Akila not gaining weight

[Akila]

Yes she does get stressed at that vet. I have had her to the vet 4 times last month, for her eye, to be weighed and eye follow up. I don't weigh her I had the eye doctor do it today at her recheck. I don't have a scale to weigh her on and she is eating canned food right now. She eats 3 of the small cans. I think they are 3 oz a day.
What is a pcr test?
She has never had any xrays, she has only vomited once and her stools are mostly firm with a little mucus coating sometimes. I have been asking about her ears for about 3 weeks now.

I had her on a raw food that she just quit eating...come to find out there was a voluntary recall from the manufacturer but they said there was no cases of sick animals. If she got bad food could it still be affecting her?

 

[David Z]

Stress from the vet will effect her.
Great scale https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079R1SSQR/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Fecal pcr is a much more thorough test then the traditional smear or float test they do. Fecal pcr test is lab work, like if blood was sent out to the lab.
If she picked a a parasite from the food then yes it could still be effecting her depending on the parasite.
Have her ears checked. Ask for a Fecal pcr. Post blood work.
Get a scale weigh her everyday at same time (write weights on calender), if shes not losing weight not vomiting and has firm stools and is eating(all of her food) everyday, shes probally just a slow grower and just hasn't hit a groth spurt yet.
You take a deep breath aswell, as you stressing Akila will pick up on as well. I know it's hard I freak out when the girls aren't feeling well too.

 

[Manu+Horde]

So obviously Akila's spay appointment is being pushed back.

Good morning ...
I'm glad to hear that you dalay the spaying - better to get Akila first in a stress free and stable condition.
It could really be that she have the eating issue due to too much stress ... when all the diagnoses from the Vet visits come up empty it is maybe just that Akila is not comfortable at that time ... maybe she realises also your condition with your worry about her - and this causes cats also to behave - different than they should - just remeber when a cat owner gets ill - the cat will suffer with him - staying at the owners side an try to care ... don't underestimate how sensible cats can react ...

Also in the other thread you mentioned the litter box problems you have with Akila so that she is afraid of your "big cat" - this also means maybe extra stress - what causes also her to be upset - not eating well and be that relaxed to gain weight.

Have you found some good food variants yet ? is her taste now known - more fish or meat - more chicken or rabbit or beef ?
Is she preferring food in aspic ore more in sauce ? What about your testing some kibble - any succes ? And what about the lactose-free milk (or Kitten milk Royal canin) - does Aklia or your other cat like that ?

I hope you stay calm by yourself and represent for Akila that she is in a secure surrounding - not making yourself so worried that she gets irritated by that ...

Thumbs pressed to get this into the right direction ...

 

[Akila]

Thank you all for your valued replies....I know that taking her to the vet causes her stress but I really need to get to the bottom of what is causing these issues. Akila has always been a very skittish cat from day one, and yes she is afraid of the other cat, but I keep them mostly separated when I am not home to play referee.
I know that she will not eat anything that is fishy. For right now she is eating the canned food pretty well so I am kind of sticking with that. I put a little boiled chicken on it to entice her to eat more. I am afraid to keep changing her food in fear that it will cause diarrhea.
Akila and I just spent 10 days away from the other cat, just her and I and I didn't see a change in behavior or stress levels. I know that my stress levels will transfer to her so I truly try and not act stressed around her. It's kind of hard when you see your furry baby not doing well.
I have tried some milk supplement and she will not drink it. I will have to try a different kind.
It is heart breaking and frustrating when you feel powerless to help your kitten.
For now I will get the rest of these tests done and pray that she is OK.

 

[Moggieslegacy]

In ruling out possible health problems be sure to get a full blood panel, one that shows the level of Globulin, Albumin and the Globulin Albumin ratio, and also the number of lymphocytes, not just the titter test for an immune response to the Corona virus, as most cats have been exposed to this and it rarely mutates to FIP. There is no direct test which proves FIP, but healthy bloodwork can rule this out. Also a liver bile acid test, done before eating and after can be helpful in ruling out a hepatic liver shunt as this is another thing that can cause poor growth.

If the worst case scenario turns out to be the reality, a liver shunt can often be managed if diagnosed early enough, and even dry FIP can be managed to give your kitty a longer healthier life. And in the past year, researchers in the U of Davis in CA look to have cured a handful of cats who had wet FIP, though this is still in the very early experimental stages. There is a Facebook group called FIP Fighters that have some Veterinary Specialists participating which is very helpful in interpreting test results and helping people find treatment to at least keep their kitties comfortable.

I hope you are just a worrier, but I had a sweet and wonderful kitten pass away last fall and I sensed something might be wrong a couple months before the vets realized there was a real problem. His first symptoms were him being an unpredictable picky eater, slowing growth and then anorexia and weight loss, and possibly a persistent low fever which later became a fluctuating high fever. So if you have the means, it is best to get to the bottom of it ASAP

 

[Akila]

Akila’s blood work will take 5 to 7 days for the results, so I will be holding my breath until then. Should does have a mild bacterial ear infection ( surprise, surprise) but no mites. I have been saying that there is something wrong with her ears for over 3 weeks now. I also had the deworming done, just in case. I figured it can’t hurt her since she has had it done before.

I don’t know if it’s to late in the game to change vets, but it makes me angry that they weren’t listening to me about her ears.

So is kinda of out of sorts today...she walks like a drunk sailor, which I’m sure is coming from her ears...UGH

I hate to ask because I know the pain when you lose a furry baby, but what did your kitten pass from?

I will continue to do WHATEVER I can to find out what is going on with Akila!!!

 

[Moggieslegacy]

I still don’t know for sure what caused my kitten Moggie’s death. The vet thought it could have been dry FIP, a hepatic liver shunt or a lymphoma, and the person who analyzed the blood work thought it suggested dry FIP. A veterinary
specialist in the FIP Fighters group agreed that his bloodwork and symptoms suggested dry FIP, as did the pictures of his eyes, as he also looked like he had a form of uveitis. But as far as I know, a necropsy after death is the only way to be sure a cat has dry FIP, and this would have cost $600, which for me was too much. So I will never know for sure, but it was probably dry FIP.

But I do have an idea what you are going through worrying about your kitten feeling something might be wrong...

Personally I wish I had found that FIP Fighters group sooner as they at least could have helped me know what to do for him to be more comfortable.

But in your kittens case you said a few weeks ago her blood work looked good... So hopefully the only problem is just a treatable ear infection and nothing serious!

 

[Akila]

My fingers are crossed and I am definitely staying positive that, that is all it is!!!! I am sorry for Moggie’s passing. We lost our 9 year old Egyptian Mau in April from acute denial failure and it stinks big time!!!

I am just wondering if an ear infection would cause Akila to not gain weight?

The feeling of helplessness when it comes to this kitten is what is bothering me the most, although I will not let her see that in me.

 

[Akila]

*renial

 

[Patti]

I'm starting to get concerned about the head shaking - possibly some inner ear issue, or worse. I had a cat who had a brain tumor growing into his inner ear, needed surgery to remove it - it was benign and he did fine, but it was a big deal...I think we had to do an MRI to diagnose it.