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!

 

[maryjoandsmokie]

Mirtazapine really helped my cat to start eating again.
Did you try just the tuna juice?
Once i had a real sick cat who wouldn't eat and i gave him just the tuna juice a couple of
times and then he began eating the tuna.
Also rotisseria chicken has worked for me.(remove the skin first and feed the white meat)
I got my chicken from Krogers.

I hope she begans eating soon. Keep us posted.

 

[Deb415andNikki]

Hi LuanneCat,

Do you have a Trader Joe's near you? The reason I'm asking is that Lisa and Merlyn has said that Trader Joe's cat food tuna is soooo stinky, it smells up her entire apartment!

Also, sprinkling Parmesan cheese on top of whatever your furry girl likes to eat can "stinkify" the food. We're all eternally grateful to Anne and French Fry for that smelly tip! Giz was big on Parmesan, and even developed a fondness for Romano cheese as well...

Sometimes when a cat hasn't eaten on their own for a while, it's like their tummies forget they want to eat. But, once they do start eating, their tummies remember... I'm glad you've been able to syringe feed your furry girl, as I'm sure that's helped her greatly.

If all else fails, you might consider a feeding tube. From what I've read here over the years, it's not as invasive as you might think. And, there have been quite a few cats who started chowing down on their own within a couple of days of having the tube installed -- meaning it isn't a permanent arrangement at all. It's strictly temporary.

Please know I'll be thinking hungry thoughts and prayers for you and your furry girl and will be hoping that once her URI is finally cleared up and her nose works again, she'll be eating on her own again very soon.

Hang in there, you two...

Love and countless hopeful, healing, hungry hugs for you both,
Deb and Nikki -- and, Giz, forever dancing in my heart...

 

[BJM]

.....
She's also gotten an antibiotic shot (which didn't work to clear her infection) ....

Was the shot Covenia?

..... 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. ....

If it is OK with your vet, these may be useful:
1) using sterile moisturizing eye drops with no preservatives (ex Systane individual packets) may trickle through the sinuses and help loosen things.
2) a baby nasal syringe may be used to gently suction out mucus.
3) if your kitty would tolerate it, alternating warm and cold washclothes over the sinuses may stimulate blood flow and drainage; it does in humans (note for any sinus sufferers on the board). It would also be like mom cat grooming baby cat.

 

[Julia & Bandit (GA)]

If you go the drug route, I used Cyproheptadine with Gabby for her stomach cancer and it worked very well from diagnosis to the end of her life (about 7 months). The vet will give a prescription for the max dose (about 1/2 pill twice a day), but you probably won't need that much. Gabby didn't need that much until the last month. 1/6-1/4 of a pill worked fine.