Poorly Cat Wont Eat

[sam7]

My daughters cat is poorly, she was kept in at the vets for 2 days and only let out as she was quite stressed at the vets (apparently hated the vets). They said she had eaten and toileted with them, but she is not eating for my daughter.
I know a few dibbers are experience cat owners so wondered if anyone has any advise on how she might get her to eat something? Vet said to feed her chicken but she wont touch it. She is a rescue from the RSPCA and only really tame for my daughter and then to a point, so can imagine she has struggled.
Doesn't help that my daughters other cat is now hissing at her (think she must smell like the vets). She has them seperated at the moment.

[Rac20]

I’m sorry I’m not an expert. But if that was my cat, I’d leave her in one room that she feels safe in and give her a favourite blanket that she is familiar with and food, water and litter tray. All things to reassure her.

Did the vet say what was wrong?

[lindaj]

I'm not an expert but have had cats for about 40 years. My one cat from time to time does seem to go off his food, no matter what I offer him and I took him to the vet and about £400 later they had no answer! He came home for a couple of days and then just started eating again. He is now back to his normal self. If you think about yourself if you have eaten something a bit off or got a stomach upset you do go off your food. The other thing it may well be stress, try getting one of those plug ins, I fostered a feral a couple of years ago, he had been hit by a car and needed to recuperate so I had him in my garden and he was really wild, I got an Adaptil diffuser from Zooplus (good on line provider of pet products) and plugged it in and with in two days he was entering the house, although he insisted I left the door open for him so he had an escape route, and he then came to the door twice a day for food, he even slept under the radiator in the laundry the one night because it was icy cold and once he realised he was safe he was fine (I managed to close the door that night). It's well worth a try. Good luck

[storm]

Cat servant for over 40 yrs.

Warm food as it smells more & tempts cat.
Lick e lix has never been turned down.
Feed in a quiet calm space cats prefer to eat alone( the are solitary hunters).
Roast the chicken rather than boil as it again smells better & cut into small shreds.
Fish cooked in a little milk.
My present ladyship refuses point black to eat the same meal twice in a row & had mon petite gourmet as it's a small amount with lots of gravy.
Raise the food bowl off the ground so they don't have to drop their head so far to eat.
Hope your kitty starts to feel better soon.x

[bonnies mum]

Sons cat was at the vet last week as wasn’t eating or drinking. They did bloods tests but all came back normal. She was there all day and had to go back the next Vets said it was probably a virus but she is a house cat so don’t know where should would have caught anything.
Hope your daughters cat picks up soon.

[Emmie2016]

My cat has a a condition and can go off her food. If the cat enjoys catnip then sprinkle some on top of some smelly food like fish.

[cartoonp]

Sorry to here. Our Jaffa world go 2 to 3 days with out eaten then go back to his food he even did this at the cattery we where in London and had a call the lady asked if she should take him to the vet but we said no he dose this next day he started eaten again. All the best

[Bartswife]

I hate it when they seem poorly and you can’t work out why. One of mine had a real reaction to Whiskas (they are used to eating As good as it looks Felix but my brother donated us the Whiskas after his cat died), she just laid on the bean bag and looked pathetic for a couple of days. Some days they will eat what I give them other days won’t touch its. They both wont eat sometimes and it’s always at the same time as though one of the flavour of foods is off but then the next time that flavour is tried they eat it. It’s bizarre. Cats - really who would bother. Well we would

[Wismgari]

I think you have already had some great advice, but just to add my experience. My cat was rushed into emergency vet last year and was there for 48 hours. He has always LOVED his food (I have child locks on food cupboard, bin and fridge as he could get into them all! ). He came home and had no interest... But he did go back to it after a while.

Are you putting tablets in the food at all? Once my cat worked out there were sometimes tablets in his food he stopped eating it. It can be a good idea to give tablets separate to the bowl of food (I use pill pockets for these and they have been a lifesaver). Feeding small amounts often can help as fresh food smells more appealing to them. Smelly fish, fresh cooked chicken, rice, or just their favourite food... anything to get them to start eating again in my experience. It also may just take a few days to settle back down from the trauma of the vets - he would have been able to smell all the other animals, medical procedures, missing his owner... it is all very stressful.

I hope he is feeling much better soon.

P.S If not eating or drinking I would be worried, but as long as he is getting water he will be OK for a bit.

[sam_b]

Hi,

I would try Forti flora - it’s a pro biotic powder that you can sprinkle on food - it tastes good according to my cats. You can also mix it with a little water and they will lap it up. It’s kind of beefy smelling. This may stimulate appetite as well as resolve any upset tummy issues.
I also second Lick e lix - my cats love them.
Vets can administer an appetite stimulant injection in the worst case scenario.
Warming food can help. Also treats on top of regular food.

Good luck.