Hospice, Hyperthyroid 20 Year Old Not Eating

[riley1]

Hi All!

I have this kitty for a couple weeks while her regular caregiver is out of town. She ate well the first 2 days but then became very fussy about food. The problem is not appetite as she is begging for food constantly. I have given her every kind of Tiki Cat food, tuna, sardines, cooked canned chicken, cooked frozen fish, every kind of Fancy Feast that has liquid because they like to lick the juice, Stella & Chewys freeze dried, Rad Cat raw, Primal Raw Rabbit, varies other canned foods and KMR. Someone said to try raw goats milk and NV freeze dried. I am really worn out over this. She eats a little of this and a little of that & sometimes none of what is offered. She was surrendered to the no kill shelter where I used to work earlier this year because her owner died and was deemed to old for any of the permanent solutions for hyperthyroidism. She is on Methimazole twice per day.
She seems to be enjoying my home. It is less noisy and busy than her regular place where she stays in a room because she is afraid of the resident cats. My only goal here was to spoil her a little bit and now I can't even get her to eat.
My beloved last cat had intestinal cancer and behaved like this. Begging to eat but could eat what was offered. She however is not vomiting.
Does anyone know what would cause this situation?

 

[Cat Sidhe]

It must be frustrating to see her like that. Poor kitty

I´m no expert but I could be related to so many things... Maybe she´s in pain while she eats? Maybe a dental disease, swollen gums? Check her mouth, just in case there´s something going on there.

Try changing the bowl if it´s too narrow, to rule out whiskers fatigue. One of my cats was always dragging me to the kitchen to feed her but then only ate a little bit. We tried all the brands possible with the same result: Untouched food, bits on the floor...it was a mess and the vet could not find anything wrong with her. The problem was fixed with a shallow bowl.

You can also try warming the food a little bit, or if she likes to lick the juice, try mixing the food with some warm water. Stick with the texture that she eats most. I´ve seen some brands with "soup" for cats, like Sheba Soup, Purina Gourmet, Animonda. You could give those a try if you didn´t already.

And, just in case you are hiding the Methimazole in the food, try another method. If the table is bitter they could completely refuse to touch the food.

I really hope it´s solved with any of the easy things, and it´s not related to a major health problem.

 

[riley1]

Thank you so much for your insights! I am using my dessert places to avoid the whisker problem. I finally got her to eat baby food but it is giving her diarrhea. I was trying to find a way a could keep her, as my home is much quieter than her normal caregiver's, but I don't think I will be able to. I let her out in the house while my cat is in the garage but this can only happen until the weather gets cold. She uses my cat's litter box and pees on the floor. My cat has tried to befriend her but she just walks back into her room to get away. My cat is very respectful but as the old one was an only cat she does not show any of greetings in return. It is like she doesn't know how to react. The food issue is a big problem for me as well. My beloved little boy cat had intestinal cancer & getting out 20 different selections every day really did me in. It went out for months. Yesterday I lifted her to the bed to lie down with me. She pushed up against me and fell asleep. Just broke my heart! She was probably dreaming of when she had a home and a mom of her own. At least I got the majority of the mats off her poor little body.

 

[valentine319]

Can you all the vet about the medication. Side effects of methimazole usually occur within the first month of therapy and include GI upset (10 to 20 percent of cats experience anorexia and vomiting).

Maybe ask for an appetite stimulant possibly check for nausea.

 

[riley1]

Can you all the vet about the medication. Side effects of methimazole usually occur within the first month of therapy and include GI upset (10 to 20 percent of cats experience anorexia and vomiting).

Maybe ask for an appetite stimulant possibly check for nausea.

Thanks for thinking of us! She has been on this med since at least March 2017. There is no problem with her appetite. Like my Rizzo she begs for food all day but then only certain things get eaten. They gave him a stimulant and then he screamed for food but could not eat it. It was horrible. She is doing the very same thing he did but no vomiting. The other caregiver had the same problem in the beginning. The vet could not help. I hope she starts eating again when I return her. Will be very sad but nothing I can do.

 

[laura mae]

My cat Scoo has hyperthyroid and could not tolerate the pills. It upset his stomach and made him anorexic. He was hungry but couldn't eat. I syringe fed him Hills A/D until he'd eat on his own and then the A/D until he got his appetite and capacity to eat back. While folks complain about the quality of the Hills vet diets, this saved him. So you might want to try a couple of cans (available by prescription and from the vet). It's super high calorie and seems to be irresistible. The other thing that might help is plain chicken baby food.

 

[riley1]

My cat Scoo has hyperthyroid and could not tolerate the pills. It upset his stomach and made him anorexic. He was hungry but couldn't eat. I syringe fed him Hills A/D until he'd eat on his own and then the A/D until he got his appetite and capacity to eat back. While folks complain about the quality of the Hills vet diets, this saved him. So you might want to try a couple of cans (available by prescription and from the vet). It's super high calorie and seems to be irresistible. The other thing that might help is plain chicken baby food.

Thank you! Right now the only thing she will eat is baby food. I am not sure anyone will be able to afford to keep her ,however. She is eating 6 jars per day and seems to like all favors. I wish I would have gotten the AD before the holiday but I will pass it on to the normal caregiver. She has been on this med for a long time. Any idea why this not eating would show up again now?

 

[momtotomandjes]

My 16 year old cat also has hyperthyroidism and the medicine is bitter. However, as you said she's been on this since March and has eaten the cat food I assume with the medicine mixed in without issue, it's a bit strange to suddenly refuse to eat it. I know that my cat is very fussy and do not like when I change her food, so I would try giving her whatever she was eating when you first got her, perhaps trying it without the meds to see if its the meds or just the food that she is rejecting. Does she eat the baby food with the meds? I know mine refused any food with the meds at first when she was diagnosed 2 years ago. My vet told me to give her a whole pill crushed twice a day from the start, and she would have none of it. I had to very gradually add the meds, starting with 1/4 pill twice a day and then worked up to my current 1/2 pill 3x a day and she accepts it now but it was very gradual, over weeks. Good luck.

 

[riley1]

My 16 year old cat also has hyperthyroidism and the medicine is bitter. However, as you said she's been on this since March and has eaten the cat food I assume with the medicine mixed in without issue, it's a bit strange to suddenly refuse to eat it. I know that my cat is very fussy and do not like when I change her food, so I would try giving her whatever she was eating when you first got her, perhaps trying it without the meds to see if its the meds or just the food that she is rejecting. Does she eat the baby food with the meds? I know mine refused any food with the meds at first when she was diagnosed 2 years ago. My vet told me to give her a whole pill crushed twice a day from the start, and she would have none of it. I had to very gradually add the meds, starting with 1/4 pill twice a day and then worked up to my current 1/2 pill 3x a day and she accepts it now but it was very gradual, over weeks. Good luck.

Thanks for responding! I finally got her to eat baby food and boy did she ever start eating! This old girl was so dog like. She followed me around the house and waited by the bed indicating that she wanted me to lie down with her. Her mom, who passed away was elderly so I think they did this a lot. My own cat would rather play in the garage than be with me. I wanted to keep her but my cat was being mean to her. I could have kept her and tried more intro stuff between them but I didn't want to get her stressed. Yesterday, she ran out of the room I was keeping her in and tried to claim a piece of the house for herself. My cat followed her around and hissed at her until I put her away. After having been out in the house with me for hours she was no longer be happy confined to a room. I was also afraid that if I kept trying for another couple weeks & it didn't work she and I would have gotten more attached to each other. So yesterday I took her back to her normal person and cried all the way home.

 

[momtotomandjes]

Thanks for responding! I finally got her to eat baby food and boy did she ever start eating! This old girl was so dog like. She followed me around the house and waited by the bed indicating that she wanted me to lie down with her. Her mom, who passed away was elderly so I think they did this a lot. My own cat would rather play in the garage than be with me. I wanted to keep her but my cat was being mean to her. I could have kept her and tried more intro stuff between them but I didn't want to get her stressed. Yesterday, she ran out of the room I was keeping her in and tried to claim a piece of the house for herself. My cat followed her around and hissed at her until I put her away. After having been out in the house with me for hours she was no longer be happy confined to a room. I was also afraid that if I kept trying for another couple weeks & it didn't work she and I would have gotten more attached to each other. So yesterday I took her back to her normal person and cried all the way home.

It is so hard to introduce a new kitty into a house with other cats. They are so territorial. My 16 year old is my "original" cat, but two years ago I brought in the other 3, all kind of accidently (one was abandoned in my neighborhood and showed up micro-chipped, matted, declawed and with a bad attitude). At the same time four were born in my backyard and I adopted out three and kept one; and the third was the feral momma cat who comes and goes). My 16 year old really dislikes them all, and stays away from them, swatting them if they get too close. I think for an older cat, especially at 20, peace and quiet is what they are most looking for, and having to watch out for your cat is stressful. I know you will miss her, but I think you did the best thing for both cats.