Cat not eating much

tidus

After some advise as a new cat owner!

We have had 2 cats from cat's protection, got them about 3 months ago. They are brother + sister, 1yr old or so, and get on well.

After they settled in they both ate well, any type of cat food wet or dry was consumed, especially the femail who ate hers quickly and often tried to get her head into her brothers bowl before he finished.

However the femail has abruptly stopped eating, over the last 4 -5 days she had done nothing but lick a bit of jelly and have a few treats - these she wolfs down. She seems to be loosing a bit of weight now but otherwise seems perfectly normal - just seems to have little interest in normal cat food!

I'm resisting the urge to put down tuna etc, try expensive brands - but how long can this go on for? Friends have said thats normal for cats, she won't starve herself to death.... but i'm getting concerned. Any ideas?

ItchyFeet

Cats can be very fussy about what they eat - eating something one week then not touching it the next. Try her with something else and you might be able to go back to the original food in a few days.

HOWEVER, it's not always obvious when a cat is unwell and they must eat little and often. A cat cannot survive for very long with nothing to eat like you or i. If you think she is losing weight i would definately take her to the vet.

rescuedogs

I would get her checked at the vet

spike7451

Daisy is the same at the moment,she's sort of gone off the Whiskas pouches that she normally gets & instead wolfing down the RC Exigent dry.Problem for me is that as she never drinks any fluid,she licks the jelly off the meat & eats some of the meat,leaving the rest,I have to keep feeding her the wet so she gets fluids! I reckon I must be throwing out 1/2 a box of pouches per box.

tidus

I think i'm going to pick up some different food today and give that a try tonight. It just strange, she used to eat anything. This is the cat that would eat dry oats, crisps, potato, toast.... anything she could steal!

If this doesn't work we'll get her to the vet.

I have wondered if she's getting fed elsewhere, but she's never outside for long and she wouldn't be dropping weight if that was the case.

rising_from_the_ashes

spike7451 wrote: »

Daisy is the same at the moment,she's sort of gone off the Whiskas pouches that she normally gets & instead wolfing down the RC Exigent dry.Problem for me is that as she never drinks any fluid,she licks the jelly off the meat & eats some of the meat,leaving the rest,I have to keep feeding her the wet so she gets fluids! I reckon I must be throwing out 1/2 a box of pouches per box.

I'm wondering if Whiskas have changed something in their "recipe".

Archie has always eaten it (but only the meat variety in gravy;)) and got a load on offer (3 boxes for £6) and he's gone right off it. I worked my way through 2 boxes with him picking at it and me throwing most of it out and have now put the other 4 boxes in the garage as an emergency supply.

I'm really struggling to find something he'll eat instead:(.


OP, I'd try a different brand / type (eg gravy) and if she's still not eating it, a trip to the vet for a check-up would be a good idea.

bacardi66

I would get her checked over at the vets just in case but in my experience cats do sometimes go off their food for no apparent reason and then start eating normally again.

Ive always fed my cats the same food - Whiskas pouches plus dried Hills Science Oral care - obviously kitten Whiskas when they were little and Senior in the last few years (my remaining cat now is 17)

Ive never chopped and changed the food or offered them any choice and I think as a result have never had picky cats. The weather can affect their appetite, when its hot my cat only seems to lick a bit of the gravy off the food and doesn't eat much but when its cooler and when he's hungry he will wolf it down. Sometimes before he brings up a furball he will go off his food as well.

As long as there is nothing wrong with her I would just carry on offering the food you are now, she will eat when she gets hungry. Otherwise you could end up like one of my friends who now presents her cat with a selection of freshly cooked fish and chicken at every meal to see which one he will deign to eat

tidus

Well she's started eating again, thanks for the advise everyone. I think she put herself on a diet, she was gaining weight before this spell!! Not quite back to how she used to be, but she's eating about half of what I give her, so that'll do.

In the end I got a few different random pouches and tins. Maybe she got sick of whiskas.

Odunican

My cat is the same at the moment she normally has 2 whiskas pouches a day but she is picking at one at the moment but same as your cat wolfing down treats and chicken. I think cats just eat generally when they feel like unlike dogs who are generally greedy.

My cat eats more during winter and less at summer. They probs put on weight for winter to keep them warmer and they grow more hair.