Hi all
I last posted here a few months ago when I had ongoing concerns about my (then) 9 month old rescue kitten Sam's diet. Fortunately we got it sorted in the end. He is now happily eating well and also we found a dry food, (James Wellbeloved) that has absolutely no cereal in it. He loves this and we give him a very small amount as a treat every day.
My new concern is about my old 15 year old cat Tim (both my cats are indoor cats by the way). Tim is the avatar photo I use above. That photo was taken many years ago and he has slimmed down a lot since then! He had a full physical around December and the vet said he was fine, but borderline hyperthyroid. I know all about hyperthyroidism in cats as I experienced it with a cat I owned previously.
Looking down at Tim yesterday, I noticed that he suddenly has developed extremely swollen sides. When you press them it feels like a balloon. He does not seem to be in any pain, not yowling, but is eating less than he normally does, and drinking more than usual. Not very much more I might add. He has never been a great drinker.
I have been very busy lately, and it transpires my husband has been overfeeding Tim with the dry food we give mainly to the younger Sam I mentioned above, "as he loves it." Tim normally only poops every other day, but passed a minuscule "cigarette" sized poop about 6 days ago, and one a bit larger - the last time he went 3 days ago, after which he was scooting on the carpet. He is not attempting to poo either when he does go to the litter box. I have also noticed some dried faeces around his anus too. However, he is not licking his bottom, he is not vomiting or retching. His waterworks seem okay and smell okay. He seems fairly bright, he never has been a cat to run around either, so his inactivity is normal for him. However, I am really concerned about the bloating. Could this be the result of constipation or something sinister that has just happened out of the blue?
Shirley
I last posted here a few months ago when I had ongoing concerns about my (then) 9 month old rescue kitten Sam's diet. Fortunately we got it sorted in the end. He is now happily eating well and also we found a dry food, (James Wellbeloved) that has absolutely no cereal in it. He loves this and we give him a very small amount as a treat every day.
My new concern is about my old 15 year old cat Tim (both my cats are indoor cats by the way). Tim is the avatar photo I use above. That photo was taken many years ago and he has slimmed down a lot since then! He had a full physical around December and the vet said he was fine, but borderline hyperthyroid. I know all about hyperthyroidism in cats as I experienced it with a cat I owned previously.
Looking down at Tim yesterday, I noticed that he suddenly has developed extremely swollen sides. When you press them it feels like a balloon. He does not seem to be in any pain, not yowling, but is eating less than he normally does, and drinking more than usual. Not very much more I might add. He has never been a great drinker.
I have been very busy lately, and it transpires my husband has been overfeeding Tim with the dry food we give mainly to the younger Sam I mentioned above, "as he loves it." Tim normally only poops every other day, but passed a minuscule "cigarette" sized poop about 6 days ago, and one a bit larger - the last time he went 3 days ago, after which he was scooting on the carpet. He is not attempting to poo either when he does go to the litter box. I have also noticed some dried faeces around his anus too. However, he is not licking his bottom, he is not vomiting or retching. His waterworks seem okay and smell okay. He seems fairly bright, he never has been a cat to run around either, so his inactivity is normal for him. However, I am really concerned about the bloating. Could this be the result of constipation or something sinister that has just happened out of the blue?
Shirley
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