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#1
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Is my cat depressed?
I have a four-year-old cat (Miss Kitty) who has had some serious
health problems for the past two weeks, and I'm getting desperate. She started off vomiting and getting slightly listless. I took her to the vet who found she was extremely constipated, completely impacted. Two days of mineral oil and soft food produced no results, so he gave her an enema. It cleaned her out quite effectively, but now she won't eat, drink, play, purr, or clean herself. She still wags her tail when we talk to her or pet her, but after a few minutes, she walks away and hides in a corner, in a closet or under a bed. She seems to want nothing to do with us, and although it sounds weird, it's as if she's given up the will to live. The vet can find nothing physically wrong with her and refuses to accept that it might be emotional. She's at the vet's right now being rehydrated. Next, he wants to cut her open ($600+) to see if there's any blockage in her intestine. No evidence of this in any x-rays or blood tests. Leukemia and feline AIDS tests are negative. I want to help her, but I don't want him to cut her open. I believe she's had enough trauma for a while. My question is this: Is it possible for a cat to become that withdrawn (depressed?) because of the physical trials she has experienced (constipation, vomiting, enema, barium, mineral oil forced down her throat?) In the past, even when she wasn't feeling well, she still ate, drank and purred. She's always been very obsessive about cleaning herself, but now she shows no interest at all. It's been several days since she ate and has had very little to drink. I don't think she can last much longer and I'm at a loss. Any advice would be welcome. Thanks. |
#3
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in article , Terry at
wrote on 8/11/03 12:35 PM: I have a four-year-old cat (Miss Kitty) who has had some serious health problems for the past two weeks, and I'm getting desperate. She started off vomiting and getting slightly listless. I took her to the vet who found she was extremely constipated, completely impacted. Two days of mineral oil and soft food produced no results, so he gave her an enema. It cleaned her out quite effectively, but now she won't eat, drink, play, purr, or clean herself. She still wags her tail when we talk to her or pet her, but after a few minutes, she walks away and hides in a corner, in a closet or under a bed. She seems to want nothing to do with us, and although it sounds weird, it's as if she's given up the will to live. The vet can find nothing physically wrong with her and refuses to accept that it might be emotional. She's at the vet's right now being rehydrated. Next, he wants to cut her open ($600+) to see if there's any blockage in her intestine. No evidence of this in any x-rays or blood tests. Leukemia and feline AIDS tests are negative. I want to help her, but I don't want him to cut her open. I believe she's had enough trauma for a while. My question is this: Is it possible for a cat to become that withdrawn (depressed?) because of the physical trials she has experienced (constipation, vomiting, enema, barium, mineral oil forced down her throat?) In the past, even when she wasn't feeling well, she still ate, drank and purred. She's always been very obsessive about cleaning herself, but now she shows no interest at all. It's been several days since she ate and has had very little to drink. I don't think she can last much longer and I'm at a loss. Any advice would be welcome. Thanks. Cats *can* become depressed, but I would sure suspect a physical problem over that. If you want her to have a break, you could try some Feliway (www.feliway.com) to see if it eases her stress. However, you *must* get her to eat. Speak to your vet regarding this. Several days is much too long to go without eating. Karen |
#4
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Keep in touch with the vet.
Try some canned chicken meat. This is the only thing my cat would touch after not eating for a few days when she was in mourning for her partner and was running a high fever. Even after the antibiotic broke the fever, she didn't have much appetite for a few more days. expect for the canned chicken meat. I watched her like a hawk and kept in touch with the vet. Give a little bit at a time as it will spoil if you let it set out. Took allot of tries and then finally she came around. My vet and were in touch on a daily basis till Kitty got her appetite back. All is well now with her. Linda |
#5
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Keep in touch with the vet.
Try some canned chicken meat. This is the only thing my cat would touch after not eating for a few days when she was in mourning for her partner and was running a high fever. Even after the antibiotic broke the fever, she didn't have much appetite for a few more days. expect for the canned chicken meat. I watched her like a hawk and kept in touch with the vet. Give a little bit at a time as it will spoil if you let it set out. Took allot of tries and then finally she came around. My vet and were in touch on a daily basis till Kitty got her appetite back. All is well now with her. Linda |
#6
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It's been
several days since she ate and has had very little to drink. I don't think she can last much longer and I'm at a loss. Any advice would be welcome. Thanks. I really doubt that it's emotional. Did she have a full blood panel? Nothing abnormal in that? You do need to get her to eat and may have to force feed her with a syringe...something like Hills a/d, available from your vet, or human baby food, maybe chicken and rice (no onions), something. Whether or not her initial problem was physical or emotional, she now has a physical problem from not eating and could develop fatty liver disease (hepatic lipidosis). They can have blockages that don't show on x-ray. Is she prone to eating string or anything like that? That won't show on an x-ray and can do a lot of intestinal damage. I don't think she would become depressed from the trauma of going to the vet and she was ill to begin with so I think there's a physical basis. Has your vet given you an appetite stimulant, such as cyproheptadine? He may be reluctant to do so if he thinks it's a blockage, though. I guess if you could get her to eat one way or another, you might be able to determine if it's a blockage. But now that she's not eating, she is getting weaker and sicker. If you don't trust your vet, maybe you should take all her tests and get a second opinion. She needs some sort of help, though. Candace (take the litter out before replying by e-mail) See my cats: http://photos.yahoo.com/maccandace |
#7
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It's been
several days since she ate and has had very little to drink. I don't think she can last much longer and I'm at a loss. Any advice would be welcome. Thanks. I really doubt that it's emotional. Did she have a full blood panel? Nothing abnormal in that? You do need to get her to eat and may have to force feed her with a syringe...something like Hills a/d, available from your vet, or human baby food, maybe chicken and rice (no onions), something. Whether or not her initial problem was physical or emotional, she now has a physical problem from not eating and could develop fatty liver disease (hepatic lipidosis). They can have blockages that don't show on x-ray. Is she prone to eating string or anything like that? That won't show on an x-ray and can do a lot of intestinal damage. I don't think she would become depressed from the trauma of going to the vet and she was ill to begin with so I think there's a physical basis. Has your vet given you an appetite stimulant, such as cyproheptadine? He may be reluctant to do so if he thinks it's a blockage, though. I guess if you could get her to eat one way or another, you might be able to determine if it's a blockage. But now that she's not eating, she is getting weaker and sicker. If you don't trust your vet, maybe you should take all her tests and get a second opinion. She needs some sort of help, though. Candace (take the litter out before replying by e-mail) See my cats: http://photos.yahoo.com/maccandace |
#8
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Thanks for all the responses. We seemed to have a breakthrough last
night. We forced a small amount of soft food and some water. A while later, she started eating a little on her own and then drank some water. When I started to pet her, she started to purr, very softly, but it was still a purr. She's also shown some interest in cleaning herself, again very little, but it's a start. This morning she ate more of the soft stuff and drank some water. Things are looking up. Now, how do I ensure that she doesn't become constipated again and start this all over? Thanks again for your responses! |
#9
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Thanks for all the responses. We seemed to have a breakthrough last
night. We forced a small amount of soft food and some water. A while later, she started eating a little on her own and then drank some water. When I started to pet her, she started to purr, very softly, but it was still a purr. She's also shown some interest in cleaning herself, again very little, but it's a start. This morning she ate more of the soft stuff and drank some water. Things are looking up. Now, how do I ensure that she doesn't become constipated again and start this all over? Thanks again for your responses! |
#10
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