Knowledgeable cat-person? Veterinarian? Please help
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Another thing you can try is chicken baby food (stage 2). If you can't get her to eat it on her own (and most will) it is easily syringeable for force feeding if necessary. And I had a cat that went into liver failure due to not eating. Not a fun 2 months of force feeding her a mix of vet prescribed food whenever I could. As soon as she drops any weight now I give wet food to get her to eat. (She has FIV and her "brother" likes to push her away from her food). Also, low sodium chicken broth works well for some cats (just make sure it has no onion or onion powder in it).0
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My cat is picky about food.. perhaps the food is stale or he/she is bored of eating it.. treats, tuna, wet food, etc should be appealing to your kitty if it's not eating the food provided.0
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if it is a UTI then she will be in the litter an a lot trying to pee - and may even start to use corners or other places to try to go. Girls do not have ans many problems as boys with UTIs and blockage issues since the anatomy tends to be larger in girls. I had a boy that was a tiny build part Siamese that had to have a sex change op to prevent the complications of chronic blockages. He lived to a ripe old age once he was modified.
My last kitty was on IV, catheter, the works, for a week due to a blockage. He clearly had signs of something wrong though, where Ralphie seems fine...hope that's notwhat it is!
A blockage in a male cat is very common. Not so much in a female, but they do get UTIs. If that's what it is, she can definitely wait until Monday, though she'll be uncomfortable in the meantime. A blockage is more serious, as you know. Been through that!0 -
Now that is interesting.. never in my 36 years have I heard of a cat having a sex change op... wow. Glad it worked out for him.. I mean her. :-) too cute!if it is a UTI then she will be in the litter an a lot trying to pee - and may even start to use corners or other places to try to go. Girls do not have ans many problems as boys with UTIs and blockage issues since the anatomy tends to be larger in girls. I had a boy that was a tiny build part Siamese that had to have a sex change op to prevent the complications of chronic blockages. He lived to a ripe old age once he was modified.0 -
She may have a blockage.
if shes not vomiting or hasnt got runny stool, dehydration isnt a biggie. my moms cat only drinks running faucet water.
All of my pets will randomly eat less. make sure shes not lethargic or losing weight. keep an eye out for bloating, pale gums, trouble pottying, or vomiting.0 -
Thank you for saving me the time to write all of this out.Do not let the cat pass more than 12 hours without eating. Cats are prone to getting liver disease if they don't eat for long periods of time, or so I was told by my cat's vet. That's what happened to my cat but he had diabetes and that's what made him stop eating, he was in no way as active as your kitty is and was just lying on the floor.
So the fact that yours is fully aware of everything and playing is a good sign, keep an eye on the cat and get her encouraged to drink. Call the vet if her personality changes or if she stops drinking water. If the situation persists get her to the vet, maybe she swallowed something? Is she using the litter box for number 2? (The solid one i mean, lol)
I knew a cat that stopped eating because of constipation.
I hope she gets better in no time!
Try some new fresh things, my cat loved tuna, ham and olives
unless he was feeling seriously bad he would eat any of those. It was a terrible sign if he ignored them.
Give her a hug from us,she's so cute! 0 -
I would definitely have the kitty drink my finger anytime a few drops of water goes a long way in cats. You could also wet his chin, sides of his face a bit, or paws.. he will definitely CLEAN it off and that way there's some water in! But definitely take the kitty to the vet monday just to get it checked out.0
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Watch the water thing, but also I would question whether anything else in the environment has changed. Anything, like a new baby, guest, new pet, move, change of where the food and water is, or your stress level even. Cats will be affected by environmental changes or your stress level and it can affect their appetite. The fact that she is still playing is a good thing. It isn't likely to be anything serious.0
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Could she be getting food from somewhere else?0
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Purring is not just an indication of happiness. It is an indication of heightened emotion (including stress, fear, etc). So that is not a good predictor of health and happiness.
Yes, it is a good sign that your cat is drinking (water NOT milk (unless it is cat milk/formula - cats are lactose intolerant)
Yes, it is a good sign if your cat is having regular urination and bowl movements.
However, if your cat stopped eating something is wrong. It could be due to environmental or food changes as someone else said. Or it could be an indication of poor health. I would take Ralphie to the vet as soon as possible.0 -
Do not let the cat pass more than 12 hours without eating. Cats are prone to getting liver disease if they don't eat for long periods of time, or so I was told by my cat's vet. That's what happened to my cat but he had diabetes and that's what made him stop eating, he was in no way as active as your kitty is and was just lying on the floor.
So the fact that yours is fully aware of everything and playing is a good sign, keep an eye on the cat and get her encouraged to drink. Call the vet if her personality changes or if she stops drinking water. If the situation persists get her to the vet, maybe she swallowed something? Is she using the litter box for number 2? (The solid one i mean, lol)
I knew a cat that stopped eating because of constipation.
I hope she gets better in no time!
Try some new fresh things, my cat loved tuna, ham and olives unless he was feeling seriously bad he would eat any of those. It was a terrible sign if he ignored them.
Give her a hug from us,she's so cute!
^0 -
No problem! As someone else said, liver failure (that's what i meant,sorry for my bad English) is not fun at all, i had to spend 15 days force feeding my Simba every two hours, like a baby. It's probably not the case,but after what i had to go through (and my poor kitty,RIP) i can't help but saying that she should be seen by a vet ASAP if she doesn't improve. Maybe i'm being paranoid but the OP might want to give the vet a call and get proper advice just in case it truly is something serious (of course I'm crossing my fingers)
Thank you for saving me the time to write all of this out.Do not let the cat pass more than 12 hours without eating. Cats are prone to getting liver disease if they don't eat for long periods of time, or so I was told by my cat's vet. That's what happened to my cat but he had diabetes and that's what made him stop eating, he was in no way as active as your kitty is and was just lying on the floor.
So the fact that yours is fully aware of everything and playing is a good sign, keep an eye on the cat and get her encouraged to drink. Call the vet if her personality changes or if she stops drinking water. If the situation persists get her to the vet, maybe she swallowed something? Is she using the litter box for number 2? (The solid one i mean, lol)
I knew a cat that stopped eating because of constipation.
I hope she gets better in no time!
Try some new fresh things, my cat loved tuna, ham and olives unless he was feeling seriously bad he would eat any of those. It was a terrible sign if he ignored them.
Give her a hug from us,she's so cute!
Keep us posted!0 -
I have a cat and have had her for 15 years.
I think she probably has an upset stomach from hairballs. You should buy her those special cats herbs to cleanse her (will make her vomit her hairballs)
Make sure she drinks plenty of water as well !
Beautiful cat by the way 0 -
Do not let the cat pass more than 12 hours without eating.
Came here to say this. I'm not a vet, but used to work for one. Cats can get what's called hepatic lipidosis if they do not eat - sometimes it can come on after not having eaten for just a day or two. It causes fat to build up in the liver and the liver stops working. It has a very high mortality rate.
Make sure you get food in her. If she's not eating on her own, you really need to find a way to get her to eat, even until you get her to the vets. Try different things - get canned cat food and heat it slightly in the microwave (like 10 seconds/stir) - the canned stuff heated usually works pretty well. Or get some tuna and mix in with food. Not ideal long term but really important to get food in her.
If your cat is a neat freak, you can just put the food on her paws/somewhere on her that she will lick it off. It's worked for mine.
Good luck, and please take her to the vets on Mon, first thing.0 -
Definitely take her to a vet!
Did you try feeding her something else? How is her bowel movements? I hope she's at least drinking water.
Good luck and take care xx 0 -
Do not let the cat pass more than 12 hours without eating.
Came here to say this. I'm not a vet, but used to work for one. Cats can get what's called hepatic lipidosis if they do not eat - sometimes it can come on after not having eaten for just a day or two. It causes fat to build up in the liver and the liver stops working. It has a very high mortality rate.
Make sure you get food in her. If she's not eating on her own, you really need to find a way to get her to eat, even until you get her to the vets. Try different things - get canned cat food and heat it slightly in the microwave (like 10 seconds/stir) - the canned stuff heated usually works pretty well. Or get some tuna and mix in with food. Not ideal long term but really important to get food in her.
Good luck, and please take her to the vets on Mon, first thing.
Argh! hepatic lipidosis! That's the term i was struggling to remember,thank you for mentioning it.0 -
Do not let the cat pass more than 12 hours without eating. Cats are prone to getting liver disease if they don't eat for long periods of time, or so I was told by my cat's vet. That's what happened to my cat but he had diabetes and that's what made him stop eating, he was in no way as active as your kitty is and was just lying on the floor.
So the fact that yours is fully aware of everything and playing is a good sign, keep an eye on the cat and get her encouraged to drink. Call the vet if her personality changes or if she stops drinking water. If the situation persists get her to the vet, maybe she swallowed something? Is she using the litter box for number 2? (The solid one i mean, lol)
I knew a cat that stopped eating because of constipation.
I hope she gets better in no time!
Try some new fresh things, my cat loved tuna, ham and olives unless he was feeling seriously bad he would eat any of those. It was a terrible sign if he ignored them.
Give her a hug from us,she's so cute!
Do not give the cat tuna/Ham/olives (even though mine LOVES it). It's really very bad for their organs as they are not supposed to eat human stuff. That led to my cat having liver issues so now she has a medical brand of food to take.
You can, if you wish mix a little tiny bit of milk with the water to encourage the drinking though.0 -
Have you tried letting him eat grass? It's the only thing I can think of that hasn't been mentioned. Let us know how it goes.
I did! I actually had heard that cats eat grass when they have tummy issues, so on my lunch break i brought a handful in and she was all over it.
THIS^
Maybe a hair ball. Eating grass will help her vomit. I know its gross but cats have to do this. Let us know.0 -
Do not let the cat pass more than 12 hours without eating.
Came here to say this. I'm not a vet, but used to work for one. Cats can get what's called hepatic lipidosis if they do not eat - sometimes it can come on after not having eaten for just a day or two. It causes fat to build up in the liver and the liver stops working. It has a very high mortality rate.
Make sure you get food in her. If she's not eating on her own, you really need to find a way to get her to eat, even until you get her to the vets. Try different things - get canned cat food and heat it slightly in the microwave (like 10 seconds/stir) - the canned stuff heated usually works pretty well. Or get some tuna and mix in with food. Not ideal long term but really important to get food in her.
Good luck, and please take her to the vets on Mon, first thing.
Argh! hepatic lipidosis! That's the term i was struggling to remember,thank you for mentioning it.
Thanks for spreading the word and explaining! It terrifies me how quickly they can get this. We just recently went through this scare with our own kitty, after acute kidney failure from a medication she was prescribed (metacam). She stopped eating on her own for several weeks.0 -
My eight month old manx kitten, Little Little, just stopped eating for five days about two weeks after I got him neutered, he continued drinking and peeing in the litter box, his personality never changed,but he didn't play as much. My sister, who is a vet tech said if he did not start eating next day to take him to vet. Luckily he started the next morning. Little Little has been fine ever since and I pray the same for your cute little sweet one.0
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Hydration is so important for cats, if you live close to a drug store maybe get a plastic syringe with a large hole so that you can squirt some water into her mouth and she will pretty much have to swallow. I have had to do this for a cat, til I got it to the vet . The poor girl ended up on IV at the vets for two days. We never did find out what was wrong, they figured she probably got poisoned some how and ended up with kidney problems for the rest of her life.
I would not wait too long to get her to a vet, If she is not drinking/peeing, as it does not take long for their kidneys to start shutting down. Good luck. 0 -
If hes drinking and acting normal you shouldnt be too worried unless he goes 3 or more days without eating anything....cats are picky, I work with about 130 a day and alot of them stop eating (im not a vet)....the minute we change thier food to a different brand they start eating again....try switching his food to a new brand..if that doesnt work definitly take him to a vet....if you feed him dry it could be something wrong with his teeth...try wet food.0
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I didn't read the whole thread, sorry if this has already been asked, does he possibly have a cold? My cat had a cold and wouldn't eat and the vet told me if they can't smell they won't eat. He did drink though. He also behaved normally otherwise.0
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I read that your cat is picky when it comes to food so is mine. Is there anything else that he eats besides the regular food that you give him like cat treats? Mine stopped eating her food the same way and people kept saying that well if shes hungry she will eat. Turns out they changed the formula they were using for her food and I had to find something else she would eat but till then I gave her the treats that I knew she would eat. Everyone else has covered anything else I would have said.0
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oh yeah, definitely try her on different brands of cat food! Our kitten would eat any kind of food until she had her teething problems and refused anything except for a certain brand of cat food in chicken flavour and the terrine kind (not the one in chunks).... cats are definitely picky 0
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Here's a way to check for dehydration (works for cats and dogs): Pull the skin up on the nape of her neck (just as a mother would to pick up her kittens). You don't have to pull hard, just enough to lift the skin away from the body. Now let go of the skin. If the skin goes back to its original position pretty easily and relatively fast, she is probably not dehydrated. If the skin doesn't move or keeps a pyramid type shape, she is probably dehydrated. I hope this is helpful.
That's good that she's still playing and running around. A couple other comments I read on here mentioned her teeth, and that was my first thought when I read your post. My cat (15 years old) had a couple of bad teeth pulled last year, and it has made quite a difference in his appetite. I hope she is well. Good luck to you.0 -
Now that is interesting.. never in my 36 years have I heard of a cat having a sex change op... wow. Glad it worked out for him.. I mean her. :-) too cute!if it is a UTI then she will be in the litter an a lot trying to pee - and may even start to use corners or other places to try to go. Girls do not have ans many problems as boys with UTIs and blockage issues since the anatomy tends to be larger in girls. I had a boy that was a tiny build part Siamese that had to have a sex change op to prevent the complications of chronic blockages. He lived to a ripe old age once he was modified.
Goblin was the runt of a litter that was hand/bottle feed when the mother was killed. Since he had such a tiny build the blockage would always be in the lower end/tip of the penis, never further up which is the usual site for male blockages. Once the penis was removed they could open the urethra and anchor it to the skin like a female cat. He had already been neutered so it just finished the job. He was not a big drinker and always had gravel, this just allowed it to pass without problems. Since cats are desert adapted they do tend to excrete part of their urates as a semi solid to conserve water. The op was the last resort - several vets recommended putting him down due to the constant urinary blockages - he was under a year old and already had had half a dozen trips to the afterhours vet.. My vet was the one I had adopted him from to begin with and he offered to try it for free - he had heard about the op but had never seen it done - if it worked Goblin would continue to be mine - if not then he would become the vets office cat. Best vet I ever had!0 -
OK!
So last night, ralphie was drinking, and she did eat about 1/2 can of whiskas.
I think I found her issue. She has a weird little flap of skin on the inside of her cheek, I think her teeth pinch it when she chews!
Waiting til tomorrow to call the vet, see if it needs removed.
Thanks again for the suggestions everyone 0 -
I'm glad you found what the potential issue is! I hope she feels better soon
And to the person who said that cats can't eat tuna,ham or olives... Thank you! I didn't know that and my vet never told me not to give him any of that as a treat. I'll have it in mind in the future 0 -
To the person who said cats shouldn't go more than 12 hours without eating, my vet told me to put the food away at 9 PM since my cat is getting spayed the next morning. We're bringing her in at 8 AM, so she won't eat from 9 PM to whenever she comes home that afternoon. Why would they recommend not eating for that long if it's dangerous?
I'm genuinely curious, not insinuating you're wrong or anything. I'm just concerned.0
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