How can I stimulate my cat's appetite?

[LuanneCat]

Hello all!

My cat has an upper respiratory infection and hasn't eaten or drank on her own in several days. I've been feeding and giving her water by syringe since last Wednesday. The vet has given her a B12 shot and fluid under the skin twice. She's also gotten an antibiotic shot (which didn't work to clear her infection) and since Monday (of this week) I've been giving her 1ml of Amoxidrops every day and I'm nearing the end of a dose of an appetite stimulant prescribed by the vet (which doesn't seem to have helped).

Her congestion is finally getting better, but she still won't eat or drink on her own. She's getting stronger and it's getting VERY hard to do syringe feeding/watering. I've tried tuna, salami, pepperoni, wet cat food (chicken and beef), low sodium beef broth and several combinations of all of them (always heated to increase the scent), but nothing seems to entice her. What else can I try?

I also wanted to know if there is anything else I can do to clear her congestion. I've been putting her in the bathroom with the hot shower running for the steam, cleaning her nose when I see discharge and using saline drops in her nose. Is there anything else I can do to help alleviate the congestion so she can smell her food again?

I'm getting desperate and am planning to take her to a specialst next week, but would (obviously) love it if she finally began eating and drinking on her own again.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks everyone, and have a great night!

 

[Cyn and Cosmo]

First, I would try heating the food up a little bit. Heat makes smells stronger.

Other ideas:
1) sprinkling super stinky parmesan cheese on top of food
2) sprinkling fortiflora on food (available at your vet, also on amazon).
3) KFC chicken w/o the skin or plain roasted chicken. you can't give this as a main diet for a prolonged period of time, but food is food for now.

I would ask the vet what antibiotic they gave by shot. I'm guessing convenia, which is really for skin issues. Also, which appetite stimulant did they give? Mirtazapine (aka remeron?) Cyproheptadine? Mirtz is given once every three days, and I think cypro is given every 12 hours.

I also wonder if your cat is experiencing nausea (lip licking at all? hunching/meatloafing?), vomiting, etc?

I don't know what the typical treatment is for a URI or cold for a cat though. Sorry!

hope that helps.