Newly adopted cat will not eat

elisejeffery

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Apr 13, 2021
Messages
2
Purraise
2
I am a new fur mama to a five year old domestic shorthair named Bandit. He is the sweetest boy and I've absolutely fallen in love with him -- he is my very first animal so this is all very new to me. I adopted him Saturday, and as soon as I let him out of his cat carrier, he went to hide in my closet. He's slowly coming out of his shell and will let me pet him, and even made the step last night to climb onto my bed to go lay on the window ledge. However, he is not eating. Or if he is, it's very little and when I'm not looking/asleep. I have half a bowl of dry food out for him at all times so I can notice if he's eating it, along with half a can of wet food. He just looks at it and won't touch it. He pooped in his litter box Monday morning (yesterday) which means he had to have had something in his system, right? I really don't want to have to take him to the vet for financial reasons, and I'm really hoping he'll come around.
Is this behavior normal? Should I just let him eat on his own time? I am giving him the same food his previous owners gave him. I'm sure he's got to be hungry at some point and wouldn't just let himself starve..
 

rubysmama

Forum Helper
Staff Member
Forum Helper
Joined
Nov 25, 2013
Messages
25,277
Purraise
62,756
Location
Canada
Hello and welcome to TCS. And congrats on being a new cat mama.

Unfortunately, though it's not unusual for newly adopted cats to not eat much, not eating is a concern, as it can lead to something called hepatic lipidosis, or fatty liver, which can become life threatening. Here's a TCS article on the topic: Why Has My Cat Stopped Eating And Is It Dangerous? – TheCatSite Articles

Hopefully Bandit has been eating enough, but you definitely need to get him eating more, like right away. And if he hasn't eaten anything by tomorrow morning, I would at the very least contact your vet, and get their advice.

Some things you can try are super stinky foods like tuna or sardines. You can also try deli turkey. Maybe KFC. Or different types of cat food.

Here's another TCS article that might have some tips for you: How To Get Your Cat To Start Eating Again – TheCatSite Articles

Good luck. Keep us posted, please.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #4

elisejeffery

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Apr 13, 2021
Messages
2
Purraise
2
I gave him a different type of wet food and he ate about half of it today. He drank some water this morning as well. Kitty is coming out of his shell.
 

rubysmama

Forum Helper
Staff Member
Forum Helper
Joined
Nov 25, 2013
Messages
25,277
Purraise
62,756
Location
Canada
Oh, that's excellent news. Thanks for posting, as I was worried about him.
 

Carolina SA

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
Nov 7, 2020
Messages
57
Purraise
6
Location
Paraguay
Sorry I tried to reply yesterday and my computer crashed...blast!
My new rescue cat BoyBoy took a couple of days before he started eating after I trapped him. He only used the litter box after his castration. It was simply fear and stress.
:redheartpump:Glad your little Bandit is adjusting to his new forever home.
 
Top