My kitten looks a little skinny... eats a lot, any ideas why?

Question

Well, I've got a 5.5 months old female kitten, shorthair. She hasn't been spayed yet but I doubt it has anything to do with what my question concerns. She weighs 3.5 lbs and it's normal for a kitten her age, I checked... but it worries me that even though she eats a lot (and I do mean a lot, about a small can of wet food and 1-2 small bowls of dry food) and drinks enough (sometimes I give her lactose free 2% milk too), she still looks very skinny. Not like starving skinny but skinny. Her ribs aren't showing but when I run my finger over them, I can feel them well under her fur. She does run around a lot and expends energy (she's an indoor kitty) but I guess I'm just worried. The vet didn't seem to think it was a problem at all. Am I right to be concerned?

Answer 1

Intestinal worms was my first thought but if you have taken her to the vet I wouldn't be concerned with her weight at all. Kittens that age tend to grow quickly so her height and size maybe developing quicker than her weight. She is also probably burning a lot of calories with her activity. Continue to love and care for her and she will be just fine

Answer 2

Hmm, hi there, well I've heard that de-worming pills can be potentially dangerous (I've heard that some worms will leave the stomach in the presence of de-worming poisons and move else where in the body to cause furthur damage), but there are two natural alternatives that you could try, that's black walnut, (you may not want to use this on a young kitten though) and raw grated carrot, that's what I give my cat, this is a safe vermifuge and worm preventative measure that's apparently quite effective. Give her about a teaspoon of raw grated carrot in her food as a daily addition to her meals, mix it up real good. (don't use the part of the grater that we grate our cheese with but the other side that makes more of a pulp out of whatever you're grating. A cat can get diarrhea from the sudden addition of veggies in her diet as my cat did but now he doesn't have ithe diarhea any more, so no worries.

Now if you really think she has worms, like if she's got diarrhea, is overly busy with an itchy bottom, or you see worms in her stool, (they can be brown if they're dead), or she even vomits up worms or coughs them up (the case with my cat), you may want to try black walnut hull powder, about 1/16 - 1/8 of a teaspoon for only up to five days given once a day with her food, again mix well, as it's kind of bitter. When you do this you can also continue the carrots. And to aid in helping your kitty's system in flushing out the worms and eggs, give her a little flax seed oil, human or pet grade, about a 1/4 teaspoon with one of her meals.

Also on a last note, I've read that raw pumkin seed (you would need to grind this up though) is also a very good vermifuge. I just haven't used this one on my cat, no particular reason for this though other than it's been hard to find it at the store lately.

Hope all of this helps you out, I know we love our little furries and get pretty worried sick about them when we think (or know there's a problem) and there's nothing like some helpful free (and safe) advice

Cheers

Answer 3

Have you discussed this with your vet? I would stronly recommend that you drop off a fecal sample to have her tested for all parasites. I would recommend a good premium dry kitten food and feed according the the package instructions. Canned food is fine too as long as it is a good premium product. As a rule a kitten should weigh one pound for every month it is old until and adult, which would be 5.5 pounds for your cat. I would discontinue giving her milk, it is really not the best thing for her, I would just give her water only. Again, I would strongly recommend that she be seen by a Veterinarian to rule out any problems. Good Luck.

Answer 4

Your vet sounds like he is an idiot. I work for one of the best veterinarians in California. You cat sounds like it has a parasite. Check the cats gums. Are they really pink or are they whiteish? if they are whiteish your cat is probably anemic. It could be worse. She could have some auto immune illness. that weight is not right for a 5.5 month old cat and you should not be able to feel her ribs. Find another vet before your kitten dies.

Answer 5

I don't think you should worry. I have a 1 year old cat who had the same problem. When he was younger he looked skinny, not sick skinny, just very lean. I was worried about him, but he ate really good. But now at age 1 he has filled out very nicely and doesn't look skinny anymore.

Answer 6

Well maybe she digests foods down faster than normal. Or it could be that she is running around a lot, because that can make her thin. If that isn't the problem than go to a different vet this time to see if they can see if there is any problem with her.

Good Luck!

Answer 7

it's just like a child. some children can eat anything and not gain anything. this is because they need lots of food just for their energy. they are growing just like your kitten. your kitten is grow and needs the food to fuel the energy so she can grow. be careful though, just like kids, at a sertain point they will start to gain weight because their body is grow as fast. just make sure your kitten gets energy and look for if she start s to gain more as she gets older. other than that don't worry and enjoy it. they grow up so fast. hope that helped. =]

p.s. if your still concerned and just want to be safe have her checked for worms. good luck

Answer 8

Well, little animals use a lot of energy just to grow!

If the vet doesn't think it's a problem, neither should you. Some breeds just run thinner than others, and from the sounds of it - she's a healthy, active little kitten. Don't sweat it.

Answer 9

If you can't see her ribs and the vet does not seem concerned, your kitty is probably just very active. Did you ask your vet about the possibility of worms?

Answer 10

I think thats normal my cat eats a lot and is skinny too sometimes I wonder why she's so skinny but I think its just cause she's still growing.