Cat seems to be starving

Hi,
I have two male brother cats that are 18 1/2 years old. The one in question seems to be slowly starving to death. He is very hungry and thirsty but mostly pushes his food around or paws at his water. I have felt around his throat, inside his mouth for blockages, teeth problems, growths, etc., etc. but everything seems fine. He displays no pain and is alert but, of course, is getting very weak and weighs about 5 or six pounds. Is this typical of some very old cats? Thanks for any feedback.

No this isn't normal.  When was his last vet check?  He needs to be checked.  My first thought is kidney issues but there are other things that could be causing this.  It is true that as kitties get older they tend to loose some muscle and eat a bit less but not to this extreme.

Hasbro said:

 
Hi,
I have two male brother cats that are 18 1/2 years old. The one in question seems to be slowly starving to death. He is very hungry and thirsty but mostly pushes his food around or paws at his water. I have felt around his throat, inside his mouth for blockages, teeth problems, growths, etc., etc. but everything seems fine. He displays no pain and is alert but, of course, is getting very weak and weighs about 5 or six pounds. Is this typical of some very old cats? Thanks for any feedback.

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hi and welcome to TCS!

i'm so sorry to hear that your boy is having this problem.

how long has your boy been eating very little and losing weight? about how much weight has he lost, and in about what amount of time? i ask because there's the risk of hepatic lipidosis, fatty liver disease, when cats lose weight too quickly. fatty liver disease is extremely serious and must be treated immediately.

"excessive" thirst can indicate chronic kidney disease (ckd) or diabetes, and possibly other medical issues. cats aren't big water drinkers, so when we see them drinking quite a bit of water on a regular basis, this is a "red flag" and tells us we should seek the help of a veterinarian.

My little guy is going through hepatic lipidosis right now, which I am in large part treating at home. I learned that low potassium, which can be caused by FHL, can cause both loss of appetite and excessive thirst. Low potassium is extremely dangerous. I would get him to a vet asap. He may need both IV or sub Q fluids as well as an oral supplement to get him back to normal, but that needs to be monitored by a vet.