12-14-2003, 09:47 PM
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5000+ Posts? I Should OWN This Site!
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 5,133
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Cats & hunger strikes
For any cat owners out there... it's really bad if your cat staves him/herself.
I recently moved, and one cat was upset about it and stopped eating. But in cats, this can actually cause liver damage after even only a few days. So she's in really bad shape. Only cure is to force-feed her lots of food and hope the liver repairs itself. Not fun for either of us.
If we had known it was such an issue, we'd have taken her to the vet sooner. We just thought she'd snap out of her depression.
So I'm passing on our newfound knowledge in the hopes that other owners can avoid this.
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12-15-2003, 12:01 AM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,213
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I wasn't aware that liver damage could occur from a cat not eating. Are you sure it's stress from the move? I assume the vet checked for physical problems such as tooth decay/oral infections, abdominal pain or swelling, etc. that might make eating uncomfortable? A year or two ago, my cat became constipated and stopped eating for three or four days. Once that passed -- so to speak -- she returned to normal. Two of a friend's cats just had several teeth removed on Friday due to severe tooth decay and infections.
I know she's in good hands and you'll do your best to get her whipped back into shape!
__________________
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12-15-2003, 02:19 AM
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2000 Posts And This is All I Get?
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 2,017
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What caused the cat to stop eating in the first place ?
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12-15-2003, 04:49 AM
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5000+ Posts? I Should OWN This Site!
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Dave Beauvais
I wasn't aware that liver damage could occur from a cat not eating. Are you sure it's stress from the move? I assume the vet checked for physical problems such as tooth decay/oral infections, abdominal pain or swelling, etc. that might make eating uncomfortable? A year or two ago, my cat became constipated and stopped eating for three or four days. Once that passed -- so to speak -- she returned to normal. Two of a friend's cats just had several teeth removed on Friday due to severe tooth decay and infections.
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Doc checked for a lot of things, took temperature, did several blood tests and an x-ray. It's possible it's her pancreas, which would be bad, as the treatment is almost opposite what we're proceeding with under the assumption it's the liver. In fact, she'd almost definitely have to have a tube inserted in her small intestine to feed her past where the pancreas would be involved.
If she gets worse or doesn't improve at all over the next week, they'll do a liver biopsy and an ultrasound.
Tomorrow we're going to take her back to the vet for more fluids (they inject fluid subcutaneously and it "soaks in" over time. Makes her look like a camel...) and to get an appetite stimulant.
I will be very happy when she's eating on her own. Force-feeding her every 2-2.5 hours (and it takes a half hour to do it) is VERY stressful, and I'm useless for a half hour afterwards. Let alone the stress on the cat, which I'm even more concerned with.
At least my job doesn't start until January.
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12-15-2003, 04:53 AM
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5000+ Posts? I Should OWN This Site!
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Maximus
What caused the cat to stop eating in the first place ?
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While it could be a number of physical problem, the most likely answer is stress related moving. We moved about 4 weeks ago. The first week she was spooked. The second week she *seemed* to adjust, but then the 3rd week is when she started to be "not normal".
My theory is that she thought this was a vacation, but after being here for 2 weeks, realized we weren't going "home", and got upset.
But it could be all the "weird" people that have come through here (washer/dryer delivery, installation, the painter, the movers, etc.) that really set her off.
Or that once we finally opened most of the doors in the house she felt the house was too big, given that it's nearly 3x the size of our old condo.
Who knows. 
This is definitely one of those times I wish I could teach her to talk so she could tell me what exactly upset her, and so I could convince her she'd feel better if she'd just eat.
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12-15-2003, 08:04 AM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,213
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Kati Compton
... they inject fluid subcutaneously and it "soaks in" over time. Makes her look like a camel...) ...
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I did those injections myself twice a day at home for about the last week and a half before I lost Midnight. It was really weird feeling a big lump on her side that was cool to the touch while the rest of her was warm. One of those last ditch efforts to keep her hydrated and help combat the effects of kidney failure.
I know what you mean about wishing cats could speak, or at least understand what we're saying. I would have loved to have been able to explain to her why I kept poking her with a needle. :| I would also have enjoyed saying "see? I told you so!" after she puked up the house plants she'd eaten over the years. :lol:
Please keep us updated. I'll be thinking about you guys and wishing you the best of luck. 
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12-15-2003, 06:49 PM
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Magi
Join Date: Dec 2007
Posts: 2,124
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One of my cats reacted really badly to moving too, he hid for about 2 weeks. He didn't starve himself entirely though. I eventually had to pull him out of his hiding place by force and block it off and make him come out and explore. He found another hiding place but at least it was on top of something rather then under something, so I could see him and talk to him. He warmed up eventually, it took a couple of months before he was eating the normal amounts again, I hope I don't have to move with him again for a long long time!
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12-15-2003, 06:57 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Nov 2003
Posts: 53
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So sorry to hear about your cat. The stress of moving can be hard on cats, as I have seen first hand. I wanted to suggest one other possibility - have you changed cat food recently, or could your brand have changed formula? My wife's family had a cat that wouldn't eat, threw up when she (the cat, not my wife) did, and was becoming very, very sick. Turned out she was alergic to one of the dyes in her food. They switched brands and everything was fine.
Sympathy and best wishes to both of you.
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12-15-2003, 07:07 PM
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5000+ Posts? I Should OWN This Site!
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 5,133
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Korlon
So sorry to hear about your cat. The stress of moving can be hard on cats, as I have seen first hand. I wanted to suggest one other possibility - have you changed cat food recently, or could your brand have changed formula? My wife's family had a cat that wouldn't eat, threw up when she (the cat, not my wife) did, and was becoming very, very sick. Turned out she was alergic to one of the dyes in her food. They switched brands and everything was fine.
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Nope. We feed our cats Iams Less Active dry food every day, and Iams regular wet food every other day. That didn't change.
The only thing that changed is our water - up here the water is softened except at the kitchen sink. However, this cat in particular is used to drinking from the bathtub faucet several times a day. The new water doesn't taste good to her. So it would be possible that she became dehydrated, and cats do tend to not eat when dehydrated.
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12-16-2003, 12:33 AM
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Thinker
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 412
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I am also sorry to hear that kitty is not well...
My Coco has been through the water shots, too.
Even when one of our cats was sick and wouldn't eat, we found something that they just couldn't resist:
- for one, it was canned tuna.
- for another, it was Chicken Joy (like KFC)
- for another, it was veggie lunch meat (go figure)
I once nearly killed one of mine giving it a pill. She was choking and drooling and couldn't talk. I couldn't get the pill out or down...so I offered her juice from a can of tuna and she drank it and all turned out well.
My kitties and I will be thinking of your kitty...
Karen
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