Our girl has quit eating.

[roxie.manix]

Just wondering if anyone has any advice on feeding our girl. She is an F5 and has given up interest in food. She has always been a very picky eater. Will only eat 1 kind of dry food. (She is even pickywith treats and only likes a few select treats) She also gets cooked chicken breast. When we brought home our boy she didnt really want to eat much until we mixed some wet food in and then she was back to eating good again. Now she just has no interest in food. We havent switched her food at all other than trying to find some different flavors of wet food to try in with the dry food and chicken. Now she just sniffs her bowl and walks away. Even if it is the same food we have always gave her before. Any ideas on encouraging her to eat better?

At her last vet check up she was a good weight and healthy and she is not losing any weight. I just feel she isnt earing enough and dont want her to start losing weight or get sick.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

How old is your cat? Has this fussiness with food been the same all along but her weight has been fine? If so, then you just might be overestimating what she should be eating.

Sometimes the more anxiety and stress you exude around their mealtimes is going to negatively impact their appetite. I understand it, my Zari has been deathly ill and hence her eating was so very important at times and I've coaxed her to eat a tiny spoonful at a time. But as she has gotten healthier again and is stable, I've had to step back. If she doesn't eat at that time, she will ask again later and will eat then. I just don't ever offer her more than a spoonful of her raw food at any time... and one of the other cats will eat that if she doesn't. There is kibble available if she wants... none of mine are big on kibble but it's out as a snack. But I don't get overly anxious if she sniffs at her plate and walks away.

My feeling on this is that until she actually loses weight, you should try to relax. The more you push the more they refuse...just like human children ;-)

 

[Patti]

It's always bothersome when a cat stops eating. Is she eating absolutely nothing, or just eating a bite here or there? Cats can get seriously ill if the don't eat anything for more than three days, so it's important to know. I tend to agree with Brigitte that if she isn't losing weight there is less to worry about, but if it goes on for a prolonged period of time I would be concerned that there is something else going on (e.g., an illness) suppressing her appetite.

If there is a treat that she especially likes you can try mixing that in with her regular food. Freeze dried chicken treats crumbled over food is one that works for me. Many cats love cheese as well, and that can be mixed into food as well. There are also appetite stimulants that have been used successfully with cats.