cat not eating new prescription food

[Tobythecat]

I have had my cat for 3.5 years, prior to that he was a stray so not sure how old he is, but at a guess id say 10.

Hes always had a sensitive stomach and would vomit his food 3 or 4 times a week. Ocassionally he would drink a lot of water and just sit right infront of his water bowl for ages. He did that the other day but not since. He also has jelly like blood in his poo and overall i think hes just an old/sickly boy. He had 4 teeth out last year as they were rotten- he also has gingivitis.

I took him to the vet last week, the vet thinks he has FIV but wants to rule out other things. So she started him on easy digestable wet cat food. He ate the first pouch no problem, but for the past week he has barely been eating it. He doesnt drink hardly ever unless he has the weird episode of drinking excessively so im really worried he is getting dehydrated. He ate about half a pouch yesterday and nothing at all today. Should i just give him his notmal food that he loves? I just dont know what to do with him😢

FIV is a very easy blood test to do, not sure why the vet wants to rule out other things before testing? Although FIV is mostly asymptomatic so digestive issues are not really related...

I would try him on plain boiled chicken or white fish for now, it's very well tolerated and good for cats with upset stomachs. Later on you can try other foods, there are plenty of sensitive foods available other than the vet prescription stuff - Almo Nature and Bozita for example do them (look on ZooPlus).

Thanks! I ordered some hills science plan wet food and they just arrived - ive never seen the cat eat so fast bless him. I have tried bozita but it made him sick. I thought almo nature was a complimentary food? Will try the chicken and fish.

If you're worried about dehydration you can always mix some warm water in with his wet food. It was recommended by my vet and works well for my cat. It looks revolting sometimes though, especially with the paté-type wet foods!