Nauseous but hungry cat

My cat needs some help. He's 10 years old and has either liver disease
or lymphoma. He's needs a biopsy but I really, honestly, can't afford
it at this time. During the past couple of months, his health has
declined. He's lost about 4 pounds and seems nauseous most of the
time. His appetite is unpredictable. One day he'll want to eat like
he's starving to death and the next day he won't eat at all even
though he seems hungry. Sometimes he'll eat a food and then refuses to
eat it again. It's like he associates the food with his upset stomach.
The doctors aren't really sure what to do and I get the feeling
there's something they're not telling me. I get the feeling that they
think he has less than a year to live even though they've not actually
indicated any such thing to me. At this point, if he doesn't start
eating, he won't live long. I don't know what to do and the doctors
aren't sure either and I thought that perhaps someone else has had a
similar experience. Basically, the cat seems/acts hungry but won't eat
anything, and at the same time, he acts as though he's nauseous. It's
obviously important that he eats but how can he eat if he's constantly
nauseous? Even if he had a feeding tube inserted, it seems as though
feeding a cat or even a human when they're nauseous is not very
healthy. Any suggestions?

in article , Mike at
wrote on 11/29/04 10:53 PM:

My cat needs some help. He's 10 years old and has either liver disease
or lymphoma. He's needs a biopsy but I really, honestly, can't afford
it at this time. During the past couple of months, his health has
declined. He's lost about 4 pounds and seems nauseous most of the
time. His appetite is unpredictable. One day he'll want to eat like
he's starving to death and the next day he won't eat at all even
though he seems hungry. Sometimes he'll eat a food and then refuses to
eat it again. It's like he associates the food with his upset stomach.
The doctors aren't really sure what to do and I get the feeling
there's something they're not telling me. I get the feeling that they
think he has less than a year to live even though they've not actually
indicated any such thing to me. At this point, if he doesn't start
eating, he won't live long. I don't know what to do and the doctors
aren't sure either and I thought that perhaps someone else has had a
similar experience. Basically, the cat seems/acts hungry but won't eat
anything, and at the same time, he acts as though he's nauseous. It's
obviously important that he eats but how can he eat if he's constantly
nauseous? Even if he had a feeding tube inserted, it seems as though
feeding a cat or even a human when they're nauseous is not very
healthy. Any suggestions?

Have the vets given you anything for this? Tagamet? Pepcid? There *is*
supportive treatment even if his time is limited.

(Mike) wrote in message . com...
My cat needs some help. He's 10 years old and has either liver disease
or lymphoma. He's needs a biopsy but I really, honestly, can't afford
it at this time. During the past couple of months, his health has
declined. He's lost about 4 pounds and seems nauseous most of the
time. His appetite is unpredictable. One day he'll want to eat like
he's starving to death and the next day he won't eat at all even
though he seems hungry. Sometimes he'll eat a food and then refuses to
eat it again. It's like he associates the food with his upset stomach.
The doctors aren't really sure what to do and I get the feeling
there's something they're not telling me. I get the feeling that they
think he has less than a year to live even though they've not actually
indicated any such thing to me. At this point, if he doesn't start
eating, he won't live long. I don't know what to do and the doctors
aren't sure either and I thought that perhaps someone else has had a
similar experience. Basically, the cat seems/acts hungry but won't eat
anything, and at the same time, he acts as though he's nauseous. It's
obviously important that he eats but how can he eat if he's constantly
nauseous? Even if he had a feeding tube inserted, it seems as though
feeding a cat or even a human when they're nauseous is not very
healthy. Any suggestions?

There's this stuff in a tube, Kittyvite or Nutrical, that is basically
vitamins and minerals in malt-flavored goop (like the hairball remedy
stuff). In any event, we have a cat suffering from chronic renal
failure who actually started to eat canned food again after giving him
a blob of this stuff every day. He won't eat it off my finger, so I
have to smear it on his front legs. It might make a difference for
your kitty too.

I started him on this stuff because I was concerned that he wasn't
getting enough nutrition since he was barely eating. Whether he's
eating more now cuz there's something in his tummy every day (thus,
not so nauseous), or whether the extra nutrition is making a
difference, I can't say. Just thought you might like to hunt some
down and see if it will help your little guy. Good luck!

dragon

(Mike) wrote in
om:

My cat needs some help. He's 10 years old and has either liver disease
or lymphoma. He's needs a biopsy but I really, honestly, can't afford
it at this time.

Is either of those conditions treatable? If so, I would do whatever I
needed to in order to have the biopsy done -- take out a loan, borrow from
friends/family, max out the credit cards, sell something/many things, eat
rice and beans for a decade -- please try to get him the care he needs.
When I was poorer, my vets would always let me pay over time, too.

--Catherine
& Rosalie the calicohead

"Mike" wrote in message
om...
My cat needs some help. He's 10 years old and has either liver disease
or lymphoma.

Was complete bloodwork done on him?

"Dragon" wrote in message
om...
(Mike) wrote in message
. com...
My cat needs some help. He's 10 years old and has either liver disease
or lymphoma. He's needs a biopsy but I really, honestly, can't afford
it at this time. During the past couple of months, his health has
declined. He's lost about 4 pounds and seems nauseous most of the
time. His appetite is unpredictable. One day he'll want to eat like
he's starving to death and the next day he won't eat at all even
though he seems hungry. Sometimes he'll eat a food and then refuses to
eat it again. It's like he associates the food with his upset stomach.
The doctors aren't really sure what to do and I get the feeling
there's something they're not telling me. I get the feeling that they
think he has less than a year to live even though they've not actually
indicated any such thing to me. At this point, if he doesn't start
eating, he won't live long. I don't know what to do and the doctors
aren't sure either and I thought that perhaps someone else has had a
similar experience. Basically, the cat seems/acts hungry but won't eat
anything, and at the same time, he acts as though he's nauseous. It's
obviously important that he eats but how can he eat if he's constantly
nauseous? Even if he had a feeding tube inserted, it seems as though
feeding a cat or even a human when they're nauseous is not very
healthy. Any suggestions?

There's this stuff in a tube, Kittyvite or Nutrical, that is basically
vitamins and minerals in malt-flavored goop (like the hairball remedy
stuff). In any event, we have a cat suffering from chronic renal
failure who actually started to eat canned food again after giving him
a blob of this stuff every day. He won't eat it off my finger, so I
have to smear it on his front legs. It might make a difference for
your kitty too.

I started him on this stuff because I was concerned that he wasn't
getting enough nutrition since he was barely eating. Whether he's
eating more now cuz there's something in his tummy every day (thus,
not so nauseous), or whether the extra nutrition is making a
difference, I can't say. Just thought you might like to hunt some
down and see if it will help your little guy. Good luck!



That's sage advice.

Phil