Cat people -- help! (long)

[Nestof3]

We've had Maggie and Annabelle since they were kittens (local shelter cats). Maggie became the boys' cat, and Annabelle became Aaron's.

 

Annabelle used to sleep with Aaron, cry when he left the house, etc. Well, on December 1, he moved into his own apartment and took Annabelle with him. It was always known that he would take her. She did fine at first. When we visited about a month after he moved in, she was very friendly, and though she had lost some weight, she looked good.

 

Then Aaron told me she had stopped eating, and he didn't think she was having BMs. I asked him how often he was changing the litter (what I really meant was how often was he removing it, because with just one cat, it should be easy to determine how often she was going to the bathroom). He replied, "About every two weeks when the pellets are all dust" (we buy the pine pellets). I got on him about that because he knows we always remove the feces at least once a day -- it used to be his job.

 

At this time, he had also taken her to the vet. They did an x-ray and saw nothing abnormal. They said her liver was coated with something though she was too young to have liver disease, so they prescribed Denamarin

http://www.nutramaxlabs.com/vet/products/Denamarin.aspx

 

They thought she might be suffering from depression. I reminded him that she had had a urinary tract infection when she lived here, so he might want to have her tested for that. Well, he brought the collection supplies home, but he was so late in returning them that he was told the sample was useless and he would have to get another. He waited about a week. I wanted to ring his neck. ugh He had plenty of time to take care of this.

 

She did have a BM last week, so she is not obstructed.

 

He said she is drinking water and urinating, but she still rarely eats.

 

Last night, he invited us over for dinner (my parents and his girlfriend came too), and I ended up bringing Annabelle home.

 

I'm calling today to make an appointment for her because he obviously wasn't handling his well enough. I just wanted to pass this info along to the hive to see what you think about her.

 

So, it has been three months since the two cats have seen each other. They act like they've never known each other. Maggie, who had been so friendly since Annabelle left, has nothing to do with me. They are both hissing whenever they are in the same area.

 

Annabelle acted like she wanted to eat this morning, but she wouldn't touch it. And, Maggie refused to eat as well.

 

Aaron wasn't home at the apartment much, so Annabelle spent her days watching the ducks from the back door. Now sh'e just staring out our back door.

 

I'm just not sure what the right thing to do is aside from take her to the vet again. Isn't taking her from Aaron going to cause further depression?

 

But, he'll spend his summer in Quantico at OCS. We were planning on keeping her then anyway. :confused:

[KS_]

I don't know what it might be (my cat has gone on food strikes before), but I know it's really important you get her to eat something. It's really not good for cats to go w/o eating for too long - it will cause liver damage. So try a different food, raw meat (I feed my cat a raw diet now), just try to find something she will eat.

[Nestof3]

I don't know what it might be (my cat has gone on food strikes before), but I know it's really important you get her to eat something. It's really not good for cats to go w/o eating for too long - it will cause liver damage. So try a different food, raw meat (I feed my cat a raw diet now), just try to find something she will eat.

 

Yes, I have offered three different wet ones. I also offered her the dry food we buy (Wellness CORE Grain-Free, Fish and Fowl Adult Cat and Kitten Food).

[KS_]

Yes, I have offered three different wet ones. I also offered her the dry food we buy (Wellness CORE Grain-Free, Fish and Fowl Adult Cat and Kitten Food).

 

Will she eat any raw meat, or an egg? Some cats don't do well with eggs, but I'd keep trying different foods. I might even offer canned fish if she hasn't eaten for a couple days.

[Jennifer3141]

I'd take her back to the vet. We found out that one of my cats who had seemed a little grumpier lately had a pretty bad bladder infection. One week later, she's almost back to her old self!

 

We feed a raw diet too! It's really neat running into others doing the same. :)

[Giraffe]

My cat did this and had liver damage. She's sick so the other cat is hissing at her (my male cat did this to my sick one). My kitty spent over a month in ICU on IVs before she was better.

 

Please try to get Annabelle to eat. Try baby food (turkey or chicken) if she won't eat wet cat food. Hand feed her. Separate her from Maggie. Maggie is just pouting that Annabelle is back.

 

Sometimes when cats have a change in environment they go on a food strike because they HATE change. When they do, their liver shuts down. It's very serious. Please make sure they draw blood and check her liver values when you take her to the vet. I'll bet dollars to doughnuts that's what it is.

[WistfulRidge]

She really needs to eat something. I've only seen hunger strike for severe depression (we moved cross-country and we had to board her for a couple days while we moved into the new house - she does not do well without her family) and very poor health (my child hood cat had leukemia his last couple of years, I used to have to feed him liquid food with my finger to get him to eat). Regardless, going that long without food is very dangerous and unhealthy for cats. I'd pull out all the stops. Does she have a favorite food? I know my parent's cat - the depressed one mentioned earlier - will do *anything* for vanilla ice cream and the sugar rush perked her up enough to actually eat. I'd try raw- some chicken, turkey etc; something that will be gentle on her stomach after such a long time without eating. I'd even try tuna - I've never seen a cat turn down canned tuna. If nothing else I'd put some karo syrup on your finger and get it into her mouth and/or add it to her water and see if she'll drink it. She may be so calorie deficient at this point that she doesn't have the energy to actually eat anything, even if she is starving.

[Okra]

I know this is a really long shot, but one time when my cat wouldn't eat for a few days, he had a small stick lodged in the roof of his mouth. I know that this does not sound like what is wrong, I just thought I would mention it.

 

I am so glad you took that cat home. Right now this kitty is in the right house for the time being.

[tntgoodwin]

My friend Steve likes cats. People are always saying “Oh, Steve’s really a cat personâ€. No he’s not. If Steve were a cat person it’d be, like, “Hey, Steve never goes in the poolâ€.

 

 

Sorry, that's all I have for you.

[Nestof3]

I have an appt for tomorrow at 5:00 (after my uterine ultrasound, ugh).

 

I bought two Fancy Feast flavors, a little packet of essentially tuna and chicken in broth, some canned tuna, and some canned chicken. I tried to get her to eat the latter and even put some of the broth on my finger, but she turned away.

Edited March 14, 2011 by nestof3

[~Amanda~]

There is something the vet can give you (I think its nutracal) its very calorie dense, you can sort of "force feed" it to her.

 

There is also something else they can give you, I totally forget what its called, but its a medicine that MAKES her hungry. I had a cat that wouldn't eat, and his urine was BRIGHT yellow and he was completely jaundiced from his liver being so messed up. we gave him the medicine, and even though he didn't want to eat, he still ate a few bites every hour or so, and THAT helped his liver heal as much as the antibiotics he was on. :hugs:

[Unicorn.]

Get her a can of people tuna, not cat food. It's more appealing to them. About the hissing- most likely it's an alpha cat thing. Maggie had the rule of the roost for a while, and now Annabelle is back, so boundaries have to be reestablished. And I would not move her out again. I agree w/ others that she probably has a UTI, and she is suffering from severe depression. Hugs to Annabelle, and to you for doing the right thing by bringing her home.

[Nestof3]

There is something the vet can give you (I think its nutracal) its very calorie dense, you can sort of "force feed" it to her.

 

There is also something else they can give you, I totally forget what its called, but its a medicine that MAKES her hungry. I had a cat that wouldn't eat, and his urine was BRIGHT yellow and he was completely jaundiced from his liver being so messed up. we gave him the medicine, and even though he didn't want to eat, he still ate a few bites every hour or so, and THAT helped his liver heal as much as the antibiotics he was on. :hugs:

 

Thanks. Aaron did give her the the appetite increaser, and he says she was eating better, so the vet told him to stop giving it to her.

 

I bought some chicken and gravy baby food as well and just rubbed several fingers of it onto her mouth so that she would lick it off. I'm going back in the bedroom in a few minutes to try some more.

[vettechmomof2]

This could be anything from a bad tooth in the mouth, stomach problems, urinary issues,hyperthyroidism, or a number of other health issues. It could be a allergy to the foods that she is eating.

Has she ever been tested for Feline Leukemia or FIV?

How much weight has she lost?

I would recommend another vet visit and take in a urine sample for that appointment as well.

As for the remixing of the cats. Cats are highly territorial and can really get into fights even when gone for a short time such a one pet having a surgery. So that is not unusual but it could be stressing both of them even more at this time.:grouphug:

[Lara in Colo]

I vote for the Nutrical http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=nutrical&rls=com.microsoft:*:IE-SearchBox&oe=UTF-8&rlz=1I7ADFA_en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=2388822060797771365&sa=X&ei=HU9-TbOyPIjjrAGltuzLBQ&ved=0CDQQ8gIwAw#

 

you put it on the paw (its sort of like a thick, honey, vitamin-oil). I would put a 1 inch ribbon on the paw and they would lick it to death to clean themselves.

 

Lara

[mcconnellboys]

I don't have any idea what the problem might be, but it sort of sounds as if she's received some sort of low level of poison. She doesn't go outside, does she? I'm wondering if she could have gotten into something at his apartment outside.... I have heard that animals will drink anti-freeze, for instance, because it has a sweetish smell/taste and it will poison them.... Or could he have something in his apartment that could have poisoned her (plants, bug spray, ant traps, etc.)?

 

Cats who have been together for years will hiss at each other after just a trip to the vet of a short time by one and not the other. They are not that smart and have poor memories (I hate to say that, LOL, because I love cats); they are also also very sensitive to different smells.

 

It sounds to me like it's best that you go ahead and keep her as you can provide better care for her....