Decrease In Appetite In 2 Cats :( - Sassy And Charlie

[miguel99nyc]

Hello Everyone,

So in the past few days, my 16yr old cat Sassy has been eating far less. For some reason, she does feel hungry when its time to eat, she acts completely normal asking for food , comes to kitchen to eat, make her smell the can when I open and she begins licking it. Im like OK, so I quickly place it in her bowl of food (ceramic plate) and she would just lick for few seconds and then turns away not wanting to eat it. Then I get more food from can with utencil, and she begins to eat more of the utencil...So i thought maybe I need to clean up her bowl (which I always do anyway every night). So I did a thorough cleaning again and tried this morning, she would not eat from her plate, and would eat very little from utencil. Maybe just half of a 3 oz. can which is very little to what she was eating say...4-5 days ago. This has been developing over the past 2-3 days. I thought it would have improved but hasn't. And after she gets full I guess? , I'd try to give her one more spoon, she like turns her head away and like quickly trots away as if she gets scared or something . From my past posts, she has early kidney disease though many on this site after viewing her blood work and urine believe she doesnt. Her values did not worsen at all since 2 years ago diagnose by vet, and even recent bloodwork this past January vet said her kidney values are still well within normal. She did throw up hairball chunk 2 mornings ago, which she rarely does actually, and so I thought maybe that was obstructing her but she still not barely eating now. This similar issue has occured in January, which vet did not say what was causing, other then giving her Mirtazapine, Cerenia and Famotidine - she got better after few days of medication and was fine since until few days ago. Only difference between her not eating then and now, was that any water she drank she would throw it up right after drinking...and she would not want to eat almost anything. AT least now she isnt throwing up water...and eating just slightly more then when she had this same issue in January. vet did bloodwork and xrays and all was normal. Next was ultrasound of abdomen...but since she got better, I didn't opt for it since I felt wasn't needed.

As for my other cat Charlie, he has pancreatitis...but was given Prednisone about a month ago as well for a week, and his values for pancreas went normal after just a week of medication. Then I was instructed to give it to him once every other day. But after that first week, Charlies was like a whole new cat, eating a lot and well. But since reducing the medication to now, I just give it maybe once every 2-3 days, he hasn't been finishing his food. But at least he eats somewhat from his bowl. Still eats bit of dry food as well but Im trying to steer from that since he has recurring urinary tract issues for several years already.

Now the vet says I can either try Mirtazpine on both cats to stimulate their appetite...but Im afraid because with Sassy, I literallly gave her just ONE pill after January visit, yes made her hungry again but literally thats all it took as she began eating soon after and a lot. However, it made her restless and vocal which got me really scared. so I don't know if I want to go through it with Sassy again...and as for Charlie, he never had it so...not sure how he would react. Plus, I feel like putting them on mirtzapine is like cheating...they should be able to eat well on their own unless something is ailing them right?? Otherwise vet says to bring them in to see if they have fever, do an adominal ultrasounds on both!, or perhaps they need dental work...but I severely doubt its dental related... Charlie has had dental problems for past years...but he hasn't really been known to eat A LOT despite those teeth problems. And, if he loves dry food more, should that not be more painful to eat then wet soft foods?

So I'd like to know thoughts if anyone can help before either going through Mirtazapine or if theres other appetite stimulants, or if I should bring them back to the vet...again after bringing them both for not eating in January...The vet does deem it really strange how they both not eating as much at same time, both cats not related to each other and are of different age Sassy is 16 and charlie 13. And ive tried giving them like 5-7 different cans of food that they love...but still get same result of not eating it. I thought it was bad batch since i got cases of 24 of those flavors...Friksies and Fancy Feast...but I don't think that's the case either.

Thank You so much all! Would really appreciate the help!

 

[babiesmom5]

I think at this point I would opt for GI ultrasound of both cats to rule out something nefarious going on. I mean, both cats are of the age where IBD, Pancreatitis and other chronic GI issues often emerge.

Charlie you say does have Pancreatitis...which does not occur in a vacuum, but rather is symptomatic of a chronic underlying issue in or about the abdominal region. With him, it could be a pancreatic flare as it is often chronic.

I would not just give Mirtazapine, or any other appetite stimulant without knowing the cause. You are just "masking the symptoms"; thus delaying getting a proper diagnosis and starting treatment.

With both cats, it seems there is something else going on other than simple lack of appetite. I would try to get to the bottom of this sooner rather than later.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

B babiesmom5 just gave you the advice I was thinking of when I read your post. Find out what is going on with these guys. Now, cats MUST eat, or risk fatty liver disease, so if necessary, mix a pate type canned food with water, and help your cats eat with a syringe. Draw up the food mixture, place the tip of the syringe between the cheek and the gum, and slow insert a bit of food at a time, allowing them to swallow after each "bite." That will give you breathing space while you and your vet determine what is happening to cause this, but it does NOT take the place of medical care! It is just support.

 

[miguel99nyc]

I think at this point I would opt for GI ultrasound of both cats to rule out something nefarious going on. I mean, both cats are of the age where IBD, Pancreatitis and other chronic GI issues often emerge.

Charlie you say does have Pancreatitis...which does not occur in a vacuum, but rather is symptomatic of a chronic underlying issue in or about the abdominal region. With him, it could be a pancreatic flare as it is often chronic.

I would not just give Mirtazapine, or any other appetite stimulant without knowing the cause. You are just "masking the symptoms"; thus delaying getting a proper diagnosis and starting treatment.

With both cats, it seems there is something else going on other than simple lack of appetite. I would try to get to the bottom of this sooner rather than later.

Thank you! But if ultrasound doesn't show, what could next steps be? I guess vet would only be the one to tell me, but to me sometimes I feel the vet just wants money and will just keep throwing at me so many different options of testing. In fact he literally says, "We can get bottom of this...depending how deep further you want us to explore this." Which kinda makes sense but the way he says also angers me because its like...either I spend the money or they can't help.

 

[babiesmom5]

An ultrasound is an important first step in that, if nothing nefarious shows, you can breathe a sigh of relief and work backwards.

However, if the ultrasound shows thickening of the intestinal tract, tumors, pancreas, gallbladder, or liver abnormalities, then further diagnostics are needed. This could involve a biopsy.

Unfortunately, diagnosing cat maladies does involve expenses, but it is money well spent when one considers the alternative.

I do think what your vet is telling you makes sense, but if you are not comfortable with his approach, you could always seek a second opinion.

I would recommend an Internal Medicine Vet as they are the ones most experienced and knowledgeable in this area.