Need Any Suggestions On What To Do

[Naddy99]

Hello there. I have a 10 year old cat who has teeth and gum problems. This condition causes her having a hard time to eat hard (kibble) food. I’ve brought her to the vet and they suggested to soak her kibble food until it is fully soggy, drain it out, smoosh it until it becomes paste and combine it with wet (canned, fully blended) food. It is working. She does eat a little bit more. However, she does not seem to be gaining weight. I need some help and suggestions on what else to do to make her eat more and gain weight. I have tried mixing in some powdered nutrients in her food but when she noticed there is something “foreign” in her food she doesn’t eat it at all. I am contemplating whether or not to change her diet to fully boiled fish and chicken. 100% fresh food.
P/s: She is already neutered and fully vaccined.

Please and Thank you.

 

[LTS3]

Did the vet do any bloodwork? With older cats sometimes a medical condition or abnormal blood value can cause a cat to not maintain weight. Low B12 levels for example affects absorption of nutrients which can cause weight loss. If bloodwork hasn't been done recently, ask the vet to do a senior bloodwork including thyroid, fructosamine and B12.

Does the vet plan to address the dental issues?

Just boiled fish or chicken is not a proper diet for cats. Neither contains all the necessary vitamins and minerals a cat needs. You need to add in the vitamins and minerals with supplements. A product such as EZComplete makes cooked meat into a complete balanced diet Food Fur Life - EZ Homemade raw food for pets!

Fish isn't good to feed every day. See Can I Feed My Cat A Fish-based Or Fish-flavored Diet?

 

[Naddy99]

Thank you so much. I bring her to the vet tommorow to get more insight.

 

[KarenKat]

Why not go all wet food? Or does she not like it?

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi! Could you try things like probiotics such as Tummyworks, and also pedialyte, and kitten glop for extra food, there are recipes fir these on the internet.
Also try things like kitten canned food, heating the food a little, goat milk. You could add boiled unseasoned chicken, --just not as the only food, as mentioned.
All the best of luck with this, let us know what happens

 

[Naddy99]

Why not go all wet food? Or does she not like it?

It’s not that she doesn’t like it. She loves it. But the older she gets, she eats only a few bites and then leaves.

 

[Naddy99]

Hi! Could you try things like probiotics such as Tummyworks, and also pedialyte, and kitten glop for extra food, there are recipes fir these on the internet.
Also try things like kitten canned food, heating the food a little, goat milk. You could add boiled unseasoned chicken, --just not as the only food, as mentioned.
All the best of luck with this, let us know what happens

Thank you so much. I’ll definitely try the things you suggested.

 

[KarenKat]

It’s not that she doesn’t like it. She loves it. But the older she gets, she eats only a few bites and then leaves.

Ah I see. Wet food isn’t good for that kind of grazing.

 

[Furballsmom]

I'm able to leave canned food out for up to 8-10 hours. Dr Lisa Pierson on her website catinfo.com talks about this as well, that it's ok to do.
It's dry food thats been moistened that can become a problem, leaving it out for too long runs the risk of fast bacteria growth.

I don't know how hot it is where you are but you could arrange a canned food dish where there's an ice pack underneath, possibly?

 

[Naddy99]

Thank you so much for the feedback.

I'm able to leave canned food out for up to 8-10 hours. Dr Lisa Pierson on her website catinfo.com talks about this as well, that it's ok to do.
It's dry food thats been moistened that can become a problem, leaving it out for too long runs the risk of fast bacteria growth.

I don't know how hot it is where you are but you could arrange a canned food dish where there's an ice pack underneath, possibly?

hank yo

 

[Naddy99]

Hello there all. I’s just like to give you and update regarding my cat. I just took her to the vet and the reason she has been eating less is because she developed an ulcer in her mouth. She will be carefully treated and well medicated. Another problem arose though. We just found out that she has a growth on her chest. The vet said it was a tumor. We arent sure if its canserous or not. She will be closely monitored and will be bought to regular visits to the vet. Its normal for older cats to get these growths. Lets hope and pray for the best. Thank you all for your suggestions and feedbacks. I will take your feedbacks seriously.

 

[chromium blues]

My cat had mouth ulcers from the pancreatic enzymes he has to take (this was just after diagnosis, before we learned to encapsulate them). It was tricky to get him to eat while he was healing, but dusting his food with brewer's yeast definitely helped.

 

[Furballsmom]

Oh my goodness!!
I'm sending all of my good, healing thoughts to you!!

 

[leechi]

My cat had mouth ulcers from the pancreatic enzymes he has to take (this was just after diagnosis, before we learned to encapsulate them). It was tricky to get him to eat while he was healing, but dusting his food with brewer's yeast definitely helped.

Can you tell me more about why you think your cat got the ulcers from the enzymes, and which ones you were using? This has me very concerned as I just ordered some digestive enzymes with the hope that they'll help with hairballs, but I don't want to cause ulcers of course.