Help! Cat hasn't been eating for one week!

[marjohn]

Hi everyone,

I have a four year old half Himalayan and half Persian male cat. He is neutered and is up to date on all his shot. About a week ago he stopped eating and drinking... I took him to the vet and the doctor said the best thing to do was a blood test. The vet just got back to me this morning with HALF of the results...she said the blood test was sent to another lab but because it is a long weekend where I live, that lab would not get back to her until Tuesday or Wednesday. So far she said what she sees is not good and that is lacking red blood cells and that his hemoglobin levels are very low. I am really worried and looking for any type of feedback or advise. I tried to force him to eat but he refuses and I need to get him to eat ASAP.

Thanks in advance,
Mj

 

[Willowy]

Have you tried EVERYTHING? All his favorites---tuna, cooked chicken, etc.? If so, and he still won't eat anything, you do NEED to assist feed him. You can look up videos of how to do it on Youtube. You have to be careful he doesn't get any into his lungs. You can use chicken or turkey baby food (read the ingredients and make sure it doesn't have anything but meat in it. . .Beechnut is a good brand. Especially avoid onion or garlic), or you can puree cooked chicken in a food processor or blender, or you can get some Hills Prescription a/d from the vet (it's made especially for assist feeding). He absolutely needs to get some food into him or his liver will shut down. It's probably not doing too good already . Although if he wasn't fat to begin with he might do better. Hope he feels better soon!

 

[ldg]

I'm sorry for the worries and the potentially poor prognosis. But right now, even to help him through what might be coming, he needs nourishment - and for SO many reasons.

First and foremost, I'm surprised the vet did not tell you HOW important food is to a cat. People can go a week without eating. Cats cannot. Their bodies do not work the same way people's do, and to prevent their liver from having problems, food MUST be moving through their system. 48 hours is about the longest they can go without problems. He needs to be eating at least half of his daily need to prevent the worst from happening, and the worst is that his liver stops working.

Here is a thread with a lot of information that will help you until you can get back with your vet.

But right now, FOOD is the medicine he needs, and he needs it NOW. It doesn't matter the cause of not eating. Here is the thread: It has instruction for how to assist feed your cat. this will take you to the specific post that has the information you need. http://www.thecatsite.com/t/262408/...tite-after-going-on-amytryptaline-for-anxiety

As White Shadow says to the person posting in that thread, you must take action now. :heart2:

One thing not mentioned in the post is that small, frequently feedings are better. The last thing you need is putting too much food into him at once. If you can use your finger to swipe food into the corner of his mouth that he'll swallow, great. (Canned food watered down a bit, or chick baby food with nothing but chicken & chicken broth in it. In the U.S., Gerber's fits the bill, but if you can't find any, Gerber's will do. Do this frequently. If he normally eats a can of food a day, try to get a quarter can in there the first day; a half a can the second day, etc. This is often easier done with a syringe - they may have appropriate ones at a pharmacy. You can talk to the pharmacist about a syringe appropriate for forcing a baby to eat. Again, any pate style canned food mixed with water into a slurry will do; so will the chicken baby food. He may need a feeding tube, and this is NOT a big deal. Takes about 10 - 15 minutes at the vet. It bypasses his mouth, and makes it stress free for both of you to get food into his stomach. This link is in White Shadow's post, but it's worth reiterating: http://www.catinfo.org/?link=feedingtubes

Many vibes for you and your boy.

 

[marjohn]

First of all, thank you SO much for your replies, you don't know how much it means to me!

Willowy- Yes, at that point I had tried everything...his favorite food, a different type of food, I even tried to give him a bunch of cat treats but none of that seemed to work!! I did not have access to baby food so I took your advice on the assist feeding and I gave him some puree cooked chicken from a blender.

LDG- I completely understand that food is the medicine he needs right now, I  took your advice and gave him a small portion of the puree cooked chicken. I will work my way up with time and I will give him multiple proportions throughout the day.

I have also noticed that he frequently licks cement...whether its a floor or a wall, he is constantly doing it..any ideas on what this may be?

 

[ldg]

Yes. The "lacking red blood cells" and hemoglobin means he is anemic. Do you have the hematocrit? That is a measure of red blood cells by volume. It is very typical for anemic cats to display signs of anemia by eating litter or licking cement.

 

[raintyger]

Marjohn,

The others have given you wonderful advice on assist feeding.

I'm wondering, though, why your vet didn't you to get some food into him? You didn't detail out your whole vet visit, so I suppose there's room for misunderstanding here, but if she did not, I would seriously be looking at other vet options right now. A vet should know that cats need to eat everyday and that hepatic lipidosis can set in within 48 hours of no food. Had any of the vets I've gone to learned that my kitty hadn't eaten in a week, they'd probably be administering assist feeding right then and there, in the animal hospital.

 

[blueyedgirl5946]

What did the vet recommend to you for taking care of this cat.

 

[hotrodmom]

In response to LDG saying a cat can go only 48 hrs without food before it causes problems.  Cats have a survival mode they go into in which they dont poop, pee, eat or drink when they are trapped or hurt or scared so it puzzles me how they cannot go 48 hours without food.  My friends cat was "missing" for over a month.  She was out combing the neighborhood looking for the cat and come to find out she was trapped somewhere in the basement my friend had no clue where, as it was an old house with compartments.  The cat never made a sound.  They went in the basement regularly too.  One day it jumped out at her all skinny and malnourished and happy to see her.  I guess what Im saying is...of course you want to feed your cat but dont worry yourself sick if you cant get it to eat for a few days.
 

 

[carolina]

In response to LDG saying a cat can go only 48 hrs without food before it causes problems.  Cats have a survival mode they go into in which they dont poop, pee, eat or drink when they are trapped or hurt or scared so it puzzles me how they cannot go 48 hours without food.  My friends cat was "missing" for over a month.  She was out combing the neighborhood looking for the cat and come to find out she was trapped somewhere in the basement my friend had no clue where, as it was an old house with compartments.  The cat never made a sound.  They went in the basement regularly too.  One day it jumped out at her all skinny and malnourished and happy to see her.  I guess what Im saying is...of course you want to feed your cat but dont worry yourself sick if you cant get it to eat for a few days.

 

Dangerous advice.... I am sorry to say.
A cat, specially if the cat is overweight at all, can get very sick very fast from not eating.
If that cat was trapped, chances are it was eating - something but was eating. Bugs, rats, or whatever - humans were not seeing the cat, but the cat was eating. And if it was not, it was an exception to the rule - it was a heck of a lucky cat.
There have been many cats we have seen here get plenty sick, and even die due to not enough attention to the importance of feeding when a cat is not eating.
Here is some information on why it is so dangerous:

The title of this video says it all:

Just Days till Death - What to Do Immediately If Your Kitty Stops Eating
[VIDEO][/VIDEO]

Unlike people and many other animals who can safely go without food for a period of time, cats cannot. When a cat stops eating or his normal daily caloric intake drops dramatically, it’s a very short matter of time before the potentially fatal disease known as hepatic lipidosis takes over his liver.
The cats most likely to develop hepatic lipidosis are middle-aged, overweight, and have recently lost a considerable amount of weight.
In fatty liver syndrome the cat’s body, starved of sufficient calories, starts sending fat cells to the liver to convert to energy. However, feline bodies aren’t designed to metabolize fat in that manner, so the buildup of fat cells compromises liver function – a potentially fatal complication.
Treating the condition usually means force-feeding, and a kitty with severe disease will need to be hospitalized.
Preventing the condition should be the goal of every cat owner, which means as soon as a cat’s appetite falters, it’s important to keep a very close watch on the situation and know when to make an immediate appointment with the veterinarian

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/12/13/feline-hepatic-lipidosis.aspx

 

[ldg]

... I guess what Im saying is...of course you want to feed your cat but dont worry yourself sick if you cant get it to eat for a few days.

Obviously I also agree this is dangerous advice. Yes, cats have been able to survive on very little for long lengths of time. That cannot be controlled if the cat is missing.

I didn't watch the video, so don't know if Dr. Becker mentioned this, but another aspect of cat metabolism is that they cannot downregulate protein metabolism. Hotrodmom says "Cats have a survival mode they go into in which they dont poop, pee, eat or drink when they are trapped or hurt or scared," but their bodies continue to process protein - and if not being supplied protein, they "eat" their own muscles. In people, our bodies can down-regulate everything, and we're designed to use our fat stores and then our muscles. But cats are not designed this way.

So while developing fatty liver (hepatic lipidosis) is not a GIVEN if not eating, why risk it? :dk: It can be insanely frustrating for cat owners. So yes, if your cat has not eaten for more than a day or two, sweat it, and get kitty eating. If it becomes FL, it is far more difficult to treat and is SO preventable.

 

[denice]

I have a cat who had hepatic lipodosis and it's certainly something you want to avoid.  He wasn't overweight so he wasn't in the high risk group but he still ended up with it.  It's a long recovery period and even with a feeding tube the cat may not survive.  It will probably also leave some permanent liver damage.

 

[goholistic]

I agree with everyone that the cat needs to eat and should be assist fed to avoid additional complications.

Sure, a cat can go over 48 hours without eating, but will begin to suffer organ damage/failure. It is up to us, as their primary caretakers and loving parents, to make sure this doesn't happen.

 

[mykitty52410]

yeah my cat  hasnt been eating for days but he drinks water but still doesnt  eat im really scared can someone please help me

 

[cocheezie]

Your cat needs to go the vet now. If the vet is closed, look up the closest emergency vet. Not eating for days can cause very serious, long-term problems as you've likely read about in this thread.

 

[stan]

Buy a syringe, (take off pinhead of course), push  mixed water&food directly to your cat's mouth. Do it very slowly. One time push a little, and wait for it swallow before another push.

I saved one of my cat by this. That time my cat didn't eat and drink for a week. I made 3-hours rice gruel(I'm chinese) by myself and use syringe to feed her.

After 24 hours, she can stand up and eat raw meat. ( She still didn't eat her favorite cat food, but she eat raw meat! )