Is my cat just being fussy in her old age or is she about to leave us?

[FabBakerGirlIsBack]

She is nearly 15 and is not eating her food.

She is also leaving her medication and will go without the first chunck rather than eat it with the pill in.

I have just checked her plate and she has left most of her breakfast.

All she seems to do now is sleep under the bush in the garden.

She does have an illness but no one knows if she will die from it.

Dh thinks she is getting fussier so I have sent him to the shop for some luxury food for her.

Do cats go off their food for the worse reason or is she being a pickle.

Have her teeth checked out as when they get old the teeth aren't able to cope with a lot of food, it might also be a digestion problem as well. Rich foods they can't cope with.

They do tend to eat less when they get old as well.

paranoidmother is right about teeth, it can make a huge huge difference to an elderly cats general health and eating.

Her teeth seem fine to me. She has bitten me twice in the last week so I can vouch for that.

She won't eat beef or tuna and seems to be going off turkey now too.

My parents cat is 10, she's not eaten more than a few bites of food a day for years and spends most of her time sleeping under a bed or sleeping under a bush. She's perfectly healthy, just lazy and fussy.

If your cat needs the meds you're going to have to physically give them to her you know, most cats refuse food with medication hidden in it, i have 6 and only one will eat food that has a tablet hidden in it, all of the other 5 have to be wrestled with.

Hmm what about white fish? Our Cat has Kidney problems so is only allowed 1 piece of white fish a day with plenty of water and special crunch stuff to help the kidneys.

Tesco do reasonably cheap tuna in spring water - so no extras she might eat that or we buy bags of value white fish which he has each day.

Perhaps cat has picked up something outside or somewhere that has scratched inside mouth that is putting her off, trying to think of anything that may be the answer.

She used to eat her pill in her food no problem. It is distressing for both of us when I have to make her take it as of course she doesn't understand it is for her own good.

She used to eat tuna cat food no problem until DS2 gave her a bowl of tuna instead of the juice.

She has always enjoyed her food which is why I am concerned.

I will see how she is this next day and then reassess.

Thanks.

If you don't mind me asking, what's the medical condition?

Is it something that typically has lack of appetite as a later stage symptom?

Thyroid issues are quite common in older cats - an underactive thyroid would reduce appetite.

She could just be a bit under the weather, or it could be a mouth problem - does her breath smell, is she chewing favouring more than one side ??

Sometimes appetite loss has no real cause (certainly with my Siamese) - sometimes the vet gives a B12 injection to stimulate appetite, but mostly I just find the smelliest, tastiest concoction I can dream up and that does the trick Try warming food slightly in the microwave - the smell might be more tempting then

As for giving tablets - yes, very distressing and full fat Dairylea has been my saviour - hide it in that and hand feed. Works a treat every time sa

She has hypoestesia.

She has been under the bush all day. She didn't even come and see me when I got home.

I think I'd be taking her to the vet if only to put your mind at rest. Instinct seems to be telling you that something isn't quite right.

yes i agree take her to the vet also i have read that tuna is not good for cats at all!!
dont feed my cats tuna anymore, but cant help wondering why it's in cat food if its true??

please update us

You really need to be talking to your vet and getting her looked at. There are many reasons that cats go off food, but at her age she may deteriorate quickly if you do not correct (where possible) the underlying reasons for this. It is probably not helping her to feel any better if you are having problems administering her regular meds too. Poor thing - hope things work out for you both - it's tough when they are old and poorly but cant explain what's up.

Dh fed her Felix's rabbit and poultry and she has eaten every last scrap