Cat weight loss - normal blood chemistry

Hello,

We have a 7 year old female spayed cat we rescued as a kitten. Breed unknown. Appears to be domestic medium hair. She has been a strictly indoor cat for the last 6 years. As a kitten she was tested for FELV and was negative. She has been completely healthy until the last couple of months. She has significant weight loss. I'm guessing here but I would say she probably weighed about 8 or 9 pounds. She now weighs 5lbs 4oz. She is a very skittish cat and hides when we have company. In the last 4 months the bedroom she likes to lay in has been closed off. Also we had our very elderly dog put to sleep.I mention these things as environmental changes. Hub tried to take her to the vet about a month ago and she totally freaked out, he could not get her in the carrier. This last week we were successful and got her in for full blood work. All normal except slight elevation in WBC. We haven't seen the actual report yet. We will get a copy of full report tomorrow. We also requested another FELV test. Waiting for those results. Her stools appear normal and she appears to be eating a fair amount. She seems depressed at times and activity is low. The vet said if FELV comes back neg, Some images will be needed. We were hoping this weight loss could be related to the environmental changes noted above. Hub just went to the ER to get her some special fooD designed for malabsorbtion. We are beside ourselves with worry. We are experienced pet owners and want the best for our girl. Money is not a problem. Any ideas of what the problem could be? THANK YOU!

Did the blood work include a thyroid level? Not all blood panels do. How about a fecal test? She'd have to have a pretty bad worm infestation to cause weight loss and you'd likely see worms if this were the case, but it's worth a shot. Other than that I'm at a loss. Abdominal ultrasound might be the next step. Sorry you're going through this!

CatLadyVetTech said:

Did the blood work include a thyroid level? Not all blood panels do. How about a fecal test? She'd have to have a pretty bad worm infestation to cause weight loss and you'd likely see worms if this were the case, but it's worth a shot. Other than that I'm at a loss. Abdominal ultrasound might be the next step. Sorry you're going through this!

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Thank you for the quick reply.  Yes we requested a thyroid panel as we suspected either thyroid or renal issues with this type of weight loss.  Thyroid appears normal.  She has also had a fecal done, came back negative.  This is just a mystery.  Could a tumor on her adrenal gland cause something like this?  Would that show up in blood chemistry in any way?  I would think not. 

I think you're right an abdominal ultrasound to see what's going on with her organs is in order.  I hope they can do it quickly. 

I'm going to say it's due to stress and grief over the loss of the dog.  Cats are creatures of habit and for her favorite room to be closed off is extremely stressful, especially if that's her "safe space".  She has probably picked up the stress you've been feeling over the situation as well.  I would try some calming agents such as Feliway, Rescue Remedy, or some of the products from Jackson Galaxy's Spirit Essences.  Also, be sure you're feeding her a high protein diet.

Thank you for  reply.  Do you really think this drastic weight loss could be stress and grief?  She is a very sensitive cat.  We just tried the Royal Canine - Recovery food and she does like it.  I'm sure hoping this is the cause.

Yes, especially if she's sensitive and her bloodwork and physical exam are normal.  Stress can manifest itself in many ways in kitties from skittish behavior, not eating well, and unkempt fur.  You could always try some of the calming agents for 2-4 weeks and see if you notice an improvement.  I run Feliway 24/7 and use Peacemaker and Safe Spaces for Cats from Jackson Galaxy as needed for my crew.

Thank you!  Hub got out the Feliway yesterday.  We used to have the diffusers, but haven't needed them in so long.  So right now we just just have the squirt bottles.  Hub has been squirting it in various areas.

We will of course have the abdominal ultrasound to make sure nothing else is going on.  I pray she will be OK.  All of our animals are like our babies.  We've gone through so much stress this year with our pets.  We just cannot take another loss.  Thank you!

Something else to do is to sit with her wherever she is and just gently talk to her.  Tell her you understand she's hurting and stressed and tell her everything will be okay.  I know it sounds weird, but gentle talking will help.  Also, leave a radio on playing classical music when you leave.  That will also help her out.