Sick Cat Day 4

[mokabean]

On Friday my cat was cowering under the couch and had a fever so I took her to the vet. She could not find the underlying cause and gave her an antibiotic shot. Four days later she is still under the couch - fever is gone but she is not eating or drinking. I have had to force feed her (alternating chicken baby food and nutrition paste) but I can't seem to keep up. I can feel her spine and ribs. She is an extremely tiny cat ( 4.5 lbs full grown healthy weight) an I'm worried. Can anyone suggest a better method of keeping her weight up?

 

[Margret]

I think it's time for a second opinion. Something is very wrong with your cat, and you need a vet who can find it. How old is your cat? Can you get raw goat's milk for her? If not, some KMR may be a good source of calories.

Margret

 

[Hugospal]

If she is not drinking you may see if the vet will do some fluids. Sometimes if they are dehydrated, fixing that can make them feel a little better. What tests did the vet do? If you can I would try and get her back to the vet, cats can't go very long only consuming a little food and no water.

 

[mokabean]

She is 2 years old. The vet did a thorough body check for wounds (she's mostly indoor and hasn't been out in 3 weeks but we have 2 other cats). She also did a blood test. Plasma and white blood levels are normal. She has had vaccines for FP and FeLV, but she said if she isn't better by Tuesday she will test the blood samples for it. She's a pretty thorough vet but likes to do things in stages to save her patients money.

I'm trying to syringe feed her water with her feedings, but not sure how much I'm actually getting in her.

 

[Plumeria]

Can she get a feeding tube? This is something I regret not doing with my cat.

 

[maggiedemi]

Did you get a stool test? It could be a parasite.

 

[Margret]

When syringe feeding you have to put just a little bit in at a time, in the cat's cheek. It may help to then stroke the cat's throat to encourage her to swallow.

Margret

 

[stephanietx]

I'm guessing she got a shot of Convenia. One of the most common side effects is extreme lethargy. Please research Convenia side effects here on TCS or even on the web. Get your kitty back to the vet for some fluids as she is probably dehydrated. This medication is on all of my cats' do not ever give list.

 

[Saf]

I'm guessing she got a shot of Convenia. One of the most common side effects is extreme lethargy. Please research Convenia side effects here on TCS or even on the web. Get your kitty back to the vet for some fluids as she is probably dehydrated. This medication is on all of my cats' do not ever give list.

I absolutely agree with this. Vets seem increasingly liberal of using it without determining if it's really necessary and oblivious to possible side effects. It hangs around in the body for upto a couple of months, a long time if the cat has a reaction to it.