Cat Hasn’t Eaten in 4 Days

[Sierrawinston]

My cat Winston (3yrs old 10lbs) has been sick for the last days. Started with puking and diarrhea on Jan 12 and on Jan 13 puking, blood in diarrhea, and refusing food. I took him straight to an emergency vet when I saw the blood and they kept him overnight for fluids and to do an x ray and blood work. They told me the everything looked fine and they were going to treat him for an infection, they sent him home with 5mg omeprazole every 12hrs for 3 days and 0.5mls of metronidazole every 12 hrs for 5 days. As soon as he came home he was hungry and ate his food and didn’t puke it up which I thought was a good sign.

Jan 15 he was still hungry for his breakfast, had some diarrhea but still not puking. He had also been drinking water throughout this. In the evening of Jan 15 he stopped eating his food again.

Jan 16 he didn’t want to eat and he puked again so I took him to a different vet. (The first vet has bad reviews and are impossible to get answers from). The new vet says he is dehydrated and that they want to do multiple x rays after giving him bips to track movement through his system to check for blockages. They also said the medication the other vet prescribed wouldn’t help because his blood work showed no signs of infection. My options were to leave him and have him on an iv for the day or they could do Subcutaneous fluids and give him an anti nausea injection and send him home with me. I wanted to take him home because I know he won’t eat at the vet. Within 5 mins of getting him home he had puked up some of the bips, I called the vet and they wanted me to bring him back because he shouldn’t have thrown up after the anti nausea injection. When I got there with him we decide to do another blood test that also tests for pancreatitis. Winston spent the day there and they did another x ray at the end of the day that showed the bips were moving through his system nicely. He was given pantoprazole while there and was sent home with the iv port still in place. When we got home he still wasn’t hungry and went pee twice throughout the night. He has also been super lethargic throughout this, he’s normally very high energy, very vocal, but he’s been quiet.

Jan 17 I take him back to the vet, they do another x ray and the bips have almost made it through his system and his blood work looks normal still (pancreatitis test results not in yet), the vet also says he can now hear a heart murmur that wasn’t there before and that the 1st vet clinic never heard. He says it can be from the fluids but he is still dehydrated so they want to keep him for the day but alter the amount he gets, they also want to do one more x ray at the end of the day. I got a call from them a couple hours later saying the power had gone out due to a snow storm so I go pick him up. When I picked him up we decided to try mirataz to stimulate his appetite, he was also given a painkiller in case it does end up being pancreatitis as well as the anti nausea injection and pantoprazole. I bring him home and again he has no interest in food so I apply the mirataz to his ear. He went pee and also had a semi normal poop for the first time, I was feeling hopeful. He’s still lethargic and annoyed about the iv port in his arm. He doesn’t end up eating or drinking and started going into the litter box and getting into the position to pee but doesn’t actually try to pee. I’ve seen other cats with utis and he wasn’t straining.

Jan 18 he went back to the vet for more fluids and 2 more x rays to check the progress of the bips and almost all of them had made their way through. The pancreatitis test also came back negative. He was given more fluids, anti nausea, and pantoprazole. The vets said he had peed normally there so they weren’t worried about a uti. He also peed 2 more times at home. I was able to get him to actually eat something that night, 15-20 temptation treats and maybe a tablespoon of friskies wet food which I know neither are good for him but it was at least something. He was also a little less lethargic and purring when I would pet him which he hasn't really done since he stopped eating. Still not drinking water though.

We decided to do an ultrasound today, Jan 19, and also give him more fluids. I’m currently waiting for the phone call with how it went. I’m going to ask the vet for Royal Canin critical care to try to see if he’ll eat that. Does anybody have any other suggestions of what I can be doing at home to get him to eat? It’s killing me not knowing what’s wrong with him.

 

[lollie]

Have you just been trying his regular food? Is he drinking water? When my cat has tummy trouble, all she wants is Gerbers baby food. She will only eat the turkey. I put a little water in it for good measure.

 

[Sierrawinston]

Have you just been trying his regular food? Is he drinking water? When my cat has tummy trouble, all she wants is Gerbers baby food. She will only eat the turkey. I put a little water in it for good measure.

Yah I’ve been offering him his dry food (Nulo) and his normal wet food (tiki) as well 5 different brands and flavours of wet food, boiled chicken, scrambled egg. I’m going to try poached salmon tonight. I’ll try baby food as well. He hasn’t been drinking water but has been getting iv fluids daily for the last 3 days. I have 2 water fountains in different areas for him right now.

 

[fionasmom]

Any Good Tips To Get Your Cats To Eat? Share Them Here!
This is a very popular thread and might have some ideas.

Please let us know what the ultrasound shows.

 

[LeiLatte]

Try something smelly like sardines or tuna? If you were to syringe feed him wet food, would he vomit it back up?

One of my cats had a problem vomiting recently which was out of character for him. A minute or two after eating he would vomit everything up. We thought it might be a foreign body ingested and a blockage. We did blood work, xrays multiple times and ultrasound but nothing was conclusive. He vomited with the anti-nausea injections still. They gave Cerenia several times, but when they gave both Cerenia and Ondansetron he stopped vomiting. He got subq fluids and they also gave me a bag to administer at home when the nausea hadn’t subsided after a few days. The emergency place where he got the ultrasound wanted to monitor him overnight but it was too expensive so I didn’t do it. I stayed home and fed him small portions every couple hours for a couple days which worked after he had the Ondansetron.

I hope your baby feels better soon.

Did they take a stool sample for parasites? Giardia, etc?

 

[Sierrawinston]

Try something smelly like sardines or tuna? If you were to syringe feed him wet food, would he vomit it back up?

One of my cats had a problem vomiting recently which was out of character for him. A minute or two after eating he would vomit everything up. We thought it might be a foreign body ingested and a blockage. We did blood work, xrays multiple times and ultrasound but nothing was conclusive. He vomited with the anti-nausea injections still. They gave Cerenia several times, but when they gave both Cerenia and Ondansetron he stopped vomiting. He got subq fluids and they also gave me a bag to administer at home when the nausea hadn’t subsided after a few days. The emergency place where he got the ultrasound wanted to monitor him overnight but it was too expensive so I didn’t do it. I stayed home and fed him small portions every couple hours for a couple days which worked after he had the Ondansetron.

I hope your baby feels better soon.

Did they take a stool sample for parasites? Giardia, etc?

They haven’t done a stool sample but I’ll bring that up tomorrow. It’s at a point now where it’s hard to get stool because he’s not eating but I’ll see what they say

 

[Sierrawinston]

Update on the ultrasound:

They didn’t see anything unusual while they were doing it except for some gas that’s also been showing up on his x rays. They will have a full report within 48hrs. He’s at home now and still quite sedated but I was able to get him to eat about a tablespooon of wet food before he didn’t want it anymore. He’s had another shot of Cerenia and his Mirataz. I’m hoping once he’s less sedated he’ll want to eat because if he doesn’t the vet is suggesting a feeding tube tomorrow or getting a referral to a specialist who will also probably suggest a feeding tube while they figure out what is going on, and the specialists in my area are not cheap. I will ask about this vet doing a stool sample when I call them with an update tomorrow.

 

[white shadow]

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Hi S Sierrawinston and a very warm welcome to the forum !

A few questions to fill in some of the 'gaps'..............

You mention 'sedation' for the first time in post #7 - when was he sedated and what was used for that?

I'm not familiar with " bips " and I will not make assumptions.......could you explain/provide a reference?

FWIW, you mentioned RC "critical care" food - there's also "Hill's a/d" in the same category and is near-irresistable to cats. IMO, he should already have been offered/recommended assist-feeding by syringe using one of those. Tomorrow should be the deadline for either tube or syringe-feeding.

Can you describe his usual bowel movements (history), problems, frequency, qualities of the stool. Have you ever seen any straining to defecate?

Xrays show stool in the intestines - how much stool is in there?

It sounds like you have the right support there, and there's lots of that here!

Meantime...........we don't refuse pictures here, even in the health discussions.
.

 

[neely]

I’ll try baby food as well.

Just a heads up if you try baby food be sure it is meat and broth only, no seasonings whatsoever. This has worked for me every time our cat had a flare up and stopped eating. Here is an example:
https://www.jewelosco.com/shop/prod...V-hGtBh0RGAf3EAQYASABEgKEU_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[Sierrawinston]

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Hi S Sierrawinston and a very warm welcome to the forum !

A few questions to fill in some of the 'gaps'..............

You mention 'sedation' for the first time in post #7 - when was he sedated and what was used for that?

I'm not familiar with " bips " and I will not make assumptions.......could you explain/provide a reference?

FWIW, you mentioned RC "critical care" food - there's also "Hill's a/d" in the same category and is near-irresistable to cats. IMO, he should already have been offered/recommended assist-feeding by syringe using one of those. Tomorrow should be the deadline for either tube or syringe-feeding.

Can you describe his usual bowel movements (history), problems, frequency, qualities of the stool. Have you ever seen any straining to defecate?

Xrays show stool in the intestines - how much stool is in there?

It sounds like you have the right support there, and there's lots of that here!

Meantime...........we don't refuse pictures here, even in the health discussions.
.

I’m blanking on the name of the sedative but it wore off at around 9pm last night and his energy levels were almost back to pre-sickness. It’s the first time he’s actually wanted to play.

I did end up getting hills a/d and got him to eat almost half a can last night, he still doesn’t want to eat it off the plate but will eventually lick it off my fingers.

Bips are a little barium infused spheres that provide image contrasting on x rays.

His bowel movements in the past are typically pretty normal, he’s has the occasional day or two of diarrhea or mild constipation but it clears up after giving him a bit of pumpkin in his wet food. He normally doesn’t strain. The x ray that I saw that had stool had a less than average amount for him and that came out on the 17th.

He didn’t end up peeing or pooping last night but was going into the litter box and kind of switching between the pee and poo positions with nothing happening, I almost thought I heard some gas pass though but I’m not 100% sure (this was while he was still mildly sedated). His stomach feels a bit hard today so I’m going to let the vet know when I call them just in case he’s now constipated or has a new urinary tract issue. I also forgot to mention he was given subcutaneous fluids yesterday.

As I’m typing this I’ve had Winston laying in my arms and he just jumped up and went to his kibble! What a relief (as long as it stays down).

 

[downton ali]

Did they check him for a urinary blockage and try to thread a catheter through his urethra?
Apologies if I've missed you already mentioning this. My guy had this twice. First time he sat over the litter box overnight - and didn't look like he was straining - but didn't wee either. He barely ate, was sometimes lethargic/sometimes not, and vomited, I took him to the vet and bingo. Not saying Winston has a blockage, but he doesn't sound materially better yet so thought I'd chime in in the off chance it may be helpful.

Re: Pancreatitis- I've heard that the tests are not always correct. If the symptoms look like it, why don't they treat him for it to determine if he improves or not?

 

[Sierrawinston]

Did they check him for a urinary blockage and try to thread a catheter through his urethra?
Apologies if I've missed you already mentioning this. My guy had this twice. First time he sat over the litter box overnight - and didn't look like he was straining - but didn't wee either. He barely ate, was sometimes lethargic/sometimes not, and vomited, I took him to the vet and bingo. Not saying Winston has a blockage, but he doesn't sound materially better yet so thought I'd chime in in the off chance it may be helpful.

They weren’t concerned about it when went into the litter box the first time without peeing Jan 17 because he peed at the clinic on the 18th and it was a healthy amount with no strain and then two more times at home that night. Throughout this whole ordeal Jan 17 and Jan 19 have been the only 2 days he hasn’t peed but have also been the 2 days he was either given pain medication or been sedated. I’m 100% letting the vets know about the behaviour when I call them around noon with an update. If he doesn’t pee in the next hour or so I’ll probably end up calling them sooner.

 

[Sierrawinston]

I gave the vet a call and let them know how much he had eaten and the receptionist seemed pleased with it, also told her about the litter box behaviour and how he hadn’t peed. Luckily he ended up having a normal pee right after I got off the phone with them. She is concerned that he’s still not drinking water and recommended trying to get him to drink some via syringe. She’s going to pass this info along to the vet and then we’ll go from there.
He’s not as receptacle to being fed his wet food right now but I’ve been able to feed him a tablespoon of it this morning as well as 5 temptation treats. I just gave him his mirataz dose and will try again in an hour. I also checked how much of his dry food he ate and I’d guess it was only a tablespoon or twos worth.

Regarding the pancreatitis I think we’re waiting on the full ultrasound report to come back which will be today or tomorrow. A lot of the things they’ve been doing like the iv fluids and anti nausea are all things they’d be doing to treat pancreatitis anyways, they did send him home with buprenorphine for pain but I haven’t given him any yet.

 

[neely]

Regarding the pancreatitis I think we’re waiting on the full ultrasound report to come back which will be today or tomorrow.

Glad they were able to do an ultrasound. Maybe I missed it but just out of curiosity did they run an fPLI test for pancreatitis?

 

[Sierrawinston]

Yes they did and it came back negative

 

[Sierrawinston]

Ultrasound report is in and the only thing they found was evidence of gastroenteritis. There was some thickening of the gall bladder wall but they aren’t concerned about that because his blood work was normal. I’ll be keeping him on hills a/d for the next little bit and picking up a prescription for anti nausea pills to go along with his appetite stimulant. If I can’t get him up to the recommended amount of calories a day we’ll be going back to the vet for a feeding tube. They’re hopeful he’s on the mend though.

 

[Sierrawinston]

Update:

Winston had diarrhea twice last night but it wasn’t nearly as bad as it was when this all started. I let the vets office know while I was picking up the cerenia and they said it could be just from him eating a new food but they’d let the vet know. I got home, gave him 1/4 of a pill and waited an hour before hand feeding him some more of the a/d. It was going really well, he ate more in one sitting than yesterday. About 30 mins later he puked it back up but it wasn’t a full body puke, more he just opened his mouth and it came out. I thought maybe it was just too much at once so I waited another hour before offering him anything else. In that time he went and drank some water which he hasn’t been doing so I was pleased about that. He also ate some kibble on his own. When I fed him the a/d again, not even a teaspoons worth he puked it up within 10mins so I called the vet and they want him to go in tomorrow morning. I won’t be offering him anymore a/d, and will try some of the other wet foods I’ve collected throughout this. We also have some gastro food that he has zero interest in. I’m feeling pretty defeated. Could he be having a bad reaction to the anti nausea?

 

[FeebysOwner]

It may be the A/D is too rich for him. But, there are cats that don't do well with Cirenia either. So hard to tell, and sorry that this is going on.

 

[Sierrawinston]

He’s back at the vet for the day. They’re doing another ultrasound and x ray at no cost because they still think it could be a blockage and they’re giving him more fluids. We’ll be discussing scoping or exploratory surgery at the end of the day. We can’t really afford to wait any longer because he’s down to 8lbs.
The vet was saying it’s unlikely he’s having a reaction to the cirenia but we’re taking him off of it and potentially trying a different anti nausea.
I also went to a specialty pet store and they gave me a bunch of free samples of novel protein foods for him to try.
I’ve also asked them to do a fecal test if he goes to the bathroom while he’s there today which is likely because he had diarrhea in his carrier while we were there. When they were examining him the vet said he felt really gassy which has been a common theme with it showing up on the x rays and ultrasound. I’m going to ask them when I pick him up but would baby gas drops help with the gas? I used to have a rabbit and I would give her ovol (Simeticone) when she was gassy.

 

[fionasmom]

I am glad that they are working with you from the financial perspective, at least. Let us know what you find out.

I’m going to ask them when I pick him up but would baby gas drops help with the gas?

Simethicone can be used with cats, but in your case with all that is going on you definitely want to ask your vet if it would be okay and what the appropriate dose would be.