I Don't Know What To Do - 15+yo Cat

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FeebysOwner

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Tested mixing Tiki Cat Mousse with some water to try to make a slurry-gravy concoction. Added it to the food she wasn't much into eating around 5P yesterday - a couple of bites and that would be a 'no'. That food was thrown out at bedtime.

Today, for her breakfast she did her usual routine, in that she leaves about 1/8 of her 3 oz meal and won't touch it - even when adding water to it, as I usually do throughout her 2 hour meal-fest. I did two things: 1.) added some Tiki Cat Mousse 'gravy' to it, but put down beside it a Perfect Portions serving of food. She went to it first. Once it was down to that 'last bit', she went over to the breakfast/Tiki mix, took a bite and then left both.

More testing to follow... but, it may be that those little 'last bits' are going to go into the garbage. Going to be a lot of wasted food, perhaps.

Still looking for flavorless powder to boost her calories...
 
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verna davies

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The food that's Feeby leaves, is it flattened to the plate and difficult for her to eat. This happens with Kiwi and when I 'stack' it back up, she eats it.
 

daftcat75

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Krista loved Cat Cal for awhile. Until she didn't. But when she did, we relied on it heavily to get her through pancreatitis. She was taking a mess of supplements that I would slurry up with tuna water and embed into a dollop of this goo. I think I overplayed this card though. I don't remember her going for this stuff much after that month or two of recovery.

NATURVET Cat-Cal Nutritional Cat Gel, 5-oz bottle - Chewy.com

Does she like freeze-dried meat treats? I used to powder those up and sprinkle them over Krista's food to get extra protein and to get her to eat more of her food.

The best enticement I found was homemade raw, though. Even when Krista was having teeth issues, she would eat homemade when she wouldn't touch her canned.

If Feeby doesn't have any chicken sensitivities, I would recommend EZ Complete as you can balance out a single serving of raw (or cooked) meat for her. Or you can make big batches once you're certain she likes the stuff.
https://www.foodfurlife.com/ezcomplete-fur-cats-premix-information.html#/

You can order a small sample size for $1.
https://www.foodfurlife.com/samples.html#/
 
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FeebysOwner

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The food that's Feeby leaves, is it flattened to the plate and difficult for her to eat. This happens with Kiwi and when I 'stack' it back up, she eats it.
Yep! I do the scoop and re-scoop again (multiple times)! It just that when the last scoop results in a smaller pile of food than she thinks is appropriate that she will stop eating it altogether. And, yet, it seems if I add another food to it, so there is a bigger pile, she doesn't like the concept of eating them mixed. It's crazy!
 

daftcat75

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Does she eat off a flat plate? And have you tried leaving that little bit out for a few hours? Maybe she's saving something for later?

Or maybe she just has her opinions on that last bit of food and you won't convince her otherwise. 🤦‍♂️
 
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Does she like freeze-dried meat treats? I used to powder those up and sprinkle them over Krista's food to get extra protein and to get her to eat more of her food.
I haven't done freeze dried meats. I have tried other types of 'toppers', but so far that is a big 'NO'. I am getting a sense she doesn't like multiple flavors mixed together, so each freeze-dried meat would have to match the food that is being served to her. She will eat mixtures of canned food - e.g.; liver & chicken, but if I would add some other brand with liver & chicken, it must taste enough differently to her that she shuns it. Something to do with mixing foods, I 'dunno'.
If Feeby doesn't have any chicken sensitivities, I would recommend EZ Complete as you can balance out a single serving of raw (or cooked) meat for her. Or you can make big batches once you're certain she likes the stuff.
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I can try that. But, I think her issue is more with the volume of food she is willing to eat (and the mixture issue). So, adding another meal to her existing meals isn't an option. Replacing a meal with your suggestion would only be an option if it were loaded with extra calories compared to her regular food.
 
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Does she eat off a flat plate? And have you tried leaving that little bit out for a few hours? Maybe she's saving something for later? Or maybe she just has her opinions on that last bit of food and you won't convince her otherwise. 🤦‍♂️
She will save stuff for later, so I don't take food up until I think it has been out too long (~8 hours). But, again, an hour later or several hours later, if there isn't much left in the dish/bowl she seems to think it is somehow unacceptable (she did this when she was on dry food only too). A flat plate would mean food all over the floor! She's a licker/lapper.
 

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I just had a thought, and sorry if it's already been suggested and/or tried. Since Feeby likes Temptations treats, and since I thought the probiotics smelled like Temptations, what about crushing up some Temptations and sprinkling the powder over Feeby's wet food. Might be worth a try.
 
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I just had a thought, and sorry if it's already been suggested and/or tried. Since Feeby likes Temptations treats, and since I thought the probiotics smelled like Temptations, what about crushing up some Temptations and sprinkling the powder over Feeby's wet food. Might be worth a try.
So, you are saying the probiotics you suggested earlier smell like Temptations Treats? Hmmm... I do know she won't eat her Temptation Treats if they are crushed up on her food. By themselves, they are just 'peachy keen'!! I am getting the impression she is like those little kids (often not outgrowing the behavior) who don't want their different foods 'touching' each other on their plates!!!! I actually have a couple of nieces - well into adulthood - who still feel that way!
 

rubysmama

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So, you are saying the probiotics you suggested earlier smell like Temptations Treats?
I think so, but can't remember for sure. But the probiotics definitely had a strong smell, which Ruby apparently loved. When I was using it, I sprinkled it on top, then gently mixed it into the wet food, so there wouldn't be a dry powder on top of her food.

Hmmm... I do know she won't eat her Temptation Treats if they are crushed up on her food. By themselves, they are just 'peachy keen'!! I am getting the impression she is like those little kids (often not outgrowing the behavior) who don't want their different foods 'touching' each other on their plates!!!! I actually have a couple of nieces - well into adulthood - who still feel that way!
There's some foods I STILL don't like touching, but I've gotten a lot better. :lol:

Poor Feeby. She really reminds me of a elderly human, whose family is willing to try everything to entice them to eat, but the senior just doesn't have the same appetite as they used to. :sigh:
 
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Update

As you know, I have been wracking my brain trying to figure out this most recent weight loss for Feeby, what is prompting her to eat less, and how everything ties together with her overall health. :headscratch: Well, not sure I have all the answers but the amount she is eating in total does pretty much support the weight loss.
  • From Oct thru Dec, Feeby held steady at 13.1 lbs, and in looking at her average caloric intake during that time, it was about 260 calories per day.
  • By the end of Jan, Feeby's weight dropped to 12.3, which initially freaked me out. But, her average caloric intake during this time was 245 calories per day.
  • These numbers look to substantiate her being able to sustain her weight with about 20 calories per pound (260/20 = 13, 245/20 = 12.3).
Now, for the 'what might be prompting it' part - So far, all I can conclude is that she appears to be eating less when the weather is cooler, and January was colder for us overall. I'd like to say that eating less might also coincide with her sleeping more with the cooler weather, but she sleeps so much of the time anyway!! :sleep:

February has warmed up a bit, and for the past two weeks she has eaten an average of 270 calories! So, if she keeps it up, technically I should see her weight increase (maybe) a bit in the near future. :crossfingers: :crossfingers: :crossfingers: :crossfingers:
 
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And, another update - Week 2/15 - 2/21 (sorry for the length)

Feeby apparently read my previous update and wasn’t appreciative of me thinking I might have figured out her eating habits. :evilgrin: So, this past week her eating took a nose-dive again. She ate an average of 217 calories per day (compared to 270 the preceding two weeks). Oddly enough, her weight remained about the same at 12.4 as of this morning - assuming the scales are not failing me on top of everything else. :cringe:

Overall, the weather has been better, so I went through another brain-wracking session on what might have gone wrong this time.
I am guessing one issue may be salmon. She loves human salmon, so earlier this month I bought her some Crave salmon (single serving) and gave it to her on two different occasions. Both times she had loose stool the following day. Crave salmon is now off her list as a food option. :disappointed:

Then, last Tue, I thought I would try another version of salmon and got her Nutro salmon & chicken, thinking she might tolerate salmon if combined with something else. I also fed her some again on Wed. That seems to be when things went downhill. She threw up about 4 hours after eating it, and had loose stool the following morning. Her eating has been sub-par since then.

Worried about her poor eating – apparently adding ‘insult to injury’ – on Saturday I tried the kitten version of Tiki Cat Mousse Chicken because it has more calories. The following AM she had loose stool again, and she ate an all-time LOW of just 161 calories that day. I can’t find any actual ingredient differences between the adult and kitten version, so maybe this is just coincidence. :hmmm:

Of course, I can’t let things be, so this AM I tried giving her a little bit of hard-boiled egg – the egg white was a ‘no go’, but she did like the egg yolk. However, 1/4 of a yolk doesn't go very far and is only an addition of about 12 calories. I am afraid to give her more than that in one day.

I just thought I would try adding more 'natural' foods to her diet for weight/protein purposes before I head down the path of probiotics/supplements. And, tbh, after looking at all the supplements, there is enough unhealthy stuff in them that I have pretty much ruled them out.
 

verna davies

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On the positive side, even with the loose stools and vomiting, she didn't lose weight. Does she like fresh cooked chicken, that's got plenty of calories. It sounds as if you are trying everything, you must be exhausted and from frustrated. I don't know if you have tried this but does you vet sell high protein food .
 
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On the positive side, even with the loose stools and vomiting, she didn't lose weight. Does she like fresh cooked chicken, that's got plenty of calories. It sounds as if you are trying everything, you must be exhausted and from frustrated. I don't know if you have tried this but does you vet sell high protein food .
I know about the weight!!
She LOVES chicken baked in Shake-n-Bake (she gets it w/o the coating). She gets that about once a week, but I could save some back for additional 'snacks'.
You mean like the A/D canned food? I am sure the vet carries it - it will be on my list of things to go over with him when she gets her check up. Not trying to 'shake things up too much' until she has another round of blood work done - just in case something shows up with either her thyroid, a newly emerging kidney issue, or more cause for alarm with another high calcium count.

Thanks for reading my one of many "War & Peace" updates!
 

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You know I tried just about every supplement I could with Krista for her stool issues. I found Optagest digestive enzymes with prebiotic to be the most benign and potentially most helpful. It didn't make matters worse and I believe it did help her. Aside from saccharomyces boulardii for chronic diarrhea (e.g. from antibiotic use or her clostridium infection), I don't know that I ever found a probiotic that I could point to and say, "yes! that one worked well for us." Optagest however did seem to make a difference for her.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002LO2QEG/?tag=thecatsite
 
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