Anorexic cat

lindens

I don't need medical advice as she is under the vet, just looking for ideas of food to tempt her.
Luckily she is overweight so although she is losing weight, she has several KG to lose!
She had some loose teeth which caused her to stop eating for a few days and then developed a fatty liver. The teeth were removed and have healed up but she still won't eat. She is currently on the 2nd type of appetite stimulant.
We are encouraging her virtually every waking hour to eat by placing the food under her nose, the biscuits she is licking and spitting out (due to teeth problem??) she is not interested in wet cat food or tinned mackerel, will try a bit of tuna. I was going to cook her some chicken as maybe its more interesting hot?
I wondered if anyone had encountered this or just really had any ideas. We really don't want to go down the feeding tube route
PS she is a neutered female aged 8years in case that helps.
Many thanks

McKneff

Does the vet actually say why she is not eating, presumably she used to over eat because of her weight.

muldrewdollie

why not try mashing the biscuits up for her?

lindens

McKneff wrote: »

Does the vet actually say why she is not eating, presumably she used to over eat because of her weight.

yes because she is anorexic - same as a human anorexic won't eat.

she was a feral cat and had kittens at 6 months and was rescued. we had her at about 1 year when the kittens left her and she has always been a scavenger, that mentality has never left her - until now.

lindens

muldrewdollie wrote: »

why not try mashing the biscuits up for her?

thank you - funnily enough I just tried that a few minutes ago as I read mashing up the biscuits with warm water makes them more aromatic and she's more likely to eat them but it didn't work for the moment anyway.

redfragglebiker

plain cooked chicken with a bit of rice perhaps?
Also try a small amount of a smellier cooked fish such as a mackrel?
Hope you get some luck with it soon *hugs*
]

moggymutt

Really sorry to hear this, I lost a sheep to fatty liver, so I know how serious it can be.

Fish wise, the most common favourite fish is pilchards in tomato sauce, - sounds bizarre, but you will find almost all rescues use it as bait for trapping feral cats.

Without resorting to tube feeding, syringe feeding may be possible. There is a food called Hills a/d that can be syringe fed - syringe a ml at a time into the back of the mouth. Hills I/d may be more suitable , but wont go through the end of a normal syringe, so get 1 or 2 ml syringe an cut the very narrow end bit off. These foods can only be got from vets, and your vet can tell you if these are alright to give a cat with fatty liver.

Good luck- I know how vital it is to get her eating.

lindens

Thanks for your suggestions. I randomly tried some ham earlier and she ate that almost with enthusiasm, but only if I rattled the packet and placed small squares of ham on the carpet! I will try some pilchards when I go shopping tomorrow, and someone also suggested baby food, especially butternut squash.

Azmataz

I second what moggymutt says: pilchards or sardines in tomato sauce seem especially irresistible to feral and domestic cats alike. Royal Canin Instinctive is good for tempting poor eaters, too.
You could also get hold of some Royal Canin Convalescence Support. It comes in sachets and can be used as a syringe feed but also rehydrated and given in a bowl. Some cats simply like to lap it up.
Finally, it is possible that with her semi-feral background she prefers to approach food herself, rather than have it directly presented to her? Perhaps try leaving the bowl a metre or two away from where she is resting?
All the best with the poorly girl.

~Chameleon~

Or http://www.vetuk.co.uk/cat-food-liquivite-cat-food-c-62_440/liquivite-liquid-food-for-cats-400g-tin-p-2342

moggymutt

Vets usually carry a range of prescription diet samples- ask if you can have samples of any the sorts that would be okay for her.