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Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

Original poster

Should I blend the food?

28 replies

Squiz81 · 05/10/2021 12:36

Hi

We have acquired a cat. Her actual owner has dementia (has forgotten she has cats) she moved in with her son and the cat did a runner - she was getting bullied by another cat and they have a dog than can be a bit of a nightmare. He told me when I first tracked him down that she looked better now as her eyes were always weepy because of the bullying (which makes me think she’s been ill a while)

Anyway, she has gone rapidly down hill the last few days and now isn’t eating, but is still drinking regularly. She will have those webbox lick treats.

The vet is booked for tomorrow but not until 5pm, but I’m worried how long that is for her to go with out food. I haven’t had cats before, but I’m assuming that’s too long?? Should I blend up some wet food with water and see if she licks it up?

Thanks in advance

Should I blend the food?
OP posts:
Wrongsideofhistorymyarse · 05/10/2021 13:02

Could you get her to the emergency vet? She may need to be seen more urgently than tomorrow if it's been a few days.

Original poster
Squiz81 · 05/10/2021 15:34

@Wrongsideofhistorymyarse

Could you get her to the emergency vet? She may need to be seen more urgently than tomorrow if it's been a few days.
Just got home and my husband let her out and she’s gone for a wander - so looks like emergency vet isn’t going to be an option 🤦🏻‍♀️
OP posts:
Wrongsideofhistorymyarse · 05/10/2021 15:43

That's unfortunate. Flowers

My lovely FIV is barely eating and we're at the vet again tomorrow. It's so hard to see him wasting away.

Wrongsideofhistorymyarse · 05/10/2021 15:44
  • boy
Original poster
Squiz81 · 05/10/2021 15:56

It’s awful to see, sorry to hear about your boy. We’ve had her such a short time but I feel such love for her. I take comfort from the fact she at least has somewhere warm and dry to rest.

Once she comes back she might be banned from leaving before the vets appointment!

OP posts:
Beamur · 05/10/2021 16:13

Have you tried her on anything other than cat food?
If her appetite is off she might need something a bit more pungent to get her interest - maybe some fish if you have any?
I'd be concerned that she hasn't eaten for a few days, plus the weepy eyes does suggest she's rather under par.

Vinorosso74 · 05/10/2021 17:01

I would try to get her seen sooner too (not easy if she's out I realise), even tomorrow morning would be better.
You could try warming the food in the microwave so it smells stronger, 10 seconds is enough to make it stinky. Boiled chicken or turkey breast may be tempting for her, cut it small.

felinelucky · 05/10/2021 17:16

I guess what with her (1) not eating and (2) being able to go outside you haven't been able to monitor whether she's pooping normally, OP?

Original poster
Squiz81 · 05/10/2021 21:40

@felinelucky

I guess what with her (1) not eating and (2) being able to go outside you haven't been able to monitor whether she's pooping normally, OP?
She went outside and did a normal poo I think at the weekend, I’ve not seen any others but she has left the garden so they could be elsewhere.

She has returned so I gave her another webbox and then used that to scoop up some felix cat soup in the hope that she’d keep licking it up. A few little bits went in. She also smells quite bad.

I’ll ring in the morning and see if they have anything earlier. She is so wobbly on her legs. I don’t think it’s looking very promising for her. She was climbing the stairs Sunday and I don’t think she’d attempt that today.

OP posts:
Original poster
Squiz81 · 05/10/2021 21:45

@Vinorosso74

I would try to get her seen sooner too (not easy if she's out I realise), even tomorrow morning would be better. You could try warming the food in the microwave so it smells stronger, 10 seconds is enough to make it stinky. Boiled chicken or turkey breast may be tempting for her, cut it small.
Thanks I will try that. She does lick her lips when I show her the food, so makes me think she can smell it and fancies it - just something stopping her from eating - that and the bad smell makes me wonder about her teeth
OP posts:
WildWomenDo · 05/10/2021 21:45

If you have a small medicine syringe you could try blending some food, mixing with water and dropping into her mouth. It’s messy but sometimes when cats are ill they stop eating and need encouragement to start again before they can pick up. Obviously still needs to see the vet but this might get some fluids into her too which is important.

Original poster
Squiz81 · 05/10/2021 21:50

@Beamur

Have you tried her on anything other than cat food? If her appetite is off she might need something a bit more pungent to get her interest - maybe some fish if you have any? I'd be concerned that she hasn't eaten for a few days, plus the weepy eyes does suggest she's rather under par.
I just got her to eat a bit of ham, I know that’s not the best, but it’s all I have in

Thank you for replying everyone.

OP posts:
Original poster
Squiz81 · 05/10/2021 22:01

@WildWomenDo

If you have a small medicine syringe you could try blending some food, mixing with water and dropping into her mouth. It’s messy but sometimes when cats are ill they stop eating and need encouragement to start again before they can pick up. Obviously still needs to see the vet but this might get some fluids into her too which is important.
She is drinking regularly from her bowl and the bird bath hopefully isn’t dehydrated.

I do have a syringe for when I used to have rabbits, I often had to syringe feed one that had tummy trouble. I’ll give it a go, thanks

OP posts:
Keeping2ChevronsApart · 05/10/2021 22:38

Our cat refused to eat for days, going to the bowl then walking away. She became very wobbly from lack of food so we took her to the vet. She was about 14 so we thought she was on her way out. All of her bloods were fine but it turned out she needed 14 teeth out which explained the smell.

icedcoffees · 06/10/2021 06:55

It definitely sounds like it could be her teeth - but to give you a heads up, a dental and removal probably won't be cheap and it's rarely covered by insurance.

felinelucky · 06/10/2021 07:18

I'm kind of crossing fingers that it is teeth, OP, because at least that's easily solved. See if the vet can give you a couple of tins of Hills a/d restorative care. That's easily sucked up in a 10ml syringe and it's delicious and high cal.

Wrongsideofhistorymyarse · 06/10/2021 09:55

I hope your kitty is okay today OP. My boy has licked the gravy off some food so I'm also wondering if it's his teeth.

Original poster
Squiz81 · 06/10/2021 14:03

I’ve wondered for a while if her teeth aren’t right, just from the way she was eating. But it’s only been the last few weeks she started to trust us. I’ve had no hope of getting her to the vet sooner.

Today at lunch I spoon fed her some tuna, she was very excited about it, so she definitely has an appetite. I also bought some expensive Lily’s kitchen pate stuff as I thought she would be able to eat that better and she managed a little bit. (It seems so strong thoughEnvy)

Not long until the vets, thanks for the heads up about the cost of dental work. I very much doubt the last owner has insurance anyway!

Should I blend the food?
OP posts:
Original poster
Squiz81 · 06/10/2021 14:40

*smells so strong

I really wish we could edit posts!

OP posts:
Beamur · 06/10/2021 15:13

Bad teeth are pretty straightforward to fix. If this is a new vet, might be worth asking if they have a vaccination scheme, they often include fixed price dental work.

Original poster
Squiz81 · 06/10/2021 16:03

@Beamur

Bad teeth are pretty straightforward to fix. If this is a new vet, might be worth asking if they have a vaccination scheme, they often include fixed price dental work.
Thanks for the tip, I’ll ask. I know the vet well as at one point we had 9 rabbits, I’ve never been in with a cat though. I trust her not to rip me off, I’m nervous how much it might be though!
OP posts:
Original poster
Squiz81 · 06/10/2021 17:17

Vet said she only has 2 teeth and they’re fine.

Not looking good for her though, he can’t see anything wrong but is going to try and give her some anti inflammatory and reckons the side effect might be stimulated appetite. It wasn’t the vet I used to see sadly, it was a new guy.

OP posts:
WildWomenDo · 06/10/2021 20:02

If it doesn’t work ask if you can have some Mirtazapine to give in tablet form, that gets my anorexic cat eating.

Original poster
Squiz81 · 06/10/2021 20:49

Thanks @WildWomenDo I will ask. As soon as she got back from the vets she looked for food, hasn’t managed much but has gone back to it a few times. So hopefully it’s done some good.

OP posts:
Beamur · 06/10/2021 21:58

Are they doing blood tests?
Kidney problems can affect appetite.

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