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Force feeding is not a lot of fun...a couple of questions please.
Hi All ~
16 year old CRF cat, Fatass, on day 6 of liquid therapy of 150ml/day of NaCl... Went to the supermaket yesterday and bought all kinds of stuff for Fats to try...clam juice, canned mackerel and crabmeat, baby food, some fancy feast in gravy... I get home and see that she ate nothing that I left for her during the day - I tried some mackerel, mackerel with clam juice, Fancy feast chicken with gravy, k/d dry with clam juice, her usual wet food..nothing. So I decide she is going to eat, like it or not. I grab the k/d canned, a towel, and some wet paper towels. I put Fats on my lap at the kitchen table and try to open her mouth and shovel in the food...I could get her mouth open, but she would turn her head at the same time, which resulted in food all over her, me, the floor, and the table... Then I got smart. I touched her whickers on the side of her mouth to get her lip to curl, then I wiped the food on her teeth and gums. This seems to work, although still a mess. She wasn't liking it but she wasn't trying too hard to escape either. She just whined as she chewed & swallowed the food. If this is what I have to do, then I will do it, but I hope her appetite comes back soon. I also started her on 1/4 tab of Pepcid twice a day to see if that helps settle her stomach. Two questions: How much should I give her at these food fight sessions? I am lucky if I got 2 oz into her, but she also had about 20 pieces of hard treats and 1.5 inches of Nutri-gel. Secondly, how long for the pepcid to kick in and possibly see an appetite improvement? Thanks, Bluesman - fighting the good fight |
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#4
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Years ago, I had a cat with both CRF and IBD. She originally was given
only a few weeks to live "at most," but I was actually able to keep her for another 3+ years. One of the problems I worked with that is similar to your description is that she periodically would completely lose her appetite and would not eat anything at all (first every 6 weeks, then closer together). My vet gave me some very large syringes (*without needles,* of course), and I used them for force feeding. I think that you would find that much more practical than trying to "shovel" food into your cat. Even so, you will need to be very careful not to cause your cat to gag. One of the most useful things during that long period came as a result of a suggestion from my mother. I would cook some chicken pieces (*with bones and skin*) for a very *long* time. Cover the chicken with water and simmer uncovered until the water has been reduced by *at least* one-half. Your goal is the fluid that will be left, not the chicken itself -- although of course you can also use that. Pour the fluid into a clean container and refrigerate it, then skim off the fat. If you cooked it long enough (and/or included enough chicken -- I used quite a lot for the amount of water), you should now have a congealed substance instead of fluid. This gel will contain lots of nutrients from the long cooking process. Microwave a small amount (start with a couple of tablespoons) just long enough to melt it and make it luke-warm -- *not hot.* Use your syringe to force feed. Aim for the side of the back area of the throat -- not the middle, because you could cause a gag-reflex action. This worked wonders for Amber, and helped to stimulate her appetite. It is better to use small amounts at frequent intervals instead of trying to force feed a large amount at one time. During that period, I would also pour a small amount over her food to encourage her to eat. Also: your cat may need fluids, administered either by your vet or by you. Please call your vet ASAP and ask about Ringer's lactate. Your cat can become dehydrated very quickly, and fluids are essential. I often would find a remarkable improvement in Amber's appetite after fluid therapy. This can also be done at home, but make sure that your vet or a technician shows you how to do it. You should also try to have someone available to help you the first few times you do it. Fortunately for me, it has been a long time since I needed to do any of this; so I hope someone with more recent experience will add to this. It's easy to forget some of the details as the years go by. Good luck! You are going through a painful learning process, but it is well worth it. As I said earlier, I was able to get an additional 3 years of time for Amber -- and most of it was "good years." MaryL |
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Thanks for the replies everyone..I *am* using Pepcid and Nutri-Gel, and
Fats *is* on liquid therapy. Syringes look like they would result in an even bigger mess than what I had on my hands yesterday. I only give her fingertips full - I am not trying to jam a 1/2 can in at once ! :-) Anyway - any thoughts on HOW MUCH food she has to have daily? 2/3 of a 6oz can? More? Less? And how long for Pepcid to kick in? Thanks, Bluesman |
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The idea of using the syringe is simply to make it easier to force feed
-- *not* to feed a large quantity. I mentioned a large syringe because that provided a larger opening for the food. In actual fact, I only used the syringe to feed small portions of food at a time. I recommend that you try it -- I think you would find it easier and more practical than what you are doing now. I placed the syringe at the corner of the cat's mouth (*not* at the front or completely into the mouth) so that only the short tip of the syring was actually within the teeth and would gently push a small amount of food, aiming at the corner of the throat (not the center). As to the amount: I think you need to consult your vet about this because there are many variables than can be important. MaryL |
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Probably shoot for 2/3 of a can. That is much better than how she had been
doing. wrote in message oups.com... Thanks for the replies everyone..I *am* using Pepcid and Nutri-Gel, and Fats *is* on liquid therapy. Syringes look like they would result in an even bigger mess than what I had on my hands yesterday. I only give her fingertips full - I am not trying to jam a 1/2 can in at once ! :-) Anyway - any thoughts on HOW MUCH food she has to have daily? 2/3 of a 6oz can? More? Less? And how long for Pepcid to kick in? Thanks, Bluesman |
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I sympathize with you. Whenever Rusty was on antibiotic, he stopped eating.
I tried force feeding him and ended up with a mess. One time he was on antibiotics for a month for a bladder infection. I couldn't see him stopped eating for a month. Keep calling the vet, who eventually changed his dosage to 1/2 pill twice a day instead of 1 pill at a sitting. That certainly helped. The first summer I got Rusty he was prescribed valium to jump start his appetite. I was not good at pilling, since am. Rusty ended up foaming in the mouth and gave me a scare. The heat probably got to him. That was exactly 10 years ago. I just hope he will not need to go on antibiotics again. Good luck and keep us posted. Winnie wrote in message oups.com... Hi All ~ 16 year old CRF cat, Fatass, on day 6 of liquid therapy of 150ml/day of NaCl... Went to the supermaket yesterday and bought all kinds of stuff for Fats to try...clam juice, canned mackerel and crabmeat, baby food, some fancy feast in gravy... I get home and see that she ate nothing that I left for her during the day - I tried some mackerel, mackerel with clam juice, Fancy feast chicken with gravy, k/d dry with clam juice, her usual wet food..nothing. So I decide she is going to eat, like it or not. I grab the k/d canned, a towel, and some wet paper towels. I put Fats on my lap at the kitchen table and try to open her mouth and shovel in the food...I could get her mouth open, but she would turn her head at the same time, which resulted in food all over her, me, the floor, and the table... Then I got smart. I touched her whickers on the side of her mouth to get her lip to curl, then I wiped the food on her teeth and gums. This seems to work, although still a mess. She wasn't liking it but she wasn't trying too hard to escape either. She just whined as she chewed & swallowed the food. If this is what I have to do, then I will do it, but I hope her appetite comes back soon. I also started her on 1/4 tab of Pepcid twice a day to see if that helps settle her stomach. Two questions: How much should I give her at these food fight sessions? I am lucky if I got 2 oz into her, but she also had about 20 pieces of hard treats and 1.5 inches of Nutri-gel. Secondly, how long for the pepcid to kick in and possibly see an appetite improvement? Thanks, Bluesman - fighting the good fight |
#10
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W. Leong wrote: I sympathize with you. Whenever Rusty was on antibiotic, he stopped eating. I tried force feeding him and ended up with a mess. One time he was on antibiotics for a month for a bladder infection. I couldn't see him stopped eating for a month. Keep calling the vet, who eventually changed his dosage to 1/2 pill twice a day instead of 1 pill at a sitting. That certainly helped. The first summer I got Rusty he was prescribed valium to jump start his appetite. I was not good at pilling, since am. Rusty ended up foaming in the mouth and gave me a scare. The heat probably got to him. That was exactly 10 years ago. I just hope he will not need to go on antibiotics again. Good luck and keep us posted. Winnie My cat reacted badly to one antibiotic, was sick etc., then they changed the antibiotic and he was fine. If the antibiotic is making him sick, get them to change to another one. Chris wrote in message oups.com... Hi All ~ 16 year old CRF cat, Fatass, on day 6 of liquid therapy of 150ml/day of NaCl... Went to the supermaket yesterday and bought all kinds of stuff for Fats to try...clam juice, canned mackerel and crabmeat, baby food, some fancy feast in gravy... I get home and see that she ate nothing that I left for her during the day - I tried some mackerel, mackerel with clam juice, Fancy feast chicken with gravy, k/d dry with clam juice, her usual wet food..nothing. So I decide she is going to eat, like it or not. I grab the k/d canned, a towel, and some wet paper towels. I put Fats on my lap at the kitchen table and try to open her mouth and shovel in the food...I could get her mouth open, but she would turn her head at the same time, which resulted in food all over her, me, the floor, and the table... Then I got smart. I touched her whickers on the side of her mouth to get her lip to curl, then I wiped the food on her teeth and gums. This seems to work, although still a mess. She wasn't liking it but she wasn't trying too hard to escape either. She just whined as she chewed & swallowed the food. If this is what I have to do, then I will do it, but I hope her appetite comes back soon. I also started her on 1/4 tab of Pepcid twice a day to see if that helps settle her stomach. Two questions: How much should I give her at these food fight sessions? I am lucky if I got 2 oz into her, but she also had about 20 pieces of hard treats and 1.5 inches of Nutri-gel. Secondly, how long for the pepcid to kick in and possibly see an appetite improvement? Thanks, Bluesman - fighting the good fight |
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