Cat doesn't eat

Hi everybody,

I'm new here, but i read a lot of articles already and now i have a question, too. For the last week my cat is refusing her food. I usually feed her to small cans of cat food per day. One in the morning and one in the evening. About a week ago she started to eat just half of it and let the rest get dry. I figured she might be not that hungry (my parent's cat does the same every now and then), so i started giving her just half a can and planned to add the rest over the day to it, so she would have fresh food and not the jucky dry stuff. Now however, she started to just lick of the jelly stuff, turn around and look at me like "is that all?" i've tried adding dry food, tried other brands of cat food with the same result.
Has anybody ever experienced the same? I mean she is healthy, has a shiny coat, plays like usual but keeps begging for food even when her bowl is full.

Anybody got an idea?

Thanks

Hilke

You need to visit the vet....

what brand were you feeding???

if it is one that has gravy and chunks mush the chunks to get the meat eaten

I've fed Friskies and Whiskas, and never had this happen before. i mean she never ate everything at once but eventually she would eat it and not beg for more. I've fed all different sorts there are, and naturally she like some more than others but this behavior is new to me

You need to get her to the vet ASAP to rule out any medical problems like a blockage or constipation or something. If everything checks out medically, then talk to your vet about what kind of food you can feed her that might entice her to eat.

In the meantime, have you tried heating her food just a touch to intensify the scent? If all else fails, you might get some chicken baby food-stage 2 with NO onions or garlic--heat some up just to get the chill off and see if she'll eat that.

Stephanie

Do you only feed canned food?
If you're free feeding kibble and she's eating that it may be that she is bored with the canned foods you're giving her. Try looking for a smaller sized pet store in your area that carries higher quality pet foods than grocery stores.

When I first got my cat Shamie he was just over 1 yrs. old and he would eat his canned food (Solid Gold chicken, turkey, whitefish & liver) with no problem. Then all of the sudden about 4 months later he wouldn't touch it at all. I tried many different types of canned food and wasted alot of cans and money. He has been eating the Solid Gold blended tuna can and on occasion Nutro Natural Choice Oceanfish & shrimp indoor cat pouches (he won't touch other flavors of Nutro) for the last 5 months now with no problems (knock on wood). I feed canned twice a day and free feed Solid Gold kibble and give treats 3-4 times a day.
His favorite treats are Kitty Kissers (you can give as a treat or sprinkled on food to enhance its flavor), C.E.T. Chews (dental health), Kitty Kaviar, Natural Purrz soft chewy treats with vitamins and minerals, and WildSide Salmon Freeze-Dried treats (wild Alaskan salmon for dogs & cats. It's high in protein and low in ash) My dogs love these too!
You'd think my cats were over weight but Shamie weighs 12 lbs. he's really long, lean and very muscular. Fez the 12 week old kitten weighed 3.5 lbs last week at the vet.

If your cat isn't eating much at all I would take her in to the vet to rule out any health problems.

Keep us posted on your kitty and I hope it's just her being bored with her canned food.

Susie

Did you change the food brand or flavor at the time this behavior started? Skittles started eating less when I tried to introduce to "fishy" flavors to him. Now that I went back to his favorites, he's eating normally again.

Please take your cat to the vet. I have a dog who stopped eating. It turned out he probably has IBD and needs ongoing medical care to manage it. I know cats & dogs are different, but whatever the animal, refusal to eat can be an indication of a serious medical problem.

Well at the time that this behavior started I did try to introduce 9Lives canned food to her, but now I tried the usual Friskies again and still the same problem. It really doesn't seem like a medical problem because other than the begging for food she is still her old self. She plays, cuddles, has her "crazy 5 minutes" and sleeps in the same rhythm. Her coat is shiny, her eyes are clear and she uses her litter box as usual.
But just to be on the safe side, I will take her to the vet tomorrow.

Alright, Sweety and I just got back from the vet. They ran a bloodtest and didn't find anything unusual. Her weight is normal, her temperature was a little on the high side, but they said that's normal with the stress of going to the vet and all.
So, I guess I will just keep trying different kinds of food and keep an eye out for her.

Maybe Missy just deceided that she hasn't reached her bikini figure yet and has put herself on a little diet.

Jayhawk:

If you only feed canned food... it's very dangerous to let that sit out for long periods of time, bacteria can start to grow on it with in minutes.

What ever your cat doesn't eat as soon as she walks away, pick it up and save it or throw it away.
Offer her food a few times a day, so that you don't waste any food only feed a teaspoon at a time, well mashed up. You can also add a tiny bit of warm water blended in to bring out the smell of the food more.

If your cat has not been eating much or at all for a week now I would be very very concerned. Cats are good at hiding medical issues, just like most animals.

If she continues to not eat at all, bring her back to the vet, you will need to get nutrients into her one way or another.

I'd have a vet look at her. She may have some kind of tooth or throat problem that bothers her when she eats.

People please, I said I just came back from the vet and they checked her head to toe and didn't find anything. The said she looks very healthy and she is active.
And she does eat, she just refuses her canned food or just licks at it. And I don't let it sitting out for a long time. When there is no wet food for her I have a tray of dry food for her, which she will eat eventually, she just doesn't seem too thrilled with it.
I am not starving my cat and I just wanted to hear if anybody else ever experienced something like that.

Originally Posted by jayhawk

People please, I said I just came back from the vet and they checked her head to toe and didn't find anything. The said she looks very healthy and she is active.
And she does eat, she just refuses her canned food or just licks at it. And I don't let it sitting out for a long time. When there is no wet food for her I have a tray of dry food for her, which she will eat eventually, she just doesn't seem too thrilled with it.
I am not starving my cat and I just wanted to hear if anybody else ever experienced something like that.

Click to expand...

Try not to get offended, just remember that everyone is just trying to help you here. They have the kitty's best interest in mind, and noone thinks your starving your kitty
I'm glad you brought her to the vet, maybe she is simply just sick of that food. Maybe try switching to another brand?

I'm not offended and I do appreciate that everybody has my cat's well being in mind. It just appears to me that some people are a little quick to post without reading what was written before. That's all.
I will definately take care of the problem and if I realize that my cat starts to lose serious weight I will be right back at my vet's.

Maybe try some tuna juice added to food

Try Fancy Feast. If she refuses that, then there is something seriously wrong with her! My cat is addicted to FF and I think they must put some habit forming drug in it. She refused to eat anything else.

Each cat has their own likes and dislikes, just like us. So FF may not be the answer (I know it isn't for my cat).

I do know one cat that is so particular, she'll only eat canned tuna and she's even particular about that! She cares what brand, quality, etc. She's been known to also change her mind, so I 'm curious if that might be the issue here as well.

Good luck on finding something she likes. I'm still in the process of doing that, and I've had my cat for almost 2 months now. Thankfully I'm starting to find some variety he likes.