Grissom is acting strangely.

I'm not sure if this is a behavioural problem or health related or care related, so I put it here... please move it if it is inappropriate!

Grissom has been losing weight lately. Not a large amount, but enough to notice. I'm not awfully concerned that he is too skinny, becuase so far, he isn't. In fact, he is now about what he should way, he was overweight a bit before. What concerns me is why. This started when we brought Fellini into the house, which is why I thought it might be behavioral. He doesn't have much of an interest in eating either. About a week ago, I started to feed them seperately and on a schedule, versus free feeding. This was partially to limit Jeter's eating, as he was getting a bit... well... tubby. And also to monitor how much Grissom eats. He hardly touches his food. They get fed twice a day, so you would think he was hungry... There have been no other problems either. He was at the vets right before New Years and got a kitty physical and everything checked out okay (stool sample and such). Is this just his way of telling me he doesn't like Fellini? How can I make him more comfortable and more willing to eat. Its not that he stopped eating, he just eats a lot less then the others and is twice their size.

The only other change I have noticed is his being bad, which I'm not sure is related or not. He does things he knows he's not allowed to do, in front of me. And he doesn't even care when I tell him no. THis is highly unusual for him. When I say, "no" he knows what it means. He has been countersurfing while I'm in the room! And just looks at me when I say 'no'!

Do you think these are both stemming from the introduction of Fellini? Grissom can be quite a pouter, so maybe this is one of his temper tantrums?

So long as he is eating, and his bathroom habits are normal, I would say it's just a passing thing.

He is probably a little stressed with the new cats, and is acting out because of that. Try to keep things as normal as possible. If he does something bad, punish him like you normally would, but do the same for the others too. If he does something good, reward him as usual. When he's doing something good, if you can spend some extra time with him. When he's bad, don't reward him with extra attention.

Try and see if you've changed anything else...sometimes even the smallest thing can trigger this.

Give him some time, but keep a watchful eye on him. If he stops eating, or if his bathroom habits change, if he becomes unnormally reclusive...then I would really start to worry. But from what you've said so far I think he'll come through this and be your old grissom in no time.

Please keep us posted,

Spotz

Any weight loss in a cat, especially if it's enough to notice, is a cause of concern. My cat weighed 20 pounds, lost three, and now has liver disease, among other problems.

Not eating, even for two days, can cause them to get hepatic lipidosis, or fatty liver disease. It sound like theremight be a problem with him, it might just be stress related, but the bad behavior could also be his way of trying to get your attenition to tell you something is wrong.

Almost all problems can be ruled out with a simple blood panel. 65$us. If he was your child, wouldn't you take him to the doctor if he wasn't eating?? If he didn't get a bpanel at his check up, I would take him back for one. After you see the vet, I would also suggest Feliway. It can be bought at your local pet store. There is a good 'consumer reports' thread going right now in the Behavior forum. But please take your baby to a vet to be sure he's ok.

Amber,

Seriously, I would go in and ask for a blood test. I know it's not a convenient expense right now after taking in a new one (doesn't that figure), but you need piece of mind. I had a older kitty do this after my two new ones came it. I needed to switch her to soft food in order for her to eat and luckily I've stabilized her weight for now. Could possibly be stress but their are so many other things it could be. Are they around Grissom's food bowl? Do you think he doesn't feel at ease to eat because he doesn't know when Fellini will come around the corner?

It sounds stress related to me. How long have you had Fellinni? You say it started just after he showed up? Grissom may be feeling like he has to compete for your attention now and may even be feeling a little depressed which shows up in the poor eating. If you can spend more time with him, either while you are getting ready for something, carry him from place to place with you, talking to him while you are dong things, playing with him, even just cuddling him or petting him in passing it may help. Try and find some special time just for him (heheh, Tristan and Lion both think this should be while I am using the bathroom:-) ).

I also just purchased the Feliway plug in for the first time, and am one of the symptoms they list for a stressed cat is 'poor appetite', so while it is expensive, it might be a worthwhile product to buy.

Good luck,

Kathryn
(who is trying to type this one-handed as Lion has claimed my left hand
for his after-nap cuddle)

How is Grissom doing now?