4 month old kitten struggling to eat after switch in kibble

My 4 month old kitten has had a bad health history since I found him at 3 weeks, but I'll address more on this after I state his current problem. About a week or so ago, I had switched my kittens food from blue kitten kibble to a different brand(wrllness core) too suddenly, and he had eaten it for about 2 days, but then he just stopped eating it, and when I switched it back to his regular brand altogether, he wouldn't eat regularly anymore. This was unusual for him because he would usually eat anything you put in front of him, although he's always been thin, and it made me panic because after this whole ordeal, he throws up clear fluids (stomach acid?) and his stool is so runny, it looks like chocolate milk. I took him to the vet the other day, and they said it's either something stuck in his digestive tract, or it's an overproduction of bacteria in that area. Surprised they couldn't give me a definite answer, which is complete bs, I just took home the medication they gave me, and since then, I've noticed when he rarely tries to munch on his kibble, he'll put it in his mouth and try to swallow it whole, but will drop several pieces out of his mouth. He'll only do this for a little bit while stopping to look at me, and then he'll quit trying, although he will continue to drink water. It makes me cry because I know he's telling me something is wrong. At first, I thought his behavior was because I switched his kibble, and it may partially be the cause(I looked up the reviews for wellness core kibble and they seem to have bad internal and external reactions to cats), but now I think there was a larger concern underlying it all. Now I'll go into my kittens previous history, if it helps:

I found him as at 3weeks on the street, with his sister, who died the next day of a severe roundworm infection. He turned out to have roundworms, as well, and he's since been treated for the infection. He's never had problems eating- an adventurous eater, which I love, and he's always been friendly, and social, I believe because I regularly took him to the pet store to see the other animals, and always invited friends over to play with him. He's an indoor cat, although I do take him out for walks on his leash when the weather is nice. The only time I saw problems in health was when he was reinfected with roundworms from my mothers adult cat. He had diahrrea really bad, and so I took him to the vet to get his first shot series, as well as dewormer and revolution for Kitties. When I had put the revolution on his back, he started drinking his water really strangely; tilting his head back and making this clicking noise. I thought he was choking, but he got through it - although my mom says she's caught him on several occasions doing it again. I had even mentioned it to the vet, and they said they wouldn't be able to do anything unless they saw a video of it happening. Never been able to catch him on camera, so this will never happen. I looked up dysphagia in cats, which means difficulty swallowing, I think, and these passed couple of days, he sounds like he's been having symptoms of cricopharyngeal dysphagia, but I'm not sure. I'm going to return to the vet, but being a college student on a part time job, I don't have a an endless supply of cash, and this makes me furious because I want to do everything I can for my baby.

Does anyone have any similar instances that their cat went through? Is this normal behavior when making drastic food changes in a usually adventurous eater? I need advice, or any kind of help I can get because I'm getting desperate, and if he doesn't make it, I don't think I'll be able to live with myself anymore. He is my happiness.

hi and welcome to TCS!

i don't have experience with young kittens, but there are two experts in this area that i'll see if i can attract the attention of.

@catwoman707, @StefanZ -- may i ask for your expertise for the OP (original poster)?

the only things i might be able to add is that yes, the switch of kibble sounds like it was done too quickly. this would result in gastro upset (ie, diarrhea, vomiting, gas), which you have seen some of.  and as for the revolution  flea treatment -- was this purchased from your vet? or from a retail store? depending on where flea treatments are bought, there can be a risk of it being a "knock off" -- faked packaging made to look like the real name brand, and the product may not be the real thing either. but it could be that your boy has had a bad reaction to the revolution. i don't use that brand for my cats, but in the info sheet for the flea medicine i use there are warnings for possible side effects or bad reactions and what to watch for.

Im not sure what it is - I will reread your post later on,  and think on it.   Thoughts and ideas do often come after they had time to mature.

Although, I strongly suspect this is no behavior problem, nor even food switch problem, but a health problem - alike you yourself suspect.   So I will ask a mod to move this your thread to the Health Forum.    Its true, hasty food switches MAY give problems in some cats, but he seems to got worse problems than this.  I suspect the swich and the beginning of the problems is mostly a coincidence.

Good and proper you had consulted your vet.  If there is nearby another good vet, it may even be a good idea to get an second opinion??

During the time, if you have access to goat milk, try with this.  Cant hurt, may help, especially as he seems also have problems with chewing.

If you cant get goat milk, go for other liquid  noursihing fluids - some good kmr   (for example,  KMR stage one), or even full fat unsweetened plain youghurt.

He needs nourishments, and he needs liquids, to give his body strengh to fight off the problems...

Good luck!    @sarahdinh9  

The revolution was prescription with his first set of shots. He's already had his second series since then , and all his medication is provided by the vet

Thank you both for helping me.

You mentioned that the vet said he possibly had an obstruction. This is what I would be concerned about.

We're X-rays done at the visit? The kitten could have a partial obstruction and this could cause diarrhea and loss of appetite.

Regardless, kitten needs to be rechecked by a vet, today if at all possible.

I will be bringing him back in today. I will update this with any new news i recieve

I do agree that it is coincidence that the food switch, although a bit fast and has/had likely caused some upset to his system, but whether it triggered his issues now or just seems like it due to the timing, I believe there is def. an underlying problem.

Just as an fyi regarding roundworm, when the infestation is bad enough to kill his sister, it will take several times of deworming, sometimes more than 4 consecutive treatments.

Another fyi but more my personal view is, revolution is quite strong. I once used it for a cat who had been treated for earmites and the vet had me get a 3 month pack, after the first time I applied it the fur was gone in that spot, it just struck me as more potent than I wanted to go so I use advantage 11 and have for many years. It just didn't seem right.

While it's impossible for us here to tell just what is going on, for now to keep him hydrated and getting enough food for strength I suggest stopping the dry food and going to an all baby food diet for a few days, chicken or turkey only.

As much as he will eat, warm it up, diluted with a bit of water, he will love it.

This will help his system settle down, as diarrhea and or vomiting will wreak havoc on him, kittens get dehydrated rediculously easy so you want to make certain he is well hydrated, checking his neck for spring back a couple times a day. 

Somehow I doubt it is an obstruction. The lack of interest in the food can be because he isn't feeling well, he might be associating it with the food.

Also KMR is an excellent supplement for him now too, but will likely cause mild diarrhea as well so if you do give him this don't be surprised. I think I would risk giving it to him but just dilute it more than normal.

sarahdinh9 said:

I will be bringing him back in today. I will update this with any new news i recieve

Click to expand...

How is it going?

*vibes!*

Sorry for the late update, but I ended up taking kitty to the vet for an xray this time, and surprisingly, the whole hussle and bussle turned out to be a large gas bubble trapped in his intestine. So basically he was experiencing horrible cramps in that area, and the reason why it wasn't moving along fast enough was because he wasn't taking in any food to push it out quicker. Poor baby boy, it caused me quite a scare, but I'm very thankful that that's all it was! I believe it has passed by now because he's been very playful and back to his normal spirits again. Thank you all for your concern and helpful suggestions.