Cat not eating after getting new kitten

viroma

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So I'm brand new to the site and found on my google search to help with the problem. My 2yr old cat, Belle, is hardly eating after we got a new kitten about 6 days ago. My boyfriend and I have different schedules so we usually feed belle whenever we see it empty or she meows. Well yesterday he asked me the last time I fed her and I said I can't remember and he said he hadn't recently either. So I can't say exactly how long it's been. I gave her some wet food and she licked the gravy but not the food. When I would pick up food with a fork and bring it to her she would lick everything off the fork and anything that fell on the floor. I felt a bit better and thought maybe it was just the bowl, but this morning we saw that she vomitted. Yesterday she would eat treats today she won't and now will no longer even eat the gravy out of the bowl. But was able to do the same thing with hand feeding her. She will not touch her dry food. The kitten is separated with her own food however I did have to move where belles food originally was. Belle is quite picky with wet food and prefers beef but all we had at home was chicken. So we're planning on going to the store to get beef to see if she'll take to that better. We moved last year so we don't have a trusted vet so we've been researching vet hospitals near by. And suggestions would be helpful.
 
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viroma

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I also should mention when we first got her and when we moved last year she went a day or two without eating both times. I know stress does cause her to stop eating however again neither of us can remember the last time we fed her. So at the minimum it's already been two days. The vommitting is what is really scarying me as well as she won't even eat treats. She has been drinking out of her water bowl. This afternoon I also bought a feliway diffuser to see if that would help with the loss of appetite as well as getting used to the kitten (she is not too keen on her yet).
 

betsygee

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Do you have any plain cooked chicken or anything like that to see if she will eat something until you can go get the beef food she likes?  Or you could try adding a little bit of tuna or tuna water to her food.  Or try a little bit of plain scrambled eggs.  Cats can develop liver problems very quickly if they don't eat.  
 
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viroma

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We got her the beef food she likes and she did eat it. This morning it looked like maybe a third or so was left. I don't see any vomit which is great but I'm still wondering what's keeping her from her dry food. We had to feed her right out of the can because that's the only way she would eat it. We did set an app with a vet for early this afternoon so hopefully we'll get down to the issue. The staff member on the phone of the cat clinic mentioned that our area has had issues with some of the new kittens being adopted having parasites.
 

betsygee

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So glad to hear she ate something! And that she will get in to see the vet right away. Let us know how that goes.

Where did you get the kitten--has she been checked by a vet?

Hoping they're both okay. :)
 
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viroma

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So the vet was very interesting but she is guessing it is herpes. We just don't have the money to pay $400 for tests. So we're syringe feeding her AD and she was given a shot to stop the vommitting and any stomach inflammation. She had a temp at 103.1 but no other herpes symptoms. She is on Viralys L-Lysine twice a day as well as some probiotics. She is really hating the syringe feeding so it's getting difficult. The vet said if she doesn't improve by Monday she would consider giving a prescription of antibiotics, clavamox. We gave her another can of meat food last night to hopefully give her a chance to pick at something through the night. The vet thinks the herpes are from the kitten but she doesn't have any symptoms besides a sneeze every now and then. I guess we'll see how it works
 

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Hmm. I hate to question your vet's diagnosis, but honestly, with no other symptoms of herpes...well, I kinda do. Adding a new kitten to the family can be very stressful for existing cats, and since she went off her food when you moved, I would think simple stress would be more likely. Force feeding is also stressful. If she were my cat, and if she were eating anything at all on her own (beef canned food, treats, home cooked chicken) I wouldn't use a feeding syringe. It's EXTREMELY important that she keep eating though - research hepatic lipidosis or fatty liver disease and you'll see what I mean.

Maybe she did pick up some sort of respiratory infection from the new kitten, herpes or otherwise, which would explain the fever. But still, keeping her eating is the most important thing.
 
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viroma

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Well she was eating the night before the vets that canned food but before that would've been completely gone by the time we woke up. But she didn't eat anything more before the vet. We left out another thing of beef last night and she hardly touched it she really just likes to lick the gravy. She is really hating the syringe feeding and I do feel like it may be adding to her stress and ours. I just don't know what to do to keep her eating.
 
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viroma

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So belle is doing better, we stopped syringe feeding her except for when we need to give her medicine so just a small dose. She is eating her beef wet food still won't touch her dry food but has started eating treats again. But now she hardly drinking water I've been adding a bit to the wet food too make sure she doesn't get too dehydrated. However now her stool is very soft/loose. Is this because of the wet food? She is a long haired tortie and does not appreciate when we have to cut out harden pieces around her backside. And now with the lack of her drinking water makes me nervous.
 

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So belle is doing better, we stopped syringe feeding her except for when we need to give her medicine so just a small dose. She is eating her beef wet food still won't touch her dry food but has started eating treats again. But now she hardly drinking water I've been adding a bit to the wet food too make sure she doesn't get too dehydrated. However now her stool is very soft/loose. Is this because of the wet food? She is a long haired tortie and does not appreciate when we have to cut out harden pieces around her backside. And now with the lack of her drinking water makes me nervous.
To help her get more fluids you can get a can of tuna in water.  Strain out the water and mix some of the tuna juice with regular water.   You also can just giver her plain tuna juice. 

You also might want to look into bone broth.  Here is a great video about making it and why to feed it.  I have given to many sick kitties and now keep a jar of it in the freezer at all times. 

 

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As a note, it is absolutely terrifying to watch that cat casually walk over the stove like that. Our cats have never been allowed to do that for obvious reasons. Also, rinsing chicken is a good way to get campylobacter food poisoning and isn't advised. And why is chicken broth being called "bone broth"? Such a complicated method when all she really did was feed boiled chicken with the water it was boiled in added to it...
 
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viroma

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Thanks for the suggestions I'll try the tuna juice thing we have a couple cans in the cupboard. And I do agree cats walking over a stove is kind of terrifying :eek:
 
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viroma

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She did not like the tuna juice and water at all. She went to drink and then backed away. Ugh. :( I don't know what to do
 

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As a note, it is absolutely terrifying to watch that cat casually walk over the stove like that. Our cats have never been allowed to do that for obvious reasons. Also, rinsing chicken is a good way to get campylobacter food poisoning and isn't advised. And why is chicken broth being called "bone broth"? Such a complicated method when all she really did was feed boiled chicken with the water it was boiled in added to it...
When I first saw that video a year or so ago I cringed at the way she rinsed the chicken then turned off the faucet with her chickeny hands,then carried it dripping chicken juice across the floor, then put the lid on the pot with her chickeny hands, etc.
  But then I remembered that when I was growing up, we never had hand soap in our kitchen, and my mom used to make fried chicken and other chicken meals frequently, and I'm sure she never washed up (with soap)  in between touching the kitchen and probably doing the dishes at the end of the meal.  I think it made is more immune to all the bad stuff out there.  Whatever.

But the real thing I wanted to say is that Dr. Becker is truly making BONE broth here, not chicken broth.  If you watch the entire video, she cooks it for hour and hours, until the bones literally melt and the marrow comes out of them.  It's much thicker than chicken broth because it gets gelatinous. 
 

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She did not like the tuna juice and water at all. She went to drink and then backed away. Ugh.
I don't know what to do
My cats don't like the tuna water either.  Many cats who eat only wet food, and particular wet food with extra water added in, don't drink much, if any additional water.  Mine don't.  Mine only eat canned food to which I add about 1 tablespoon of water per meal, and I can't remember the last time I saw anyone at a water bowl.  I fill them up everyday, but it's just a waste of water as far as I can tell.

As to her not eating as much, have you tried heating up her food?  It's possible IF she has an upper respiratory infection of some sort (even herpes if it's effecting her nasal passages) that she can't really smell her food enough to be tempted by it.  Dry food probably doesn't have much smell, so this could be why she isn't eating it at all.  Warming the canned food helps bring out the odor, so that might help.  Also, did you try giving her some scrambed eggs as someone mentioned above?  You could even scramble them in a little butter for more flavor, and serve them warm.  I wouldn't overcook them, but do make sure the whites are done.  She might like them, just don't use salt and pepper on them
  You could even put a little parmesan cheese on them (we sometimes recommend people use that as a topper when cats won't eat...most cats love it...yes, the stuff in the green can!)
 
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viroma

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Well she is eating fine now but she will only eat beef wet food. Not dry, not chicken, not fish. She'll refuse anything that isn't beef. Our vet guessed she might have the herpes virus so we've been giving her the powder meds in her food. I have been adding water to her wet food when I started noticing her not drinking. But she makes this weird noise with her mouth like its dry. As well as the fact that her stool has been loose I wouldn't say full on diarrhea but close to it. So I want to make sure she is getting as much water as possible. But it's good to know that a diet of wet food will also keep her from needing to drink as much water kind of calms my nerves and I'm thinking the 180° diet change could also cause her bowel issues.
 
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suzannef

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I agree that the rapid changes in her diet are probably causing the soft stool. The important thing is that she's eating again! That's wonderful! Give her a little time and I bet she'll get tired of beef and want something else. Maybe she'll take to the dry food again, but the wet is better for her long term health anyway. How's your kitten doing?
 
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