HELP!!!!!!! TROUBLE WITH ABBY!!!!!!!!!!

[abbycat]

I just got a new kitten and named her Abby. She is playful and explores, but she won't eat. She will drink water, but nothing solid. The only time she will eat is when it is given to her through a syringe. The vet says there is nothing wrong. What should I do?

[Susan and the girls]

How old is Abby? Is it possible that she's not yet weaned and can't eat solid food?

Did you take Abby to your vet for a checkup, or did he just tell you Abby was ok via the phone? (Forgive me for asking, but sometimes folks don't actually take their pets to the vet's office, and expect a real diagnosis based on what they can describe to the vet. I had to ask!) Hopefully if he saw Abby, he did the necessary checks to see if she really was ok. Did she get wormed or get shots? Sometimes those make kitties lose their appetite.

What are you feeding (or attempting to feed) Abby? Is it the same food her previous owners fed her? Is it soft or hard? If it's hard, maybe you could try soaking it in a little water to make it softer, or soak it in some of that milk-stuff you can get at the pet store (that's safe for weaning kittens).

I hope Traci will post soon to give you some other things to check. In the meantime, I hope Abby continues to feel good and play. I would think that is a good sign in itself.

[Traci]

Only want to add to Susan's excellent post that you should get your kitten seen by another vet and make sure oral exam is done, test stool for signs of parasites, determine overall health status of your kitten. Not knowing her age, and how long she has not eaten on her own, almost impossible to guess here.

If she isn't yet weaned, she needs to be on formula (KMR Kitten Formula), and fed with a kitten bottle.....If she's older than 6 weeks, she should be interested in solid food, in which you can try canned kitten food (Iams is good).

ALL growing and developing kittens need sufficient nutrition to keep up with their energy expenditures, they should be active, interested in food, playful, energetic, happy and healthy. Not eating is NOT a sign of good health and the source of the problem needs to be addressed immediately. Find a new vet please, and immediately, your kitten needs to be eating a sufficient amount according to her age, weight, developmental status, etc.

[Traci]

It just occured to me, you posted on Friday too......it had been three days then without eating. We're almost on day 5 now, so again, I strongly advise a new vet for a new exam for your kitten. Also saw where she is 8 weeks old, so there should be no reason why she is not interested in solid food (assuming cleft palate and oral problems have previously been ruled out!)

What are you feeding her, is it a dry food, or a generic brand? If so, try Iams canned kitten only or even Eukanuba Kitten canned, Science Diet Kitten canned.....dry would be ok, but considering she hasn't had sufficient nutrition, she might benefit from the canned as it seems to be more appealing for kittens.

In any event, the important thing is getting her seen by a more experienced vet IMMEDIATELY for a complete exam, fecal exam, complete oral exam, etc.......you need to find the source of the problem before it gets worse, kittens can fast deteriorate, you can't risk this. Find that vet NOW please.