It is true love when you feed your cat his wet food with your bare hands because that’s the only way he’ll eat it. Sigh. He’s not feeling too well again today, not eating or drinking as much as we’d like. It’s probably back to the vet tomorrow. We were hoping that he’d be strong enough for his bladder stone surgery on Thursday, but he won’t be if he keeps eating like this…… Of course, the reason he’s not eating or drinking is that to get rid of such things HURTS. He’s always in the box, swaying quietly and stubbornly as nothing happens. My poor boy.
And me, I’m off to work today, working for a friend on my day off. I’d much rather be at home, with him, making him eat against all his better instincts. (I hold it right under his nose, and it’s as if he licks the food against his will. Pretty cute, actually.)
Oh, poor guy… Can they cath him?
Hang in there. Our cat Governor became anorexic after severe ear infections that made him feel dizzy and nauseous. The food that turned him around was Hill’s Prescription diet A/D which you get at the Vet. It has a baby food consistency, and also is high in calories and fat which will help him mmore quickly gain some of his weight back. It was only thing that worked at first, since Govey was rejecting tuna, which he loves. I, too, hand fed it and I found that he often needed to be “jumpstarted,” so I would rub some on his lips, and then he would start licking it off my finger. Hope this helps. It was life-saver for my baby.
Hang in there Digit! Me and Spicy Kitty are rooting for you!
Yes, it’s true love. (I even hand-feed my little Shih tzu with the “palace dog” complex when he’s too stubborn to eat. (Who’s in charge here?!)
Poor baby Digit – what a trooper! So hope he pulls through this soon! (Love his pissed-off expression.)
You can do it Digit! Hang in there buddy, it’ll be better soon.
Yes, it’s true love. (I even hand-feed my little Shih tzu with the “palace dog” complex when he’s too stubborn to eat. (Who’s in charge here?!)
Poor baby Digit – what a trooper! So hope he pulls through this soon! (Love his pissed-off expression.)
Gerber’s turkey or chicken. That’s right. Baby food.
Turkey/chicken is very, very mild and since it’s baby food, it’s practically already digested. It is much easier on their systems than most pet foods.
This was recommended by my vet when one of my kitties was sick — actually, I had picked her up from the side of the road and her little system was a mess.
Digit, don’t worry your mom…
We are all checking back with bated breath to observe Digit’s progress. I so hope he gets strong enough for his operation soon. This sounds like a pretty effective form of torture. Love and hugs for you both.
Much Much Much love and healing cat thoughts to you and Digit…keeping you both in my prayers.
I hear ya. When our Ivan dog didn’t want to eat, we’d spoon feed him or feed him by hand. He was old and mostly blind, so he needed all the help he could get.
When you love someone, you do things like that. Even when the someone is an animal.
Best wishes and good healing thoughts for Digit.
Poor Digit. Hopefully he’ll be strong enough for his surgery soon. We’re all sending him good thoughts.
I’ll second the baby food, as long as the vet approves. Gerber’s Stage 2 Chicken or Turkey or Lamb. Warm it up a little so it’s nice and stinky but not so warm that it would burn his mouth. It’s my standby for sick ferrets and cats.
Go, Digit, go…come on boy, eat! Hoping for the best.
Poor Digit! I’m going through the same thing with Destiny but I’m mixing baby food, pumpkin, chicken broth and milk and then putting it in a syringe and shoving it down her throat. She hates it but it’s helping her so much since she’s not eating on her own. It’s so sad.
I know Digit can pull through, he found his way home so he can get through this.
I know with dogs when they refuse to drink you can add a small amount of chicken or beef broth to their water. It is generally recommened to use a low sodium type (but I think it depends on how dilute the broth is).
I have been lucky and not have to do that yet.
Oh yes, I have fed my kitty by the fingerful too. slow and stinky, but it works. Maybe try a different food. My vet sent my kitty home with Medi Cal post operative recovery food and she didn’t like it. She would eat fancy feast. Off my finger. I think it is pretty high fat and salt though. Call the vet and ask about food alternatives. Specify if the problem not coming out his hind end is #1 or#2 and the vet can probably help you try somehing different….. Oh Digit. Stop worrying all of us!
Rachael, all of the suggestions above are great. Tuna isn’t the best thing to try because it is relatively low in fat/calories and nutrients. Make sure that if you try the baby food, there is no onion flavoring – bad for cats (methemoglobinemia). The chicken broth trick is also good, but you have to replace the water more frequently because bacteria like to grow in the broth, especially in the warmer weather. Hill’s a/d or Eukanuba Max-Cal are high fat, calorie dense foods that are supposed to be tasty (high fat). If none of these things work, Digit may need a temporary esophagostomy tube, which is a feeding tube that is placed into the esophagus at the side of the neck. Most cats tolerate this pretty well, and it is easy to remove when it’s no longer needed. Blenderized food, a/d, and Max-Cal can go down this tube as well as water to help maintain hydration.
Hope all of this information is helpful. Good luck with your little guy. I may mostly treat mouths these days, but we have to make sure the whole “dental support unit” is working well, too!
Praying, praying, praying… Is he on any sort of meds to help with the pain? Or at least some sort of mild laxative or such that wouldn’t hurt his stomach problems? Not much to be done about peeing, but– Heck, we’re women; how many of us have had a bladder infection, and we can get pills that help *that* lovely pain.
And it might cost the earth, but you’ve seen how well raffles work. 😉 I know they started using ultrasound to break up kidney stones some years ago to make it much easier on folks than an op. Do vets have an option for that? Maybe if you have a local vet college that can afford the equipment??
Poor baby. Keep on going, Digit! Er. You know what I mean. [g] (That really was totally inadvertent, but might be good for a smile, so I’m leaving it in. I can *only* come up with inadvertent puns. Which might be a good thing, considering that one!)
Best wishes for Digit’s recovery.. ahh so heartbreaking to hear he’s not feeling well. aww Digit, please get better soon.. everyone is rooting for you.
Actually, the anorexia isn’t as worrisome as Digit’s swaying and not voiding when he’s in his litterbox. If he’s having painful or difficult urination that’s one thing but if he’s blocked, that’s a definite emergency.
My daughter and I are reading your updates and sending good thoughts your and Digit’s way. He’s a fighter, back with the people who love him, and there are countless others in cyberspace who are rooting for him. Thanks for keeping all of us posted and hugs to you both.
Hang in there, Digit! This too shall pass (I know, bad pun).
The Six-Pack + 1 are sending purrs and headbonks your way.
Not sure how I happened upon your blog. Followed a link from somewhere…smile. I’m so sorry to hear about your cat! Have you tried giving him dry food instead? I feed my cat nothing but “Science Diet” and sometimes she prefers dry over wet. Just a thought and I hope your cat gets well soon.
I’d do the same. Very ingenious.
been away but so glad to hear of digit’s miraculous return. i hope the miracles keep coming. fingers and needles and toes crossed. heck, i am going to go cross scoobys paws!
Aww, Digit! I hope you’re feeling better, little cute old man, and Rachael can stop worrying.
Awww, good luck to Mr. Digit! I have had similar eating challenges with my elderly cat. I second the plain chicken/turkey baby food option, but mixed with regular food for more balanced nutrition (a/d is always a hit with Bill-dude, but it’s a bit too high in protien for his aging kidneys).
What about canned pumpkin or babyfood squash for more fiber to make things move along a bit more? My Bill cat LOVES it, and will sometimes eat it over canned food.
We also get a flavored grease from the vet for constipation that he also LOVES- I think it’s mostly petroleum (ick) and I try to use it sparingly, but it definitely gets things moving! He ends up squatting over the box making sad noises sometimes, and the grease does the trick pretty fast.
Good luck!!
Go go Gigit bladder! (Channeling Inspector Gadget there for a minute.) Wilbur sends his sympathies. I’m putting my faith in the love between you and Digit and his sheer stubbornness.