My other cat this time

[Cleo_13]

Now our other cat, Josephine, is refusing to eat. We are most likely calling the vet, as far as we know, she first refused her meal last night, and hasn't eaten either breakfast this morning, or tonights dinner. :( The food has not been changed, and unless she can see the future I can't think of anything new that would have upset her. (we are leaving for the summer on the 25th, and will be gone until August.)

Okay, while I was typing this, My mom came upstairs with an update. Apparently they got her to eat some dry food (her meals are usually wet food) I'm still worried, and still think she should be seen, but i think the call can wait until tomorrow. What do you think?

[Cejemere]

Take her to a vet!!!! Seen this way too many times with cats, had many, delivered many..ltake your sweety to a vet and have blood work done. Not eating can be a huge sign of cancer or a moth infection that you may not know about. Any time your animal doesnt eat normally, there is cause of alarm!

[Pointy Tale]

Hi! I'm Not an expert, but could she be a picky eater and maybe is bored with her food, or do you have a gut feeling that something is off? If you do, then always better to be safe than sorry and take her to the vet. I really hope it works out. Psst, maybe try a bit of tuna fish or canned salmon to see if she likes it. Oh and is she drinking water?
sorry, I didn't proof, so sorry for any typos.
Good luck.

[Cleo_13]

She's got an appointment for 3:30 today. Not only has she been eating hardly anything, My dad says that she threw up the tiny amount she did eat today.:(

[Skul]

TP has a good point about the water.:thumbsup

Could Jo be finding another source of food?
Sniff her breath, see if it smells like mouse.

Hope the visit comes out good.

[marvin's mom]

Make sure they do a feline leukemia test! Especially if your kitty hasn't had the vaccination...I lost my little Skweeky to it - she had the same symptoms. Good luck at the vet!

[Cleo_13]

the vet could not find anything obvious, and she was not running a fever. We have to bring her back in for some blood tests if she doesn't get better. I wish they had done them today, Josephine is terrified of car rides. She was given fluids, and we were given some antibiotics and something for her stomach to give her. The vet seemed to think that she ate something, like maybe a mouse, that either disagreed with her or gave her a parasite or something.:dono

Marvin's Mom- I'm pretty sure she has had the vaccination, and she and her brother are both indoor cats. Don't you have to be in contact with other cats to get that? I seriously hope that isn't the case.

Skul- what does mouse smell like?

[philomycus]

How old is your cat? Doing blood work to get a baseline is the FIRST thing I would do. It tells you how the liver, kidney and pancreas are doing.

I don't want to over-ride what you have been told by your vet, but I would insist that blood work is done immediately. This really is very, very important.

[Cleo_13]

Now Napoleon has stopped eating!:Cry Josephine eats a little, but not regularly. My parents are reluctant to go to the vet again, since the last visit cost about 200 dollars (even without the blood work, which I think they need) I'm thinking of offering to use some of my money, and paying for at least part of it if that's the only problem.

[Pointy Tale]

Hi! I'm sorry I can't help you, but I've got some things for you to think about, I think.

How long as eat cat Not eaten? Days… Week?

Have you looked in her mouth to see if there is anything going on, bad tooth, abscess?

What color are their gums?

Are they peeing/pooing normally? How often?

What is their play behavior—like are they sleeping all day or still active?

Do they go outside? It could be the heat.

Have you recently used a flea/tick prevention—you know like frontline? Sometimes, they can have side effects like that? Or any other med's lately?

How much water are they drinking?

Like when you say she eats a little do you mean like normally shes a cup of food and now she's eating only a few bites?

Is it possible to call the vet yourself (without going in and paying, $200 is a lot of money) and say we just brought her in and is there anything for you to look for or to try to get them to eat?

I wish you luck and really for you and your little babies.

I'm sorry, I didn't proof this (pls forgive typos and such) and everything above was just kinda thinking outloud.

[Pointy Tale]

Oh, another thought to add to my above: are they losing any weight?
Can you check their collar to see if it is looser (is that spelled right) than normal?

[Cleo_13]

It looks like one of them finished off one of the bowls last night, after I had left. Not sure which one. Napoleon usually eats everything put out for him (plus Josephine's if he can get it) so the fact that he didn't eat right away was really strange. Josephine usually eats most of her food, now she eats a few bites here and there. It's better than nothing, which is what she was eating a few days ago. They sleeping most of the day, and Josephine has been doing most of her sleeping in hiding places (like under beds). They are strictly indoor cats. When we took Josephine to the vets, she had lost half a pound since the last visit. (From 10.2 to 9.6) Can't check their collars, they don't have any. They do get flea prevention stuff every few months. Sorry, this is all out of order. I'll update soon.

[tomcics]

Good luck Cleo, hope all goes well, it's been years since I had a cat but I do recall mine would get finicky every once in a while and not eat for a day or two but that was very unusual. Sometimes I just needed to switch to another brand of cat food.

[marvin's mom]

[QUOTE=Cleo_13]

Marvin's Mom- I'm pretty sure she has had the vaccination, and she and her brother are both indoor cats. Don't you have to be in contact with other cats to get that? I seriously hope that isn't the case.

QUOTE]

Have they always been indoor cats? Sometimes symptoms do not show up for years - It can be passed from their mother if she was either infected or a carrier. And yes it's passed either by saliva, blood, or urine. Usually FeLv vaccine is not in the typical rounds of vaccination - though I think it should be required!

We lost 2 of our kitties to it - one was 3 years later because he was on Interferon which is actually the same drug they give to AIDS patients to help with their immune symptoms.

In any case, you need to get blood and urine analysis!! If you're worried about cost - do you have a Banfield Pet hospital nearby? I only ask cause they offer pet health plans that cost about $25 a month - which ended up saving me almost $2300 in one year for my two kitties cause bloodwork - urine, vaccines are included - even spay/neuter! Plus you get a discount on everything else. I hope your kitties feel better!