Need guidance

[Dherna55]

So, my cat has become quite boney but he’s not losing any weight. I’ve been taking him to the vet every two weeks, but I can’t shake that there’s something wrong with him because he feels so boney. He eats and drinks a good bit. He eats about 3/8-6/8 purina ur dry food every day. He plays 15-30 minutes every day. Am I overthinking it or should I get him an X-ray of his tummy or blood work just to double check that everything’s safe and sound?

 

[Dherna55]

in early December, he weighed 11.34 pounds and in earlt January he weighed in at 11.5 pounds

 

[Jem]

I would bring him in. If his body shape has changed but his weight remains the same, unfortunately, I can think of a few things that are concerning.
You say he's boney now, (I assume around the hips/shoulders and possibly ribs?) but what is the shape of his belly?
How old is he?

 

[Dherna55]

I would bring him in. If his body shape has changed but his weight remains the same, unfortunately, I can think of a few things that are concerning.
You say he's boney now, (I assume around the hips/shoulders and possibly ribs?) but what is the shape of his belly?
How old is he?

He is 4.6 years old. He’s boney around the shoulders. They’re protruding. I brought him in a few days ago and the vet said he has a nice waist and his spine feels healthy. They gave him an ideal weight score. Vet said he is a healthy cat, but idk why I can’t shake off that there’s something going on with him.
what do you think is concerning?

 

[Jem]

what do you think is concerning?

What would be concerning is if his muscle mass was wasting around the hips, shoulders and spine, but if he still had a belly (roundish and firm not the saggy skin that tends to hang on some cats). That, from your description, does not seem to be the case.
Also if your cat is still acting normal, with eating, drinking, playing, litter box usage etc...I would assume he's probably OK, especially if you just saw the vet and he said things were OK.
I have a cat who has very "slim" slightly bony shoulders, but he's perfectly healthy.
Some blood work couldn't hurt if you really need some reassurance though.

 

[Anne Valentine]

After my experience with my cat who presented the similarly early on and then died of liver faliure. I would say get the blood work done at least and go from there. We know our cats best and trusting our intuition rarely hurts anything.

 

[stephanietx]

Is there another vet in your area where you could go for a 2nd opinion? That would be my suggestion.

 

[Dherna55]

After my experience with my cat who presented the similarly early on and then died of liver faliure. I would say get the blood work done at least and go from there. We know our cats best and trusting our intuition rarely hurts anything.

What were some other signs that you saw?
My cat also just had an episode of urinary tract infection for the month of November last year which is why I’ve become so overanalytical about how he eats, bathroom usage, play time, and how he looks.

 

[Dherna55]

Is there another vet in your area where you could go for a 2nd opinion? That would be my suggestion.

this is my third vet and I haven’t been told that there’s any concern. Although, I haven’t asked about his boney look.

 

[Dherna55]

What would be concerning is if his muscle mass was wasting around the hips, shoulders and spine, but if he still had a belly (roundish and firm not the saggy skin that tends to hang on some cats). That, from your description, does not seem to be the case.
Also if your cat is still acting normal, with eating, drinking, playing, litter box usage etc...I would assume he's probably OK, especially if you just saw the vet and he said things were OK.
I have a cat who has very "slim" slightly bony shoulders, but he's perfectly healthy.
Some blood work couldn't hurt if you really need some reassurance though.

Yes, he still plays and uses the restroom the same. He did eat less during the time that he dealt with the urinary tract infection back in November. Also, he’s been on the prescription diet food since November so maybe it’s his prescription food that’s not getting him the nutrition he needs?

 

[Dherna55]

Yes, he still plays and uses the restroom the same. He did eat less during the time that he dealt with the urinary tract infection back in November. Also, he’s been on the prescription diet food since November so maybe it’s his prescription food that’s not getting him the nutrition he needs?

 

[Dherna55]

 

[Anne Valentine]

What were some other signs that you saw?
My cat also just had an episode of urinary tract infection for the month of November last year which is why I’ve become so overanalytical about how he eats, bathroom usage, play time, and how he looks.

I'm sorry I can't recall anything else. I understand. I'm the same with my remaining cat as well. Mention your concerns to the vet and get a bit of testing done if you can as if nothing else it'll ease your mind. I always feel better when my concerns are investigated and prove to be nothing to worry about in the moment.

 

[Dherna55]

I'm sorry I can't recall anything else. I understand. I'm the same with my remaining cat as well. Mention your concerns to the vet and get a bit of testing done if you can as if nothing else it'll ease your mind. I always feel better when my concerns are investigated and prove to be nothing to worry about in the moment.

Yeah, I think I’ll go in and ask them on my next day off which is Tuesday. He’s not losing any weight but actually gaining so that gives me hope that it’s just me being the overthinker I am.

 

[stephanietx]

He looks perfectly healthy to me. My male cat has bonier shoulders and hips than my girls. As long as he is eating, playing, and using the litter box well, I think you're good, especially since he's not losing weight drastically.

 

[Jem]

What a handsome boy! He looks pretty good to me. My boy is quite bony compared to him. It's hard to tell because he's black but as you can see, he's quite slim.

 

[Meowmee]

I would do the tests and tell them all of your concerns to make sure, better safe than sorry. I will never forget a now former dvm actually telling employees in the back room that I was crazy when I brought my girl in because she was breathing strangely on and off, I overheard this in their tiny office. A week later she was in advanced chf and was later diagnosed at a much better hospital with hcm, they saved her life and she lived for 3.5 years with it.