Decreased senior appetite, normals labs & imaging

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sidneykitty

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Right I did read about its non-cat use a bit... I wasn't given specific instructions by the vet to give it regularly (or not) nor was it mentioned if it should be tapered on or off, but that makes sense. Most anti-depressants I know of in humans at least are not meant to be stopped abruptly... The mirtaz was given more as a "help to get you through the weekend" kind of thing. But I can give her more for sure.

I guess I just worry about giving appetite stimulants on the regular. Will it cause her to stop eating if she goes off them? Like will she become dependent? What is the reason she even needs them to make her eat? I guess it makes me a little sad to think about her being on an appetite stimulant long-term in order to make her eat enough. I start to worry if its just old age, if she is slowly dying or something and it just breaks my heart. :( She's due to be 16 next month. Somehow I feel like it'd be easier to bear if she needed appetite stimulants longterm if we had an actual diagnosis of something wrong.

On the plus side - just after I made my previous post, she did jump up onto the counter where I had her chicken I put her cisapride in and was trying to stick her nose in to eat it. So it seems like she has somewhat an appetite? But wanted the chicken/didn't want to eat her regular wet food.
 

daftcat75

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What if she “needs” the appetite stimulant because her usual diet is inflammatory? And if that’s causing her constipation, then that could also be slowing her eating. If she can have amazing poops eating all wet, maybe she’ll learn to associate the kibble with being constipated and won’t be as interested in it anymore. I suggest using the appetite stimulant to give her a fish and kibble break and see how her poops go. If she can’t reproduce the amazing poops, you can go back to square one and try something else. But if giving her the munchies improves her diet for her own good, well, some senior cats do end up on Mirtaz long-term. Krista has been on steroids since January. I have to worry more about pacing her appetite more than drumming it up. 🤦🏼‍♂️ But I’ve only just discovered/confirmed her biggest inflammatory trigger. Maybe without constantly re-triggering it, her gut may cool long enough for us to eventually taper off them. But if not, it’s been a relief to not have to worry about her eating this year.
 
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sidneykitty

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Well yes that's true. I do hope she eventually associates wet food with good feelings and wants it all the time.

I gave her Mirtaz 0.5" again after my post. I do have to correct myself: the label says to give "as needed". Then I took a shower. When I came back my partner told me she'd been in the litterbox and there were some newly deposited formed poops in it. So that's very good. Again, I'd say they were on the smaller side. But I do think I'd expect her poops to be smaller on the no-fiber kibble, mostly wet food diet.

But if giving her the munchies improves her diet for her own good, well, some senior cats do end up on Mirtaz long-term.
Yes I actually discussed this with our former vet in Canada. At the time, I felt okay with the idea, but for some reason now it just makes me feel sad and emotional. I guess its also just all the worry I've been having about her lately adding to it. But you are right. Some older cats do just end up on it. Thank you for the reassurance. :hugs:

I know I've said it before, but I am a big worrier and I can get carried away thinking about all the "what ifs" in the future. Sometimes I get trapped in worrying about knowing she isn't going to live forever and trying to face the inevitable, but I know nothing I do now will really help me when it happens anyway...(other than loving her and doing everything I can to help) I am sure many of us feel this way about our beloved cats.
 
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sidneykitty

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Knocking on wood...we're doing fine here. Amber played with her orange ball yesterday and today. 🧡

She'll be on cisapride longterm and the Mirtaz was very helpful for getting her to eat. She's back up to 9 lbs now! Longterm we hope she will continue eating on her own without needing Mirtaz.

We finally went more than two weeks without having to take her into the vet which is a milestone for the last few months!
 
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sidneykitty

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Does anyone have advice on this? This is the second or third time its happened. She was pooping today, but it was still hanging out of her butt (like a good 2" log) when she tried burying it in the box. Then she stepped out of the box and had to rub her butt on the floor to get the poop off. :(
I know butt scooting happens with worms and anal gland issues, but what about this scenario? It was like the poop was too soft or something for her to quite get it "tailed off" all the way?
 

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My boy has dingleberry troubles when his fur under his tail gets too long, and sometimes when his poops are sticky. He'll do the scoot to try and get it off of him. I give him a hygiene trim, and I've sometimes had what appeared to be decent luck by increasing his kibble, but I don't really know if that helps or his stomach just settled back to normal.
 
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sidneykitty

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Thanks! It was a softer poop than normal and the next day she had a little diarrhea. So maybe it was a sign of things to come. Hasn't happened again, though, so hopefully its just a once in a while type of thing.
 
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