Getting my Lucas to try raw, a new journey...

[ldg]

Oh Tammy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow - I know this is stressing you beyond measure and breaking your heart.

My only next suggestion, if he doesn't go for liver, or kidney, or gizzard, or heart or something would be.... whipping the meat and syringe feeding him. I mean - the boy needs food, and so far there aren't any cans or kibbles that are working.

 

[momto4kitties]

I have no words for what I'm feeling right now, he has a great appetite and loves his food right now, I just feel that every bite he takes is harming him.  I've been crying my eyes out and my Mom and brother keep telling me to just keep giving him the salmon for a couple of weeks to see what happens.  I just couldn't give him any raw today because now he has to go through another food change.  It is amazing how good he has been at accepting new foods like the venison and salmon, he loves them both.  My next step is to try the Nature's logic that AC suggested and continue trying the raw. 

I never thought this would happen to my boy, is not fair

I've been also thinking maybe I shuld lower his dose of prednisolone again since it isn't helping at all, it helps him when he has a lupus crisis, but not his allergies.  He is on 10mg I will give him 7.5 tomorrow and keep him on that for a few days,.  I've been freaking out because I red that sometimes the prednisolone can cause skin problems.  Also the FIV can cause skin problems , so who knows,  I feel like I don't know anymore.  I know he has food allergies.. but he has so many things that it gets confusing.

I feel like if he eats raw, maybe all his problems could go away, but I don't see that happening any time soon.

 

[ldg]

Oh Tammy.... Try the salmon. :nod: :cross:

 

[momto4kitties]

I wen't today and bought beef liver and chicken liver, I think he might like it and if he doesn't he might like it cooked, I know is not the same, but my situation is desperate.  I think the consistency of liver could help.

 

[momto4kitties]

Well, this is it, Lucas needs to eat raw or at least cooked meat today,  I know this is supposed to be done slowly,but this is an emergency, he is looking pretty bad today, the NB is getting him worse, I need him to just start eating the meat now.  I will try really hard today because theres no other choice. Don't know what else to do.

 

[Willowy]

Like LDG said, you can grind up the meat (raw or cooked) and force-feed it to him. He won't like it much but maybe it'll get him used to the taste. People do that to get pet ferrets to eat a different food. . .and no kitty could be as stubborn as a ferret when it comes to food! :lol3:

 

[feralvr]

Tammy- I can hear the desperation in your writing's.... I would absolutely be the exact same way. This IS the most painful thing to endure, seeing your Lucas suffering so with skin issues. We all want this raw diet to work for Lucas and just want him to please give it a chance :cross:...... As Laurie suggested.... and I don't know how you would feel about doing it - but to whip up the meat and syringe little by little into your baby. I had to try this with Perla just recently :nod:.. she has been ill and had no appetite - I had to resort to syringe feeding her a little throughout the day and then that sparked up her appetite. I was so surprised - I thought she would hate me but she did not. She actually started eating on her own after a little syringing. AND yes - it was raw meat mashed up very well and it was easy to syringe. Please know that I am keeping you close in my thought's, Tammy . For Lucas today - prayers that he will eat that liver :cross:

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

just sending some

 

[momto4kitties]

I wrote this message twice, but I've been so stressed that I forgot to click send.  Ok, things have been pretty bad here today.  I was desperate because Lucas is looking bad, so I decided to cut tiny pieces of chicken liver (raw) and put them  on  a plate for Lucas.  He as always ,refused, so I decided to put a little piece of it in his mouth so he can at least try it, he needs to taste it.   Well, he got really upset and he got inside the litter box, I thought he was just hiding because he didn't want the meat, but, he looked like he wanted to pee.   The weird thing is that he didn't just do that once, he kept getting in the litter box and trying to pee and just a little came out, I panicked !  But I know he wasn't having any problem urinating before, in fact, he is the only cat that sleeps on my bed and I know he was peeing fine last night and this morning.  So , I guess it was stress what caused it. Lucas is a very nervous boy.

I was so scared about the way he was acting that I took him outside and I let him walk on the grass and relax a bit.  He loves that.  But when he came back in,he went straight to the litter box.

I"m watching him and if it continues I will take him to the vet today.  But I know stress caused this, he was find before.

In better news: Nena and Flaqui devoured their raw liver like champions, they even licked the plate.  They are on raw everyday  and a little kibble, I will have them eating raw only soon.

Tammy

 

[ldg]

Oh Tammy! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[momto4kitties]

I'm happy to say Lucas is not having problems urinating, he is fine now.  But I will watch him just in case. 

 

[ldg]

Well that's good news!

So... have you decided what to try next for helping him eat? :cross:

 

[momto4kitties]

Well, I decided to give him the Royal Canin again, I"m out of choices.  And I will order the Nature's Logic cat food so I can continue trying the raw.  From now on  I will encourage him to eat it, I won't force it,he is very sensitive and he is a very nervous boy.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Ok, then, how about cooking up the liver?  That boy of yours is going to be stubborn all right!  But now let's just hope he's not getting a UTI

 

[momto4kitties]

Hi:

 I cooked the liver and he hated it

  

I had to make a quick decision today about what I was going to feed him, it is a  very difficult decision because he is allergic to everything.  So, since he is allergic to every food I've tried, I decided to buy more z/d canned and work with that and the Royal Canin Hypoallergenic.  The z/d causes a belly rash, but the other foods cause a worse reaction.  I'm also giving him 2Docs Allergy Defense to see if it helps.

I will order another canned food that was recomended by a friend, and until that I will keep trying to encourage him to eat the raw, praying that someday he will.

I'm sad to say I think he might have an UTI, today he went to the litter box a lot of times and I found a lot of small amouts of urine in different areas of the litter.  I'm still thinking it could be stress because he was fine befor I forced a little bit of meat into his mouth, but if it continues tomorrow, I will take him to the vet.  I didn;t take him today because he peed just fine last night and in the morning.

 

[ldg]

Tammy, trying to force a small bit of meat in his mouth would not be enough stress to cause this. He's been eating kibble for a while, right? That could be the culprit. When we were feeding the cats only kibble when we first adopted them, the boys all developed crystals in their urine. We then switched to some canned and some kibble, but both the prescription stuff. That cleared it up - but not until they'd all blocked several times, because we didn't switch to the prescription right away.

Given he's in and out of the box, this is not something to "wait and see." You need to get a urine culture done, sweetie. It's just too dangerous for males if they face a blockage from crystals.

 

[momto4kitties]

I know all that Laurie, thank you.  Since he started doing it the moment I gave him the piece of meat I  thought it was stress, even thought I know those are singns of uti or crystals.  It was just so weird that he started doing that in that exact moment, I mean , I was with him the whole day and he was perfectly fine,  It was one of those coincidences I guess.    He hasn't been to the litter box for hours now, but I decided to take a urine sample tomorrow, I've done it before, because I don't want Lucas to have to suffer the procedure of the vet taking the sample.  I will then take him to the vet with the sample, I will do that tomorrow. 

I knew this could happen someday, because of the kibble.  And to make things worse, Lucas is allergic to the food and he can't eat the food prescribed for urinary problems, I will just have to stop giving him kibble, that alone should help, right?

Now I have another thing to worry about, right now the urine problem is more important than the food allergies.

 

[feralvr]

Oh dear.... Tammy - I can't believe it - poor Lucas and poor momma You are right - you must prioritize at the moment and the urinary tract infection or whatever is going on has to be taken care of right away. I can tell you that stress will trigger bladder inflammation and cause issues like this. Pipsqueak as you know - has blood in urine, no crystals or stones - high strung kitty and stresses easily. It might NOT be stress - but just in addition to the dry diet - it is possible because you say he is a nervous boy. I am sure it is not from you putting the meat into his mouth - no - that would not cause that quick of a bladder issue. The bladder issue might be compounded by the dry diet and if he is a nervous/sensitive kitty. Praying extra hard for Lucas tonight - please let us know how he is doing.

 

[momto4kitties]

Thank you so much Lauren, your words always make me feel better.  Well everyone here  help me so much.  Yes, It is weird that forcing the meat in his mouth caused it, I doubt it really, but you should have seen him , as soon as he felt that meat in his mouth, he ran into the litter box.

Oh, my poor boy  I'm thinking it must be crystals, I just hope I can help him by feeding him some sort of canned food because I doubt he will be able to eat the hills u/d or something like that, he is so allergic

 

[feralvr]

Thank you so much Lauren, your words always make me feel better.  Well everyone here  help me so much.  Yes, It is weird that forcing the meat in his mouth caused it, I doubt it really, but you should have seen him , as soon as he felt that meat in his mouth, he ran into the litter box.

Oh, my poor boy  I'm thinking it must be crystals, I just hope I can help him by feeding him some sort of canned food because I doubt he will be able to eat the hills u/d or something like that, he is so allergic

Let's just cross that bridge together when we get there. First - that urinalysis .... :cross: for some answers in that test. One thing at a time