Need urgent help! Cat won't eat his food

winniek

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My cat has to take some powder herbal med which tastes quite bitter. We made a mistake to mix the Med with his food for 2 days and then when he refused to take the tempered food, we force fed the med with a syringe. Now he refuses to eat his wet food even when there was no med added. If I spoon feed him, he will reluctantly finish maybe half of the portion. But I will have to chase after him for at least 20 minutes every meal.
I know he has appetite because he has no problem chewing up the chunky tuna filet treat.
What can I do now? He has an enlarged liver and the vet said he should not stop eating.
 
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tabbytom

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@winniek
I think it's not a good idea chasing your cat to make him eat. First, he might associate chasing him means eating bad tasting food. Second he might think that you are playing with him.
Its either he has to be force fed with the medicine with a syringe or medicine in his food. If in his food and he refuses to eat, try leaving it there and wait for him to return to eat when he's a little more hungry rather than chasing him.
Or mix more water to the wet food to make the medicine more diluted or like what @Miagi's_Mommy suggests, change the flavor of his wet food.
 

Ladewyn

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First I would try changing the flavour, texture, or brand of food. If he usually gets chicken, give him beef instead. If he usually gets chunky, try pate. If he usually gets one brand, try another. He may have made the association with that specific food. 

The next thing is I'd avoid giving him this medication in his food. Either always give it by syringe, or see the vet and ask if there's another form you can give it. If it's available as a pill that you could put into a pill pocket treat, or if there's another medication that will do the same job. What is the med treating? Chances are, if it's herbal, there's likely a non-herbal equivalent for whatever it is you're trying to treat that he may not be as likely to reject.
 
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winniek

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Update: we made some really thick fish broth yesterday and mixed that with his I/D canned and he finished 60% of the portion without me feeding him. Definitely a good start.
As for the meds, we will try using capsules for the powder. Then wrap that with pill pocket. Will try again tonight. Wish me luck!
 

red top rescue

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Here is a quote from another post I made yesterday which should work for you too.

".......

As for the gelatin capsules, I do pulverize the pill into powder, stuff if all into the smallest capsule I have (yes, an antibiotic capsule, about the size of an amoxicillin 250 mg. capsule, which I save because I mix the amoxi with goat milk and they dont mind it).  then I wipe off any dust that would have the bitter taste.  Then I give the cat a little cream of goat milk to prime the pump, so to speak, so his mouth and through will be wet and slippery and he will not be expecting a bad taste.  Then I dip one end of the capsule into something very slippery like mayonnaise. open the cat's mouth and place the capsule mayo end first in the back of his throad and give a little push to get started and INSTANTLY chase with a whole bunch more of the goat's milk or cream.  He swallows the whole thing, licks his chops, and there is no chance of capsule getting stuck since it is a slippery object going down a very wet throat, and then followed bu a bunch of liquid to make sure it gets all the way down.

My cats are cooperative because I NEVER give them anything that tastes bad in that manner, so they trust me.  And I ALWAYS taste anything that I will be putting in their mouths and asking them to swallow.  If it's yukky, we find another way.  Example -- the antibiotic Clavamox tastes terriblle in the liquid form you get for cats from the vet.  However, the antibiotic Clavamox you get from the vet in tablet form has very little taste at all when crushed.  So I get the tablets, crush them (I have a mortar & pestle but if you don't, you can crush between two spoons) and mix that into something yummy - baby food & a touch of bacon fat works for some, and for those not interested in eating, I mix with the goat's milk and squirt that in too.  My cats usually are eager for anything coming at them in a syringe because it's usually goat's milk (I buy the condensed kind, in cans, you can usally find it in the baking aisle.)  Sometimes I just give them some goats milk in a syringe with no meds in it just so they keep feeling comfy with it."
 
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