Cat Won't Eat - Force Feeding 4 Days Now

[Patches' Mom]

We boarded our 2 older cats (not related to each other) late last Month at a Veterinarian's kennel for 3 days. 2 days after returning, the older smaller cat (14 yrs., 7 lbs.)became very ill, very low temp, very weak - Veterinarian couldn't find cause, we had per put down that same day as breathing problems began. Then 3 days after that, our other cat (12 yrs., 13.5 pds.) stopped eating and became lethargic. Took her back to a former Veterinarian - high temp @ 105, but blood work came back normal - he says liver, kidneys, heart OK. A shot brought her temp down, but still wouldn't eat. 3 days later, Veterinarian said temp was normal but due to refusal to eat, he recommended I start "force feeding" with a "plunger" with watered-down prescription canned food. She is drinking water on her own. Mostly sleeps and stays quiet. She swallows the liquidified food when I squirt it into her mouth, but won't go to food dishes. I've tried all her favorites - chicken, turkey, bacon, Fancy Feast. (The older cat was with us 1.5 years, this over 11 years - they weren't that "fond" of each other.) ANY SUGGESTIONS????

[elisi989]

Keep trying, sometimes it takes awhile. Also try other things, anything to get her to eat on her own. I've had good luck with raw meat cut up into little bits. I've used raw venison and raw liver (but not too much raw liver, just a little bit). We've even used ice cream. The trick is to stimulate an interest in food. In the mean time keep force feeding every couple of hours. Good Luck, I hope she feels better soon.
P.S. I'm new here so I hope I did this right.