Willow isn't eating well

[Tina B and crew]

She seems to be well otherwise...she's been active, playing and alert until today and since Saturday she has been picking at her food. I've tried different foods, different consistencies and no luck(I haven't resorted to Fancy Feast yet). She sleeps in our bedroom at night and I leave some dry food in the bowl for her and have heard her crunching some for the last two nights, but not nearly what she normally eats. Now she has never been a really big eater and she is one of those svelt cats naturally...she doesn't look like she has lost weight, nor does she have any visible signs of jaundice. Her bowel movements are normal as far as I can tell (it's tough when you have 5 cats) and I have seen no signs of vomiting. Having had a cat with hepatic lipidosis once I am not taking any chances and have an appointment with the vet in an hour.

I'm not sure what is causing her not to eat...but the things on the top of my list are stress (5 cats and 5 of them bother Willow all the time...I do feed her in a seperate room from them, with the door open), maybe a problem with her mouth/teeth/throat. I don't know what else it could be to be honestly...But I'm worried because she is my sweet cat. Any suggestions on what could be causing her to not eat?

[Tina B and crew]

Ok...back from the vet. Fecal was negative, temp was normal. Doc is doing bloodwork, that should be back tomorrow. Mouth and teeth checked out so it's not that. She said she looks healthy and normal and it's probably just stress. Try anything to see if she will eat and keep her from stressing out. If she continues not eating I'll take her back in a few days.

But I do have to tell you Willow is one amazing cat...with all the poking and prodding she never got upset once...even when they drew blood, she never uttered a sound or hissed or swatted! The vets office wishes all my cats were like that

[Traci]

Tina, think back on any events that have occured within the last week, what stresses her the most, and/or which cat in particular intimidates her the most, then start there...(i.e., time-outs for the instigator, etc)

[Tina B and crew]

Traci..honestly I cannot think of any major changes in any behavior of any cat within the past week or two. The foster kitten coming into the house has brought the usual growls and hisses from Khanada, Cricket and Gizmo...but Willow's eyes still light up when she sees a kitten from afar. This kitten is from a mother who has been tested negative to all disease, so the kitten is allow time out with the big cats. I do close off all the doors to rooms in the house though...and that keeps the big cats from having all their usual sleeping/hiding space. I wonder if everyone else getting grouchy about the kitten is affecting Willow?

You know the history of Gizmo stalking and attacking Willow...we have been lucky enough not to have an incident for months and months! He still looks for her at times but we have the radar on high so we always catch it before it escalates. As a matter of fact I have noticed that she doesn't quite run from him as much as she use to. He can walk by her and she will simply watch him closely and moniter his body language. Of course Frodo and Khanada aren't buddies with Willow either, but neither of them bother her too much...I've not noticed any escalation in their behavior toward her. Cricket just wants to play...all the time (except when she sleeps)...I can tell that Willow gets quite frustrated with her at times. But that's been the norm for months too.

Gizmo gets fed out on the screened porch so he cannot bother Willow when she eats. Willow gets fed in our bedroom, away from all the other cats because we noticed she would not eat when she was around others. So that hasn't changed. I've even tried closing the door so the others can't go in there.

I just can't put my finger on it....

She still refused tuna when I got her home from the vet...I didn't force the issue because I knew she was stressed from the vet visit. However, she was running around like normal and giving me pressies (even though I took her to the vet..awwwww) I'm going to try the dreaded Fancy Feast later.

[Tina B and crew]

update....changed the feeding routine just a bit tonight. I fed the other 4 all on the screened porch..so Willow was the only one in the house. But she still refused to eat and ran into her carrier. Put the food in her carrier and she sniffed it and licked a little juice up, but didn't eat...left her carrier. I put the food in front of her and added a little Fancy Feast off to the side...lo and behold she nibbled on the FF!! But she didn't eat any significant amount. So I got a flat plate and put some on that, in the bathroom with the door shut and me sitting in front of it. She finally, after coming over and sniffing 3-4 times gobbled down the FF from the plate!! It wasn't much, not quite a half a can...but she gobbled it down. The bathroom is fairly small and the AC was running so she couldn't her any commotion from the other cats. I think it's a matter of her feeling insecure when she eats now. Not sure what brought it on like this. I will try the same in the morning and see what she does, as well as leave some dry nibbles out for her tonight. Keep Thanks!!

OH...I gave her some catnip and she went wild with it...running around like her normal old self

[dmcwlvssr]

So glad to hear that! My babies send her BIG hugs!

[LisaLisa]

Hi Tina,

Great news about Willow..that FF will do it everytime

[Tina B and crew]

that FF will do it everytime

I know....I'm tellin' ya...crack for cats! Now I have to see if I will eventually get her to eat something besides FF...she did eat some of the dry food I left in a bowl last night. Probably an 1/8 of a cup. Good signs..good signs...lets hope she keeps it up.

[Traci]

Tina, it's probably a combination of things, and yes, the cats can sense each others' frustrations, ...as you know, it's like a domino effect.

Since she did eat for you, it sounds like she simply wanted special time with you, to feel reassured and secure. You can continue the FF, but start mixing it with her normal food.

[Tina B and crew]

She's very attached to me Traci...I swear we are soulmates

She at better today...some Purina One in addition to the FF (It's not what I would normally feed her but I'm trying anything at this point) I will eventually try to work her back into her regular diet. I'm no fan of FF for sure.

Tonight she threw up a huge hairball. She's never had problems with hairballs before...ever. I'm figuring she must be doing some nervous grooming. After she threw up she plopped down in the floor and stretched out as if to say "Whew!! That is a huge relief!" She's been a bit more herself since.