how to get my sick cat to eat?

Question

my cat just got diagnosed for having poisening he had a 105 degree fever early today and the vet gave him a shot and now he is wakling around ... but the thing is he's hungry but cant seem to lick or eat even wet food... what should i do bc i know the poor cat is starving pls help.. i cant afford another 300 dollar bill for the vet again is there something i can do at home to make him eat pls help

Answer 1

You could try force feeding with a small dropper, it usually works for my pet dogs maybe it could work for cats too. If it still doesn't work then you need to take your cat to the vet again for a dextrose.

Answer 2

I feel for you and your cat, I went through this last summer with insecticide poisoning. She recovered with minor brain damage. First, get a syringe or dropper from the vet or local pharmacy. Water is more important then food right now. You need to keep him hydrated, feed a dropper or 2 worth of water every 1/2 hour or more. You may get a small fight, but squirt a little at a time into the corner of his mouth and let him swallow. Better yet get some generic Pedialyte and give that to him it's what my vet had me do. Get some canned cat food (no sliced or chunk type), mix with water until soupy and dropper feed also. Once mine started fighting us we knew she was getting better. He may not want food right away, mine took a week before she would eat, but we tried daily few times a day. You really need to get the fever down. My vet put mine on antibiotics as a precaution. Her fever was 104.5 and we had to take her back her fever spiked again a week later once she started eating. This will take a lot of time, energy and patience on your part. Depending on what kind of poison your cat ingested, there is the possibility for some brain damage, mood changes and personality changes. My cat was a devil before now she's a little sweeter. Some other things to watch for is him seeing double, getting dizzy, or unbalanced. We kept our girl in a large dog cage so she couldn't hurt herself. A bathroom will do just as well, but keep him confined for his own safety. Good luck, I know what your facing.

Answer 3

Try junior baby food, meat variety, very hard to resist even for a sick animal. If that doesn`t work, u have no choice but to consult with the vet again. I`d do that before I`d force feed, just call the vets office and ask what u should do if cat continues to refuse foods. I dislike the forcing bit without the vets consent. Good luck, hope ur pet gets well soon.

Answer 4

Find something your cat really loves and put it on top of his paws.
Cats really can't stand to be sticky or dirty, so they usually lick it off.

An eyedropper slid into the side of the mouth with just a few drops at a time. The cat won't starve in just one day. And don't force feed because that just really upsets a lot of cats. Also you can get a gel that has a liver or meat flavor and is really full of vitamins. I've seen even the sickest cats go after that. If they won't lick it off my finger I use the paw trick and they usually will tolerate me doing that several times.

I really hope kitty gets better soon!

Answer 5

He might not eat for quite awhile that is why Dr's have Fluids that are much like food to give them. Call your vet BACK and ask him how long you should wait for him to start eating. if its been longer than he says you need to take him back to the vet. I assure you it won't be another 300$ just to have some subcutaneous fluid given to him and a little training on how to get him to eat right now. Also you can give him A/D they offer it at the vet, but really ask your vet before you feed him--most poisoning cases are helpf off food for 24-48 hours so it does not reactivate the poison.

Answer 6

Give him the rest of the day to chill out a bit... if he doesn't start eating tomorrow or the next day, take him back to the vet. He may just be sick because of the poisoning and be rejecting food. When your tummy hurts, you don't feel like eating either, right? Keep an eye on his water intake, and make sure he's drinking. Try offering him something yummier and see if he'll take it, like tuna in his dish or something. You will probably have to go back to the vet, I can't imagine it costing 300 though, it isn't anything too major that they would have to fix.

Answer 7

hand feed him. Get a pasty textured cat canned food like Eukenuba tuna in sauce or any of the canned "Spa" cat foods. Sit with your cat on your lap. With your finger, smear the pasty cat food on the cats tongue. You can gently pry kitty's mouth open by inserting a finger at the side of kitty's mouth - very similar to when you are administering a pill to kitty. Another method of hand feeding is to liquify canned cat food using a blender. Feed that to the cat using a syringe.

Feed a little at a time. Don't hurry the cat. Hopefully, he'll be eating on his own soon.

Good luck.

Answer 8

In most cases not dealing with diseases, cats stop eating and drinking when they feel like dying. Some cats practically prepare for their death. My 18 year old cat starved herself for a day, then went into a coma for a few days, but at least she ended up dying peacefully and not in pain.

Answer 9

I agree with using the dropper to give water, but you might also want to try a high-calorie, high-fat paste. (With your vet's approval, of course.) You can find them at Petco/Petsmart. They have lots of vitamins and minerals, and cats love the taste.

Answer 10

Get a dropper and give him water or the gravy from the wet food.