Help, my cat won’t eat!
First, allow me to introduce myself and provide my cat credentials. While I started off 11 years ago with just a single abandoned black kitten named Michigan, thanks to my partner, I am now the proud servant to two other cats, Elle and Mookie. I also tolerate one hapless canine, Chloe. (She wishes she were a cat.)
Most cats scarf down their pricey feline cuisine, and then try to nibble on their owner’s food as well. Cats will sit on your chest in the middle of the night and yowl for treats. But when a cat stops eating, it can quickly lead to fatty liver disease, a serious and potentially deadly condition. And once cats stop eating, getting them back in the habit of chowing down can be a very difficult chore, usually involving force-feeding with a tube.
Elle, my female flame point Siamese cat, normally a hearty eater, has barely been touching her food lately. I’ve tried a variety of foods and treats, even coaxing her with “kitty crack” (a.k.a. Fancy Feast), and she still only eats a few bites before losing interest. She had a dental cleaning last year, but Siamese are known for teeth and gum issues. I am going to have her checked again for any dental problems. A few years ago, Elle also stopped eating temporarily, and no cause was ever determined before her appetite returned to normal.
I’m concerned she is feeling stress because one of the other cats in the household, her closest buddy, is dying of cancer. There’s no scientific proof that pets can sense these things, but I’ve seen this cat react to human stress. Have you ever had a cat that stopped eating? How did you jump-start their appetite?
P.S. This is my family:
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I would first recommend a full workup at the vet to ensure there are not any other underlying issues. If there are no issues, when mine do not feel well or have a lower appetite I will usually buy fresh chicken liver and boil it with a couple of chicken tenders. I then cut it into small pieces of chicken with the liver mashed in with a little water. I usually have the cats circling my feet before it is done.
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I have never had to force a cat to eat. I did have a cat that was ill once that would do the feline version of wretching at his dinner b/c he was nauseous (according to the vet). it was a noise that sounded like he was grinding his teeth. other than that, we have to lock our food up to keep the cats out of it.
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Your vet can give her medication that stimulates the appetite. Your vet can also give her a kitty version of Prozac.
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My cat will only eat Purina Hairball Control dry food. When he came to live with me, he would eat Whiskas pouch food, but only the Mixed Grill. Then he got to where when I would give him that, all he would do is lick the gravy off. I’ve tried giving him fresh grilled fish, tenderloin, and shrimp and he turns up his nose. He will sample chicken, IF it’s cut up into very fine slivers, but he will only eat a little. My previous cat would go into hysterics if I even thought about giving her some cheese, but not this one. He couldn’t care less. Now ice cream and yogurt will get his attention fairly quick, and I’ve seen him come out of a deep sleep from the other side of a shut door when I was having cereal and milk. But just this morning, he barely touched the leftover milk from my cereal, even after having a running fit to have it. He will also decide that the food in his bowl is not any good, and refuses to eat it until some fresh is mixed in or the old is thrown out. And of course not drinking water out of his own bowl is another story, he prefers to lick the shower door or drink out of the flower pots outside. But I love him and I will give him anything he wants.
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Catnip! Helps a great deal. If she doesn’t like it, make a weak tea and drop some in her mouth..or on her nose. Do not use much. Helped with mt elderly kitties.
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Take it to the vet immediately, and feed it baby food in the earlier phases.
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Once you have found out that their are no underlying medical problems, try canned salmon, chicken or tuna. This worked for our diabetic cat when he wouldn’t eat anything at all. Just put out a spoonful at the time at first to see if it will work.
We also have to give him an appetite stimulator medicine at times to make him eat. He used to eat dry (Hill’s prescription) but doesnt’ like it anymore. Try Purina One dry for sensitive systems. Our kitty will eat this at times.
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Sorry to hear about your cat’s current finickiness. But, I laughed out loud when you referred to Fancy Feast as “kitty crack”. That is exactly how my husband and I refer to the FF dry food. We bought a small bag of it and give it to our cat as treats - and she goes nuts. We have her on senior indoor dry cat food (she has a sensitive tummy and bladder), and she will only eat Fancy Feast cat meat, as well — really, she’ll give anything else a sniff and then walk away, even if it’s more expensive and fancier.
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Your cat may have a hairball. This happens frequently with my cat and we usually need to give her hairball medication in large doses for 3-4 days and then she passes the hairball and begins to eat normally again. In the meantime, you may need to force feed her using a large syringe and don’t forget to give her water also.
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My cat also had this problem and I panicked and called the vet. She assured me that it IS very serious for a cat to stop eating, especially if the cat is a bit on the plump side, as mine is.
She diagnosed him with Hyperaesthesia syndrome and got me a feline-sized perscription of something related to steroids. It worked immediately.
His lack of appetite comes and goes. It might be something we will be dealing with for a long time. Definitely get your cat to a vet pronto.
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nature has taught all animals to stop eating when they are sick. since animals in the wild don’t have vets to go to, nature has taught them to stop eating. fasting is the quickest way to recovery. if the sickness is temporary, she will start eating again when her body tells her it’s time. it would still be a good idea for a vet to check her out and make sure it’s not cancer.
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It is worthless to ask for a cure without knowing what the medical problem is. The first thing you should do is take Elle to the vet for tests. A variety of conditions can cause appetite loss. Dehydration is a concern, and she may need subcutaneous fluids. Your vet will advise you based on the test results.
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I absolutely agree with the full vet workup!
Mine was about 8 years old and developed feline insulin dependent diabetes. She is on 2 shots a day and whatever canned food she will eat this week. I should try fancy feast, I suppose.
When this first occurred I honestly didn’t notice, I had 4 cats and our home was being foreclosed. I was a little distracted. It didn’t take long for my slightly heavy girl to waste away to nothing. Once we figured out what it was we were good, but still at times I am concerned about her small appetite.
Sometimes all she wants is turkey, other times it must be tuna, then it is salmon. No rhyme or reason I can figure out, just seems to be her mood. So I keep her favorite dry available all the time, just in case.
Normally with cats not eating means a trip to the vet quick, but yes, emotionally sensitive kitties can do that when you are stressed out.
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my friend said his cat didn’t want to eat the cat food he was buying for her. I told him to go to Walmart and buy the cheapest dry dog food they sell. I told him my cat loves it. He said, I don’t think my cat will eat it. I said my cat wouldn’t eat it for about 5 days. When thats all thats on their menu, they kinda learn to like it, if you know what I mean.
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I agree with some of the others that you need to take your cat to the vet. My cat, Mitzi, develops a problem in her throat and it hurts for her to swallow and hence, she stops eating. We have to take her to the vet for a steroid shot and two days later, she starts eating. He said that this happens with cats and some have to have the shot every month. He said that it is something that cannot be cured, only treated when it occurs. Good luck.
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I agree that the first thing you should do is take your cat to the vet. I have a senior kitty who became increasingly more lethargic and lost interest in eating (so unlike him!) and the vet discovered he had acute pancreatitis. He had no other symptoms of this very severe condition other than lack of eating and sleeping more. I’m happy to say he is now himself again.
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Sorry to hear your kitty is having a problem. A few years ago my older cat stopped eating. It turned out after a visit to the vet that he had pancreatitis. We have no idea how he got it, but a few days with the vet on intravenous antibiotics and a little coaxing with chicken and treats and he started eating again.
Definitely get to the vet immediately.
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You should no more feed dog food to your cat than give bird seed to your child! Their nutritional needs are different and the money you save now on cheap food will be spent later on medical bills. What a BAD (dumb, short-sighted, uninformed) idea!
As for the original poster, get your cat to a vet right away. There’s no fixing her appetite until you know what’s wrong, and most likely waiting won’t help. Waiting for nature to take its course could lead to a serious and expensive problem.
It also may not help to give her lots of tasty but “empty” options. If you offer FF and other junk food, she’ll be less likely to eat good food. I do sometimes offer boiled chicken (NO onion or garlic added) to cats that need an appetite boost, but since your cat hasn’t been eating well “lately”, it’s past time to seek medical attention.
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I tried the Fancy Feast and my cat loves it, why do you call it junk food? Is it bad for her? Thanks!
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All of the foods that are cheap are crap. Yeah your cat may like it because it is like eating cookies or chips-it’s good but not good for you.Example Fancy Feast. If you want your animal to live long do not buy the cheapest thing you can find. I am a vet tech and I promise you will spend more money on vet bills than the food.
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Towanda, so sorry to imply that dry dog food was all my cat gets to eat. Lots of time I mix in heart and liver from deer and hogs after a good hunt. She has a fondness for squirel and rabbit hearts and livers thats a sight to see. If any chicken gets cooked on my stove, it is for human consumption. I think you guys pamper your cats into having eating disorders. I’ve seen some mighty fat cats hanging around dumpster boxes. Hey news flash, THEY ARE JUST CATS!
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My Maine Coone Kitty seems to have something in his throat for 4 days now, he is eating, and, sleeping, and, going to the litter box! But… he is NOT being his payful self, and, from time to time, it looks like hes is trying to get something out of his throat?? PLEASE HELP!
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To: I’m Worried for my Cat!!
I am not a medical expert, but I would take your cat to the vet just to make sure there is not something obstructing her airway, or some other kind of issue that requires professional medical attention.
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My cat stopped eating a few years ago for no apparent reason and after the vet checked everything she had me try kitten food which got my cat going again and I slowly moved her back to adult food.
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We have a cat named Emma who dosen’t like other cats.We just got a new cat named Moses who is an outside cat (very playful)
and ever scince we got Moses. What should i do?
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Hi everyone
I’m trying to get my cat to eat something other then Fancy Feast dry food, so when i read comments here about it being kitty crack; I know I’m asking those who have experience.
She only eats 2 flavours of Fancy Feast and drinks cat milk. She is 2 years old. I offer her raw and/or cooked prawns, chicken, lamb, liver and fish, and there is the odd occasion when she’ll eat one or two pieces of raw chicken, or watermelon (yes she eats watermelon) but 99 times out of 100 she won’t eat anything else other then Fancy Feast.
Every time I eat something she wants to try some, but she just smells it and walks away; this tells me she is craving more then her dried food and milk, but she won’t eat anything else.
HELP
Is there anything wrong feeding her Fancy Feast twice a day?
Why does Fancy Feast to turn her off other food?
How do I get her off it?
Why exactly do you call it kitty crack, will it give her weight problems?
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Hi Ally-Cat
Most veterinarians will recommend feeding cats a premium brand made with natrual ingredients. Fancy Feast is akin to fast food for humans, like eating at McDonald’s every day.
Most cats find Fancy Feast highly desirable, so if they start on that, it’s hard to break them of the habit, hence the nickname “kitty crack” because it’s like a drug (crack cocaine). But it can be done. I talked to a veterinary technician who stated that new research shows most cats like change and variety in their diet, and you don’t have to be as cautious about changing up their food as once was thought (unless of course they have digestive issues). It also may be a good idea to include both canned and dry food in your cat’s diet.
Here’s a list of 10 premium dry choices that might be good to experiment with:
http://cats.about.com/od/dryfood/tp/premdrycatfood.htm
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Im sorry to hear that your kitty is feeling bad. What do you do if you cant eat for day’s?? I have a 16 yr old cat. She stopped eating and in 24 hrs she was at the vet. She is diabetic. I Have to give her 2 shots a day. The vet gave her a B12 shot to boost her immune system. What ever you can get her to eat. My vet told me to force feed her with a syringe. I offer her water every waking hour. She is not in any pain so he told me to hang in there till monday. Then we may have to give her IV fluids. Treat your pets as you would treat yourself or your children. I wish you the best!
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First take to the vet to check for medical problems.My cat had real bad gingivitis and wouldn’t eat because it hurt her to eat.She had to have 5 teeth extracted.Within days after surgery she resumed eating again.If it’s a sinus issue remember cat’s won’t eat what they can’t smell.So if she/he is sneezing and coughing this could be the issue.Chicken broth on dry cat food is a sure bet.I’ve found 9 out of 10 times a cat won’t eat it’s usually a medical problem.Good luck !!
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My cat has Aids, has been on Interferon. He has been doing good for years, but now refuses to eat. Vet has him on Periactin and Clavamox. He goes up to the food, but still doesn’t eat. I’ve tried everything. I’m feeding him AD Feline with a syringe, and taking him for fluids.His teeth aren’t good, but vet doesn’t think that is the problem. Any ideas? Thanks
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