acute kidney (renal) failure. feline diabetes might be a possibility too. or it could be something more simple, like she has a painful tooth/teeth that need dealing with. that snoopy is preferring to lick the juice/gravy instead of eating the meat of her canned food also points to a possible dental issue. i'm sure there are other possibilities too.

i would suggest a vet visit for snoopy. your vet is going to be the one who's able to diagnose what exactly is going on and know how to treat it effectively. and the treatment will be more effective and less costly if started sooner rather than waiting to later.

If since Snoopy is feral, and you are not able to get her into the vet, at the very least try to get the freshest stool sample you can get and bring that into the vet for them to check for parasites and protozoa. You will not see anything but tape worms and round worms occasionally in the stool of cats. There are microscopic protozoa that can be the cause of diarrhea as well as many other things. You can try the gerbers blue and white label chicken baby food with only ingredients being the meat water citric acid and corn starch. Snoopy may be dehydrated by now and that can start a downward spiral that will go really bad really fast so if you can get her into the vet please do and do it asap. Good luck

@cook65 -- how is snoopy doing?

Thanks, for asking, mickNsnicks2mom.  Snoopy is doing okay.  I was able to get a stool sample and had it tested at our vet yesterday morning.  It tested negative.  So we know worms or a parasite is not the problem.  We have given her some of the Gerber chicken with gravy baby food and she ate about 3/4 of the jar the first time I fed her some.  She really like that.  Today she ate some more baby food and a some browned mashed up hamburger soaked in some water.  For the past three days or so, it seems like she has been eating 3 to 3 1/2 square inch of food off of a plate which we don't think it is sufficient for a daily intake but she does eat a little with the other cats.  Do for the past three of four days she is eating a little more than she has in the past. 

We have been able to look in her mouth and have noticed on the right side of her mouth on the lower gum she has a substantial black area.  Unfortunately we haven't been able to get a very close look at it.  Our next plan of action is to try to get a much closer look at that.  There appears to be something going on there.  The other side of her mouth looks normal.  We have not been able to tell if the black area is due to a tooth problem, gum problem or if this is the natural color of her gum. She is a wild cat.  We can pick her up but not hold her for more than 30 or so seconds.  We can pet her sometimes at will but usually on her terms.  We are being a little reserved in trying to open her mouth and get a good look because it is possible she could bite.  We are going to investigate the further but we will need to be a little reserved and cautious.  We don't want to make her made at us and make it so we can't pick her up. 

We want to take this opportunity to thank people for their advise.  Some of the things we hadn't thought about and they have been very helpful. 

Thank you,

cook65 & stano

@cook65 -- snoopy eating a little more for the past 3 or 4 days is good. could you try feeding her smaller meals more often? sometimes cats will eat more each day if served many smaller meals, instead of just a few bigger meals. also, chunky/shredded types of canned cat food can be pureed in a food processor or blender, and you can add a little water to it if you think snoopy would like it more "juicy".

that's great that you've been able to take a peek inside snoopy's mouth. it sounds like you're taking the right approach with snoopy, being reserved and cautious.

please let us know how things continue to go with snoopy, or i can try checking back with you coming up.

@cook65 -- how is snoopy doing?