Aargh, Sigh and Ahhhhhhhhh: When Your Cat Won’t Eat

Argh, sigh and ahhhhh = frustrated, dejected and panicked. This is how I feel when my kitty won't eat. Over the past few months, our cat, Today (aka Stinky), has been intermittently sick and refusing to eat. When I first started working on this post a week or so ago, Stinky was much better and we were cautiously hopeful that we had solved the problem. Alas, she is now sick again, showing all of the same symptoms as before - lethargic, anti-social, glossy eyes, huge pupils, vomiting and refusing to eat. Sigh.... :( We've also dealt with this problem before with Muffin. Because it can be scary, overwhelming and frustrating to have a kitty that's not eating, and because it's an issue that every cat owner will likely end up facing at some point, I thought I would share what I have learned on the topic for others who might be dealing with this. [Note: As a former lawyer, of course I have to point out that I am not a veterinarian, or even a veterinary technician, and I am not giving you veterinary or medical advice! If your cat is refusing to eat, PLEASE consult your veterinarian.]

Why Won't Kitty Eat??

Cats often refuse to eat simply because they don’t feel well. As with any symptom of illness, if you can identify the underlying illness, it’s wise to try to treat that problem to attempt to prevent the problem from recurring. Sometimes that’s possible and other times it’s not.

With Stinky, our veterinarians (both in town and at a clinic near Richmond) are not sure why she is having these random intermittent spells of illness where she refuses to eat. Although the vets thought it was unlikely that this stomach illness was related to her ear infections or chylothorax (fluid on the lungs), before this most recent bout of illness, we suspected that it was connected to her ear infection because it seemed to improve as soon as the ears looked better. Now we're puzzled again. Her ears are definitely still having issues, but they had been steadily improving before this sudden change.

When Muffin refused to eat several years ago, it was clear she was dealing with some major illness. She was panting (never good for a cat) and so lethargic and hot that she actually peed where she was lying on the floor and didn’t bother to get up. I immediately rushed her to the doctor. We found out then that she had a heart condition (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy) and she was suffering from congestive heart failure due to a steroid shot she received for skin problems. The vet administered fluids that day and we ended up boarding her at the hospital for a few days so they could force feed her. (More on force feeding below.) From what I remember, by the time she got back home, she was stabilized and eating better on her own. (There was a lot more to the ordeal to treat her heart condition, but that's not relevant here.)

Also, a lot of things around the home can be toxic to cats and cause stomach upset (or worse). Your kitty's tummy troubles could be related to her ingesting something toxic, so be sure to "cat-proof" your home periodically and be very careful if you let your kitty explore your dinner plate. (I'm embarrassed to admit that I'm guilty of this.) I'm sure our kitties have probably ingested bad things before, but we haven't had any serious issues with this that require medical attention (knock on wood!!), so I'm not sure how your vet would determine this was the cause of the illness, how long this kind of illness lasts, or what the vet will do to treat it. Unfortunately, there are also times when a veterinarian and owner are unable to diagnose an underlying illness.

What I have learned from our experiences with kitties not eating is that a cat may not eat simply because she doesn’t feel well and the primary illness does not necessarily have to be a stomach illness. This makes it hard to figure out what’s wrong, but if you do know of another illness or recurring condition, it may be that treating that condition will improve kitty’s appetite.

What's the Big Deal? She's A Little Tubby Anyway.

With cats, not eating can be dangerous. Obviously, not all cats will devour all the food you give them every time, so it’s good to know your cat’s normal patterns and routines with food. But if you notice that your cat has stopped eating altogether (and particularly if refusal to eat is combined with other symptoms of illness), you should not delay contacting your veterinarian in hopes that the problem will resolve itself. I’ve read in several sources that 24 hours is the time frame after which you should really be concerned – i.e., if your cat does not eat for more than 24 hours, you should consult a veterinarian as soon as possible. The problem is that cats can quickly develop liver disease (“fatty liver disease” or “hepatic lipidosis”) from not eating, and overweight cats are particularly at risk of developing this condition. If you have a kitty that is not eating, however, now is not the time to worry about the nutrition value of his food or whether he is overweight. Right now, you just have to get him to eat. (Then, after kitty is well again, you can work on having him lose weight gradually.)

Ahhh - What Can I Do???

The most important thing is to be persistent! It is very hard to keep bothering kitty when she keeps refusing food, especially when it’s clear that she’s sick and just wants to rest. But you have to be persistent and not get discouraged. (Kitty does need rest if she’s sick, but it is imperative that she eat something.) If you keep putting the plate of food in her face, she might eventually eat something. Many times, if we are just persistent with Stinky and literally hold the food in her face - practically in her nose, she will eventually eat. We suspect that she might have trouble smelling anything when she's sick (due to infections, or growths in her ears and nose, congestion or whatever) and that our persistence causes her to eventually catch the scent of the food. When kitty won't eat, here are some specific things you might try to get her eating again:

· Treats: Many commercial kitty treats are like junk food to us (i.e. fattening and with low nutritional value), so they should generally be given sparingly. However, if treats are the only thing that kitty will eat, let him have as many as he wants. The objective is to get him to eat something.

· Smelly food (fish!): Many people warn against feeding your cat too much tuna because it is fatty and contains high levels of mercury (among other problems). However, it appears that small amounts of tuna are okay, and if you have a kitty that is not eating, it is worth trying to offer him some tuna just to start him eating again. Two out of four of our kitties like canned salmon, and some varieties of salmon supposedly have less mercury than tuna. If you suspect that your kitty’s loss of appetite may be connected to a loss of smell, smelly food might be the only thing that interests her.

· Chicken: There have been several instances when Stinky refuses to eat where Jon has gone to the store to buy chicken breasts to grill for her. (How adorable is that?) We have to cut the chicken into tiny pieces for her. This sometimes works when she won’t eat anything else. You can also boil chicken to make it softer for kitty.

· Baby food: This was a tip I received from a couple of other local pet sitters (thank you to Linda Porzio of Housecalls for Cats and Alice Nicely of Petwatch Services!) They informed me that some cats that are not eating will respond to meat-based baby food. We tried this with Stinky and sometimes it works. (She devours it when she's feeling better.) Apparently baby food can give some kitties diarrhea, though, so it’s best to start with a little bit to make sure it doesn’t upset kitty’s tummy too much.

· Cream cheese or other creamy things: Cream cheese was another suggestion from Linda and Alice. Stinky didn’t go for it, but Stinky and Little Man both generally like anything creamy. They often try to eat my salad dressing and mayonnaise. I have also heard that some kitties like plain yogurt. If you do try giving creamy foods, though, be sure to check all of the ingredients in the food to make sure there are NO onions, garlic or other potentially harmful ingredients. You can find a list of foods toxic to cats here. (Note that baby food is on this list because of the risk of toxic ingredients.) Again, when changing kitty's diet (even temporarily), always start with small doses to make sure the food doesn’t upset her tummy.

· Cheese: Stinky loves cheese (especially when melted) and will sometimes eat cheese when nothing else works. (When Stinky first came to us and was semi-feral, we used cheese to lure her into a big doggie-sized carrier in order to transport her to the vet or a new home!)

· Antacids: You should not give your cat ANY medication without first consulting your veterinarian. However, if your vet does not suggest it, you might ask him or her about using over-the-counter stomach medications for humans. The veterinarian we saw in Richmond suggested that we try giving Stinky a quarter tablet of Pepcid when she was having stomach troubles. We did this a couple of times. I have no idea if this helped because we were trying so many other things at the same time, but it could have been part of the solution the last time the issue was resolved. I do have a friend that gives her doggie a Pepcid every day for doggie acid reflux (at the recommendation of her vet) and she says it really helps his tummy issues.

· Force feeding: As a last result, you may have to force your kitty to eat. I know it sounds cruel, but it’s not. I’m not talking about force feeding like they do to the poor ducks and geese that become foie gras. (I'm going to spare you the link on that one.) This type of force feeding can and should be done gently, slowly and sparingly and is for kitty’s own good. You just need to get something in her. Sometimes, I will get a little clump of tuna in my fingers, open Stinky’s mouth, put the tuna in and then hold her mouth shut until she swallows. You can also use an oral medication dropper to feed her mushy cat food. Here's a picture of one I bought recently:

You can get these from your veterinarian or in the medical section of a large pet supplies store. You might also find them at any pharmacy with basic medical supplies. (Note that, for smaller droppers, you may need to snip a little bit of plastic off of the dispensing end of the dropper to make the opening big enough for food.) To use the dropper, you draw food into the dropper (or mash it down into the dropper from the other end), open kitty’s mouth (by prying her mouth open with your fingers placed at the back of the jaw), put some food on her tongue, and then hold her mouth shut until she swallows. Since Stinky is sick again and needed this earlier today, I have included a video demonstration for you.



As happens in this video, often, once you start kitty eating, she will realize that it tastes good and start eating on her own. If you are too uncomfortable with force feeding, though, you could ask your veterinarian if your kitty can be hospitalized there for a couple of days so that the professionals there can feed her until she starts eating on her own again.

Disclaimer: In the interest of full disclosure, when I checked on Stinky again a couple of hours after we recorded this, she vomited up a lot of the food. However, we've continued to encourage her to eat all day, and she has held down some food for the past few hours.

Readers: Please help! Do you have any other tips, tricks or ideas for how to get a kitty eating again? If so, please share in the comments section below! Or, if you prefer, e-mail me at buggledoopetsitting@gmail.com and I will add an update to the post.