Kitten losing weight for no reason?

I had to take Ginger to the vet on Friday for an emergency visit - she's gone off wet food entirely, is eating only a little of her dry although she is drinking normally, but she's lost more than a half pound in the last two weeks, and I don't think it's normal for an 11 month old to lose weight like that!

She's lost all her "meat" and is all fur & bones now - scratching behind her ears feels weird when all I'm scratching is skull! $150 later they had taken her temp (normal) felt all her organs (felt normal,) wormed her (just in case, although she was wormed as a kitten and has been an indoor cat with no external exposure) and took a bunch of blood for tests. Not sure what kind of tests exactly, but they'll let me know this week what the results are if they find anything.

I'm worried! Have any of you ever experienced a kitten losing weight like that for no apparent reason other than being a finicky eater???

There is definitely something wrong. Hopefully it will be identified in the blood work. It could by thyroid or liver or just about anything. I hope they find it soon .

The way she's gone off food doesn't sounds like just something of a finnicky eater. I would suggest trying to tempt her again with different wet foods...and the always irresistable (for my cats) meat baby food (no onions). When my little foster girl wasn't eating from the virus she had, she couldn't resist the baby food and i still mix it in with her wet to keep her interested.

Good luck, i hope the vets figure out what's wrong!

Originally Posted by Renny

The way she's gone off food doesn't sounds like just something of a finnicky eater. I would suggest trying to tempt her again with different wet foods...and the always irresistable (for my cats) meat baby food (no onions). When my little foster girl wasn't eating from the virus she had, she couldn't resist the baby food and i still mix it in with her wet to keep her interested.

Good luck, i hope the vets figure out what's wrong!

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She IS eating her dry food, just a lesser quantity per day, and I've spent the last month and WAY too much money buying dozens and dozens of different types of pouch and canned foods for her to try - I'm at the point where I'm no longer interested in throwing my money away on food she merely sniffs and walks away from. Waste makes me crazy.

For her to turn her nose up at every single type of wet, including the fancy feast junk food that was her most recent fave, well, I decided if dry is what she wants, dry she'll get. I will try to reintroduce wet again soon but not daily - again, she IS eating the dry, just not as much as she was before.

And I'm not a kitten banquet manager putting out 17 different flavors daily for her to choose what she wants so I can throw the rest away - forgetaboutit!

I understand she is transitioning into a cat and needs less calories a day, but as she HAS been eating there is no reason for her to have lost so much weight, and that's why I'm so worried.

Did you recently change her dry food? What brand is she eating? Do you still give her the kitten variety of dry food or have you transitioned her to adult maintenance formula? What has the temperature been like where you are? Has it recently turned warm and muggy? Do you also notice she is less active? What about her litter activities? Is the litter more frequently wet? Are you finding her in there more frequently?

At 11 months old, there can be, in some cats, a gangly-looking stage where they do lose a little weight as they lengthen. But to lose more than 8 ounces in two weeks does sound a little suspect. You were good to notice these changes now - in the hopes that if it is something serious, you caught it early enough to treat it successfully.

This helps more when the cat is suffering from URIs but it may make the wet food more appealing. Try warming the food in the microwave 15-20 seconds so it gets smelly. Stir it good and make sure it isn't too hot. Also, try adding a little water to make it soupy. Lucy will turn her nose up to her wet food unless it is this way.

Originally Posted by gayef

Did you recently change her dry food? What brand is she eating? Do you still give her the kitten variety of dry food or have you transitioned her to adult maintenance formula? What has the temperature been like where you are? Has it recently turned warm and muggy? Do you also notice she is less active? What about her litter activities? Is the litter more frequently wet? Are you finding her in there more frequently?

At 11 months old, there can be, in some cats, a gangly-looking stage where they do lose a little weight as they lengthen. But to lose more than 8 ounces in two weeks does sound a little suspect. You were good to notice these changes now - in the hopes that if it is something serious, you caught it early enough to treat it successfully.

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She is still eating the same mix of dry. I started adding adult to the kitten mix more than two months ago, so it has been more gradual and no issues - she eats her dry with no prob;lems, again, just a smaller appetite.

Our temps have been mainly in the 60s - not long since the heat turned off and not hot enough to make any difference in how she feels.

She is not less active - she runs and plays and has zoomies and chirps and rolls on her back for belly rubs - nothing in her personality has changed.

Her litter activity is mostly normal - a bit less volume, but less food = less volume, right? She is drinking & peeing normally, and her poops are a bit smaller than normal, and a bit dryer as well - mentioned to the vet, but there appears to be no constipation issue. I'm scooping the same on a daily basis, if anything, she pees just a little bit less.

She does appear to be close to half maine coon, so a gangly stage would make sense if she is preparing for a new growth spurt, but I had to tighten her collar as it got too loose, and I'm feeling all her bones through her fur - it just doesn't feel right, so with all of that said, I took her to the vet. I'm worried there is something underlying and maybe a test will get to the bottom of it.

Otherwise I don't know what to think! Other than her being finicky with the wet and eating less of the dry, she appears completely normal!

Originally Posted by katachtig

This helps more when the cat is suffering from URIs but it may make the wet food more appealing. Try warming the food in the microwave 15-20 seconds so it gets smelly. Stir it good and make sure it isn't too hot. Also, try adding a little water to make it soupy. Lucy will turn her nose up to her wet food unless it is this way.

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Actually, Ginger has always preferred her wet when it is leftover and cold from the fridge - she's one of those weird kitties. I personally can't stomach any seafood whatsoever, and the smell makes me physically ill, so using my microwave to heat up her stinky fish just can't happen in my house unless I never want to eat in my kitchen again, LOL!

Well, I got the results back from the vet, and she says there is absolutely nothing wrong with my furbaby, and she has zero explanation for her weight loss!

I'm relieved that Ginger is ok and that there is nothing underlying, but am a bit perplexed at the loss of half a pound in such a short period of time.

The ONLY explanation possible at this point is that perhaps she is elongating pending a growth spurt, which is possible, as she seems to have a lot of maine coon genes in her.

So perhaps I was overreacting, but I'd rather be safe than sorry, and now I know my baby is in fabulous health - I guess she's just watching her figure...