Hi everyone! I'm sorry is this post is a bit long, but I'm trying to be as comprehensive as possible to give you a clear picture of the situation).
Let me start by saying that I have taken Samson to the vet twice so far and they are completely baffled. Aside from a slight bladder infection they have found nothing wrong with him and they ran a whole battery of tests, incl. a total body function test. For the bladder infection Dasuquin and Baytril have been prescribed, which I give him once a day, per instructions.
Upon the second visit, the 2nd vet, (there are 2 vets at the clinic I go to) just as baffled as the first, prescribed Mirtazapine to stimulate his appetite. Doesn't seem to be helping much so far. I have to give him 1/4 of a pill once every 3 days. He's had 2 doses so far.
It has been 2 weeks since he has stopped eating. During this time, my husband and I have been assist feeding him. It has not been very easy as Samson does not accept it and we can only feed him the equivalent of a tablespoon or so before he goes completely nuts and we have to let him go. Twice on separate occasions he has eaten on his own after we assisted fed him, but the next day he does not go back to eating on his own again.
I have tried giving him the food he loves, Natural Balance Venison and Natural Balance Duck dry kibbles. He won't touch it. I have tried giving him different brands and flavors hoping to find something new that might excite him.
He is thankfully drinking water
He is also still alert and playful. We have tried playing with him hoping this will stimulate his hunger and sometimes it has helped.
During the last visit in March, I had the vet take an X-Ray of his chest because he was always wheezing and getting out of breath easily. They did find what they believe to be a cyst, but told me that it was nothing to be concerned about, except to observe if there was any changes in him etc. Funny thing is that in the past two months his breathing has improved and he doesn't wheeze or "whistle" when he is sleeping. The vet even commented that his heart was strong and his lungs clear.
The vet recommends that if after the week-end Samson is not eating with the appetite stimulant that we should get another X-Ray to see if there is any change in the cyst that might be causing pressure against another organ or something. So I guess we will have to go with that.
Prior to when he stopped eating, I had been feeding him Natural Balance Venison. Later I then gave him some Organix's. Both my cats really liked the Organix's. Unfortunately PetSmart ran out of the Organix so I went back to Natural Balance Venison and both were happy, especially Samson.
However when the Organix's came back in stock I went back and picked some up. Well now Samson no longer wanted it
. Of course I immediatey went back to the Natural Balance, but now Samson didn't want that either! That's when he started to stop eating.
I am concerned that he has developed food aversion, that is my gut feeling, especially since he is still alert playful, etc. I made sure to tell all of this to my vet, but he doesn't think it's food aversion. He says that only happens to older cats with kidney failure. he did mention that Samson was slightly dehydrated, but did not give him a shot or anything to I guess rehydrate him.
In desperation today, I opened a can of tuna and gave Samson the juice to see if he would drink it. I have done this in the past, because the juice itself is good for them occasionally for their fur, but he has never wanted it. Well, today he drank the juice! I was so happy!! I went ahead and added pieces of tuna to the juice and he ate those too! I also put pieces of tuna on his wet food in the hope that he will eat the wet that way.
Any advice or suggestions?? If it was your cat would you get the 2nd X-Ray done? Should I forget the X-Ray and get a another opinion?
Is there any wet food you know of that might appeal to him in this type of situation?
Thank you for taking the time to read this, I sure do appreciate it!
Let me start by saying that I have taken Samson to the vet twice so far and they are completely baffled. Aside from a slight bladder infection they have found nothing wrong with him and they ran a whole battery of tests, incl. a total body function test. For the bladder infection Dasuquin and Baytril have been prescribed, which I give him once a day, per instructions.
Upon the second visit, the 2nd vet, (there are 2 vets at the clinic I go to) just as baffled as the first, prescribed Mirtazapine to stimulate his appetite. Doesn't seem to be helping much so far. I have to give him 1/4 of a pill once every 3 days. He's had 2 doses so far.
It has been 2 weeks since he has stopped eating. During this time, my husband and I have been assist feeding him. It has not been very easy as Samson does not accept it and we can only feed him the equivalent of a tablespoon or so before he goes completely nuts and we have to let him go. Twice on separate occasions he has eaten on his own after we assisted fed him, but the next day he does not go back to eating on his own again.
I have tried giving him the food he loves, Natural Balance Venison and Natural Balance Duck dry kibbles. He won't touch it. I have tried giving him different brands and flavors hoping to find something new that might excite him.
He is thankfully drinking water
During the last visit in March, I had the vet take an X-Ray of his chest because he was always wheezing and getting out of breath easily. They did find what they believe to be a cyst, but told me that it was nothing to be concerned about, except to observe if there was any changes in him etc. Funny thing is that in the past two months his breathing has improved and he doesn't wheeze or "whistle" when he is sleeping. The vet even commented that his heart was strong and his lungs clear.
The vet recommends that if after the week-end Samson is not eating with the appetite stimulant that we should get another X-Ray to see if there is any change in the cyst that might be causing pressure against another organ or something. So I guess we will have to go with that.
Prior to when he stopped eating, I had been feeding him Natural Balance Venison. Later I then gave him some Organix's. Both my cats really liked the Organix's. Unfortunately PetSmart ran out of the Organix so I went back to Natural Balance Venison and both were happy, especially Samson.
However when the Organix's came back in stock I went back and picked some up. Well now Samson no longer wanted it
I am concerned that he has developed food aversion, that is my gut feeling, especially since he is still alert playful, etc. I made sure to tell all of this to my vet, but he doesn't think it's food aversion. He says that only happens to older cats with kidney failure. he did mention that Samson was slightly dehydrated, but did not give him a shot or anything to I guess rehydrate him.
In desperation today, I opened a can of tuna and gave Samson the juice to see if he would drink it. I have done this in the past, because the juice itself is good for them occasionally for their fur, but he has never wanted it. Well, today he drank the juice! I was so happy!! I went ahead and added pieces of tuna to the juice and he ate those too! I also put pieces of tuna on his wet food in the hope that he will eat the wet that way.
Any advice or suggestions?? If it was your cat would you get the 2nd X-Ray done? Should I forget the X-Ray and get a another opinion?
Is there any wet food you know of that might appeal to him in this type of situation?
Thank you for taking the time to read this, I sure do appreciate it!