I need advice

I am terribly worried about Archer. He's a very sensitive cat and a
"momma's boy". Although he's a large, muscular feline, he has always
been lean with not an ounce of extra fat. The last time I was away from
him, for about 2 months or so last February, he lost a great deal of
weight, eating only barely enough to keep himself alive. Although he's
gained a lot of that back, he's still leaner than he should be.

Very soon I'll be away from him again, for at least two weeks but
possibly a lot longer and I'm really worried that he's going to do the
same thing. He's already acting "spooked", I'm sure he's reacting to
the fear (hell, the abject terror) he's sensing from me and already he's
not eating all he should. I've been hand feeding him steak and chicken
and anything else he'll take but he's still starting to lose a bit.

Has anyone dealt with a cat who, through illness or emotional upset, has
refused to eat? Are there any hints or tips you know of that might
stimulate his appetite. I'm hesitating taking him to the vet for
tranquilizers because a vet visit in itself is traumatizing to him and I
don't think tranquilizers will help. I remember someone, a while back,
recommending a medication that will stimulate appetite (I take
Periactin, generic name Cyproheptadine - it's a mild antihistamine, but
a side effect is increased appetite). Does anyone know if this works on
cats as well (in the correct dosage for a cat, of course - I might be
able to get my vet to prescribe that but probably not without a vet visit).

Archer won't take hand-feeding from Ben or anyone else. He *might* eat
"kitty crack" - Fancy Feast Gourmet Gold Chicken kibbles. They don't
get fed dry food, only FF in cans, and only the ones with meat as the
first ingredient, they only get the kibbles as an occasional treat, but
if this gets Archer to eat I don't think it would hurt for him to have
that for a couple of weeks. I guess I can worry about getting him back
to canned food after I'm home again. But it's a toss up that even that
would get him to eat. He really is that sensitive.

Are there any other suggestions you have that might get him to eat while
I'm gone?

--
Hugs,

CatNipped
See all our masters at: http://www.PossiblePlaces.com/CatNipped

See the RPCA FAQ site, created by "Yowie", maintained by Mark Edwards, at:
http://www.professional-geek.net/rpcablog/

Email: L(dot)T(dot)Crews(at)comcast(dot)net

On Sep 11, 12:58*pm, Judith Latham
wrote:

Do you think it might help him to have an article of your clothing by his
food dish?
I am reminded of when Dave was in hospital and the cats pined for
him . I got in one night with a load of washing, dropped the bag in
the hallway whilst I made something to eat then logged on here for
some tips and someone suggested bringing some of his clothes back and
I thought "Good idea! I just brought some back so I'll let them sniff
them" and looked round to find Dunzi rolling in the bag of clothes and
one of his t-shirts was moving away from the bag with Sarsi underneath

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

On 9/11/2011 3:11 PM, Lesley wrote:
On Sep 11, 12:58 pm, Judith
wrote:

Do you think it might help him to have an article of your clothing by his
food dish?
I am reminded of when Dave was in hospital and the cats pined for
him . I got in one night with a load of washing, dropped the bag in
the hallway whilst I made something to eat then logged on here for
some tips and someone suggested bringing some of his clothes back and
I thought "Good idea! I just brought some back so I'll let them sniff
them" and looked round to find Dunzi rolling in the bag of clothes and
one of his t-shirts was moving away from the bag with Sarsi underneath

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

Judith, Lesley, thank you both for a great idea. I was planning on
putting several pieces of my unwashed clothes on my place on my bed
where we both spend 99.9% of our time. But it's something I know I'll
forget unless I put it on my list of things to do before I go, and your
suggestion prompted me to write it down right now. I'll also put some
upstairs where he sometimes sleeps on the jungle gym and by his food
bowl (the gawds know Ben won't mind clothes laying around, it's just a
matter of moving some of his over! ;).


--
Hugs,

CatNipped
See all our masters at: http://www.PossiblePlaces.com/CatNipped

See the RPCA FAQ site, created by "Yowie", maintained by Mark Edwards, at:
http://www.professional-geek.net/rpcablog/

Email: L(dot)T(dot)Crews(at)comcast(dot)net

On 9/11/2011 3:11 PM, Lesley wrote:
On Sep 11, 12:58 pm, Judith
wrote:

Do you think it might help him to have an article of your clothing by his
food dish?
I am reminded of when Dave was in hospital and the cats pined for
him . I got in one night with a load of washing, dropped the bag in
the hallway whilst I made something to eat then logged on here for
some tips and someone suggested bringing some of his clothes back and
I thought "Good idea! I just brought some back so I'll let them sniff
them" and looked round to find Dunzi rolling in the bag of clothes and
one of his t-shirts was moving away from the bag with Sarsi underneath

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

I wish I still had an old-time tape recorder - I could also tape an
hours worth of "Archer Talk" for Ben to play for him. The last time I
was away, when I could finally talk (around the third week or so), I
would have Ben hold the phone next to him so I could talk to him and I
could hear him meowing back (and Ben said he almost crawled into the
phone) - it made me cry.

--
Hugs,

CatNipped
See all our masters at: http://www.PossiblePlaces.com/CatNipped

See the RPCA FAQ site, created by "Yowie", maintained by Mark Edwards, at:
http://www.professional-geek.net/rpcablog/

Email: L(dot)T(dot)Crews(at)comcast(dot)net

On 09/11/2011 11:58 AM, CatNipped wrote:
I am terribly worried about Archer. He's a very sensitive cat and a
"momma's boy". Although he's a large, muscular feline, he has always
been lean with not an ounce of extra fat. The last time I was away from
him, for about 2 months or so last February, he lost a great deal of
weight, eating only barely enough to keep himself alive. Although he's
gained a lot of that back, he's still leaner than he should be.

Very soon I'll be away from him again, for at least two weeks but
possibly a lot longer and I'm really worried that he's going to do the
same thing. He's already acting "spooked", I'm sure he's reacting to the
fear (hell, the abject terror) he's sensing from me and already he's not
eating all he should. I've been hand feeding him steak and chicken and
anything else he'll take but he's still starting to lose a bit.

Has anyone dealt with a cat who, through illness or emotional upset, has
refused to eat? Are there any hints or tips you know of that might
stimulate his appetite. I'm hesitating taking him to the vet for
tranquilizers because a vet visit in itself is traumatizing to him and I
don't think tranquilizers will help. I remember someone, a while back,
recommending a medication that will stimulate appetite (I take
Periactin, generic name Cyproheptadine - it's a mild antihistamine, but
a side effect is increased appetite). Does anyone know if this works on
cats as well (in the correct dosage for a cat, of course - I might be
able to get my vet to prescribe that but probably not without a vet visit).

Archer won't take hand-feeding from Ben or anyone else. He *might* eat
"kitty crack" - Fancy Feast Gourmet Gold Chicken kibbles. They don't get
fed dry food, only FF in cans, and only the ones with meat as the first
ingredient, they only get the kibbles as an occasional treat, but if
this gets Archer to eat I don't think it would hurt for him to have that
for a couple of weeks. I guess I can worry about getting him back to
canned food after I'm home again. But it's a toss up that even that
would get him to eat. He really is that sensitive.

Are there any other suggestions you have that might get him to eat while
I'm gone?


Could his teeth be hurting?

On 9/11/2011 3:49 PM, MLB wrote:
On 09/11/2011 11:58 AM, CatNipped wrote:
I am terribly worried about Archer. He's a very sensitive cat and a
"momma's boy". Although he's a large, muscular feline, he has always
been lean with not an ounce of extra fat. The last time I was away from
him, for about 2 months or so last February, he lost a great deal of
weight, eating only barely enough to keep himself alive. Although he's
gained a lot of that back, he's still leaner than he should be.

Very soon I'll be away from him again, for at least two weeks but
possibly a lot longer and I'm really worried that he's going to do the
same thing. He's already acting "spooked", I'm sure he's reacting to the
fear (hell, the abject terror) he's sensing from me and already he's not
eating all he should. I've been hand feeding him steak and chicken and
anything else he'll take but he's still starting to lose a bit.

Has anyone dealt with a cat who, through illness or emotional upset, has
refused to eat? Are there any hints or tips you know of that might
stimulate his appetite. I'm hesitating taking him to the vet for
tranquilizers because a vet visit in itself is traumatizing to him and I
don't think tranquilizers will help. I remember someone, a while back,
recommending a medication that will stimulate appetite (I take
Periactin, generic name Cyproheptadine - it's a mild antihistamine, but
a side effect is increased appetite). Does anyone know if this works on
cats as well (in the correct dosage for a cat, of course - I might be
able to get my vet to prescribe that but probably not without a vet
visit).

Archer won't take hand-feeding from Ben or anyone else. He *might* eat
"kitty crack" - Fancy Feast Gourmet Gold Chicken kibbles. They don't get
fed dry food, only FF in cans, and only the ones with meat as the first
ingredient, they only get the kibbles as an occasional treat, but if
this gets Archer to eat I don't think it would hurt for him to have that
for a couple of weeks. I guess I can worry about getting him back to
canned food after I'm home again. But it's a toss up that even that
would get him to eat. He really is that sensitive.

Are there any other suggestions you have that might get him to eat while
I'm gone?


Could his teeth be hurting?

No, he's not hurting physically, he's just upset. I'm sure he doesn't
understand me when I tell him I'm going to have to be gone away from him
for a long time, but I *am* sure he's picking up on my emotions right
now (and I'm on an incredible emotional roller-coaster right now with
fear being the one overriding feeling).

All the cats who have ever owned me have been really good at picking up
my emotions - Sammy was particularly good at it, she was very attuned to
me. I don't know if it's body language (which is actually how cats
communicate amongst themselves) or some other sense, maybe that which
tells them of upcoming earthquakes and weather disturbances. Whichever
it is, they're very good at it.

I'm just very worried because the last time I was away from him he lost
over *two pounds* - that's a massive weight loss percentage for a
normally 16 pound cat. He hasn't gained all that back yet and, as I
said, he's already not eating as much as he normally does, and even hand
feeding him is not making up for it.

I'm trying to get Ben to understand how important it will be to make
sure he's eating, no matter what it takes to get him to do so. However,
Ben is, naturally, more worried about me at the moment. I just need him
to understand that a big part of his helping me will be to make sure my
Archer stays well.

--
Hugs,

CatNipped
See all our masters at: http://www.PossiblePlaces.com/CatNipped

See the RPCA FAQ site, created by "Yowie", maintained by Mark Edwards, at:
http://www.professional-geek.net/rpcablog/

Email: L(dot)T(dot)Crews(at)comcast(dot)net

On 12/09/2011 6:43 AM, CatNipped wrote:
On 9/11/2011 3:11 PM, Lesley wrote:
On Sep 11, 12:58 pm, Judith
wrote:

Do you think it might help him to have an article of your clothing by
his
food dish?
I am reminded of when Dave was in hospital and the cats pined for
him . I got in one night with a load of washing, dropped the bag in
the hallway whilst I made something to eat then logged on here for
some tips and someone suggested bringing some of his clothes back and
I thought "Good idea! I just brought some back so I'll let them sniff
them" and looked round to find Dunzi rolling in the bag of clothes and
one of his t-shirts was moving away from the bag with Sarsi underneath

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

I wish I still had an old-time tape recorder - I could also tape an
hours worth of "Archer Talk" for Ben to play for him. The last time I
was away, when I could finally talk (around the third week or so), I
would have Ben hold the phone next to him so I could talk to him and I
could hear him meowing back (and Ben said he almost crawled into the
phone) - it made me cry.

Do you have an answering machine? You could call yourself and record
messages onto it. If you have access 'smart' cell phone (usually even
fairly dumb ones), you can record yourelf into that and transfer it to
the PC for later. And if you have a PC microphone (dirt cheap these
days) you can record many hours of Mp3s. Even your digital camera n
doubt has the ability to record video with sound. You won't be able to
record 1 long message with it as video takes up alot of memory, but with
a bit of patience, you could easily record 5 minutes, transfer it to the
PC, delete it from the camera and record another etc etc. With a bit
more cleverness you could strip the sound off the video and save even
more space. Heck, even web cams usually come with a microphone these
days - you can record yourself from there. Just hava think about what
around you needs to 'hear' and transmit or store sound - most can be
made into recording devices with not much effort.

No need for an old-time tape recorder with all this modern newfangled
technology :-)

Yowie

"CatNipped" wrote in message
...
I am terribly worried about Archer. He's a very sensitive cat and a
"momma's boy". Although he's a large, muscular feline, he has always been
lean with not an ounce of extra fat. The last time I was away from him,
for about 2 months or so last February, he lost a great deal of weight,
eating only barely enough to keep himself alive. Although he's gained a
lot of that back, he's still leaner than he should be.

Very soon I'll be away from him again, for at least two weeks but possibly
a lot longer and I'm really worried that he's going to do the same thing.
He's already acting "spooked", I'm sure he's reacting to the fear (hell,
the abject terror) he's sensing from me and already he's not eating all he
should. I've been hand feeding him steak and chicken and anything else
he'll take but he's still starting to lose a bit.

Has anyone dealt with a cat who, through illness or emotional upset, has
refused to eat? Are there any hints or tips you know of that might
stimulate his appetite. I'm hesitating taking him to the vet for
tranquilizers because a vet visit in itself is traumatizing to him and I
don't think tranquilizers will help. I remember someone, a while back,
recommending a medication that will stimulate appetite (I take Periactin,
generic name Cyproheptadine - it's a mild antihistamine, but a side effect
is increased appetite). Does anyone know if this works on cats as well
(in the correct dosage for a cat, of course - I might be able to get my
vet to prescribe that but probably not without a vet visit).

Archer won't take hand-feeding from Ben or anyone else. He *might* eat
"kitty crack" - Fancy Feast Gourmet Gold Chicken kibbles. They don't get
fed dry food, only FF in cans, and only the ones with meat as the first
ingredient, they only get the kibbles as an occasional treat, but if this
gets Archer to eat I don't think it would hurt for him to have that for a
couple of weeks. I guess I can worry about getting him back to canned
food after I'm home again. But it's a toss up that even that would get
him to eat. He really is that sensitive.

Are there any other suggestions you have that might get him to eat while
I'm gone?

--
Hugs,

CatNipped

I remember my vet once prescribing a medication for Nanki-Poo (RB) to
stimulate his appetite. I'd definitely call and ask your vet. Maybe you
can get the medication without having to take him in.

Joy

On 9/11/2011 4:52 PM, Joy wrote:
wrote in message
...
I am terribly worried about Archer. He's a very sensitive cat and a
"momma's boy". Although he's a large, muscular feline, he has always been
lean with not an ounce of extra fat. The last time I was away from him,
for about 2 months or so last February, he lost a great deal of weight,
eating only barely enough to keep himself alive. Although he's gained a
lot of that back, he's still leaner than he should be.

Very soon I'll be away from him again, for at least two weeks but possibly
a lot longer and I'm really worried that he's going to do the same thing.
He's already acting "spooked", I'm sure he's reacting to the fear (hell,
the abject terror) he's sensing from me and already he's not eating all he
should. I've been hand feeding him steak and chicken and anything else
he'll take but he's still starting to lose a bit.

Has anyone dealt with a cat who, through illness or emotional upset, has
refused to eat? Are there any hints or tips you know of that might
stimulate his appetite. I'm hesitating taking him to the vet for
tranquilizers because a vet visit in itself is traumatizing to him and I
don't think tranquilizers will help. I remember someone, a while back,
recommending a medication that will stimulate appetite (I take Periactin,
generic name Cyproheptadine - it's a mild antihistamine, but a side effect
is increased appetite). Does anyone know if this works on cats as well
(in the correct dosage for a cat, of course - I might be able to get my
vet to prescribe that but probably not without a vet visit).

Archer won't take hand-feeding from Ben or anyone else. He *might* eat
"kitty crack" - Fancy Feast Gourmet Gold Chicken kibbles. They don't get
fed dry food, only FF in cans, and only the ones with meat as the first
ingredient, they only get the kibbles as an occasional treat, but if this
gets Archer to eat I don't think it would hurt for him to have that for a
couple of weeks. I guess I can worry about getting him back to canned
food after I'm home again. But it's a toss up that even that would get
him to eat. He really is that sensitive.

Are there any other suggestions you have that might get him to eat while
I'm gone?

--
Hugs,

CatNipped

I remember my vet once prescribing a medication for Nanki-Poo (RB) to
stimulate his appetite. I'd definitely call and ask your vet. Maybe you
can get the medication without having to take him in.

Joy



I'm going to try doing that tomorrow. Thanks, I knew I'd heard of
someone getting medication to stimulate appetite for a cat, I just
couldn't remember who it was.

--
Hugs,

CatNipped
See all our masters at: http://www.PossiblePlaces.com/CatNipped

See the RPCA FAQ site, created by "Yowie", maintained by Mark Edwards, at:
http://www.professional-geek.net/rpcablog/

Email: L(dot)T(dot)Crews(at)comcast(dot)net

On 9/11/2011 4:40 PM, Yowie wrote:
On 12/09/2011 6:43 AM, CatNipped wrote:
On 9/11/2011 3:11 PM, Lesley wrote:
On Sep 11, 12:58 pm, Judith
wrote:

Do you think it might help him to have an article of your clothing by
his
food dish?
I am reminded of when Dave was in hospital and the cats pined for
him . I got in one night with a load of washing, dropped the bag in
the hallway whilst I made something to eat then logged on here for
some tips and someone suggested bringing some of his clothes back and
I thought "Good idea! I just brought some back so I'll let them sniff
them" and looked round to find Dunzi rolling in the bag of clothes and
one of his t-shirts was moving away from the bag with Sarsi underneath

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

I wish I still had an old-time tape recorder - I could also tape an
hours worth of "Archer Talk" for Ben to play for him. The last time I
was away, when I could finally talk (around the third week or so), I
would have Ben hold the phone next to him so I could talk to him and I
could hear him meowing back (and Ben said he almost crawled into the
phone) - it made me cry.

Do you have an answering machine? You could call yourself and record
messages onto it. If you have access 'smart' cell phone (usually even
fairly dumb ones), you can record yourelf into that and transfer it to
the PC for later. And if you have a PC microphone (dirt cheap these
days) you can record many hours of Mp3s. Even your digital camera n
doubt has the ability to record video with sound. You won't be able to
record 1 long message with it as video takes up alot of memory, but with
a bit of patience, you could easily record 5 minutes, transfer it to the
PC, delete it from the camera and record another etc etc. With a bit
more cleverness you could strip the sound off the video and save even
more space. Heck, even web cams usually come with a microphone these
days - you can record yourself from there. Just hava think about what
around you needs to 'hear' and transmit or store sound - most can be
made into recording devices with not much effort.

No need for an old-time tape recorder with all this modern newfangled
technology :-)

Yowie

Thanks for the suggestions. The problem isn't getting something
recorded, it's having something simple and small to play it on. Ben's
not going to want to fire up my computer every few hours for Archer to
listen to.


--
Hugs,

CatNipped
See all our masters at: http://www.PossiblePlaces.com/CatNipped

See the RPCA FAQ site, created by "Yowie", maintained by Mark Edwards, at:
http://www.professional-geek.net/rpcablog/

Email: L(dot)T(dot)Crews(at)comcast(dot)net