My cat hates me.

He doesn't hate you, it just feels that way. The last couple of weeks with Nash (the rat) and having to syringe feed him - I kept saying the same thing. He hates me. It's a hard time, and unless you have to do it, you really don't know.

I really like this shot, btw.

I've done this before. The last time it was every six hours for four months. I'd *really* like to avoid that this time but he's not making it easy.

Do you know why this happens? Other than the normal cat decides to go off the rails reason.

He's always been very sensitive to stress in his environment, much more so than the others.

Ah. So then you've tried everything, special foods, tempting treats, all that. Oy. Sometimes, they can really make you crazy. And add to your stress level astronomically.

yeah, he just isnt interested in eating. I can get him to have say, a spoonful of yogurt, but he needs a certain caloric intake and on his own he is only eating maybe 1/6 of that.

ug, been there, done that. Here's hoping he's more compliant about it than Tasslehoff.

You know him, he doesn;t have it in him to really fight with anyone. He's just not a happy camper (at all).

I'm not surprised if you're coming at him with that thing!

It's either that, or surgery to put a shunt in his stomach so I can put food in it directly (which I can't afford anyway, but that's usually what they do in these situations.)

He's very, very sick right now.

good luck
:(

Aw man, that's rubbish. I hope he's on the road to recovery soon

Thanks. Me too.

So far, his liver is okay, which is my big fear in all this. He managed to swallow half a can of food this morning (via baster). I'll offer him a snack in his bowl in a couple hours and then if he doesn't go for it (or even if he does) I'll put another half can in him this evening, and offer him a snack around midnight.

So far, paws and ears remain pink. He's not a happy camper, though.

Is it Argent? (sorry, I haven't been keeping up) What's wrong?

Yeah. He's stopped eating again. Lost a bunch of weight in the past two weeks. I caught it before it got really bad. Until two days ago he was still willing to eat a little on his own but now he's not eating anything by himself at all. Fortunately, I have a turkey baster and he's been getting fed regardless, though probably not as much as he should be. I keep slowly increasing the amount I give him daily to try to get him back up to a normal caloric intake until he decides eating is fun again.

Are there any other symptoms? Can you find any obvious lumps?I can't imagine that Argent goes out looking for fights but we've had the case in the past where a cat has got some sort of blood poisoning style infection as a result of a bite or a scratch.

Nope. He's isolated in the bedroom anyway. Buggy doesn't like him and he's much more aggressive than Argent (who really doesn't have it in him to fight with anyone). So he's mostly by himself, with occasional visits from Hydrox and Hilfy. He's not limping or anything. No fever. His paws are cool. Other than the fact that he's lost all interest in food, I have no idea what his problem is.

When this happened to one of my roomie's cats it was an ouchie in the mouth--essentially a toothache. I'm sure you've checked for that though. Especially since you can usually tell by the smell of the breath....

[*]

Sudden appetite loss can be down to liver disease. There'd be no fever, just lassitude/ depression & anorexia. Other warning signs would be unexplained weight loss, episodes of vomiting or diarrhea in the last months, a pot-bellied look to his abdomen, repetetive behaviours like pacing, or rubbing his head on things (often quite hard), or changes in stool & urine colour (towards grey in the first case & orange in the second). These changes can be very slow & subtle - Arnold 's liver was probably compromised for a good month or two before either I or the vet could find a problem. I put the slightly more frequent vomiting down to him having more trouble with hairballs as he got older, put the lethargy down to age as well, & congratulated myself on keeping his weight down as he got older because of his orthopaedic problems... Ho hum.

He had FHL in the past, but this time his paws are pink, and he's not throwing up any bile. He's had tummy problems though (lots), and he throws up occasionally (they all do.) But no repetitive behaviors or pot belly. It would not surprise me if it were liver related, but he's not yet nine years old. So far he's kept down all the food I've shoved in him, only throwing up when he's just about empty. When he ws very ill years ago, he would throw up half as much as he ate. He's keeping it all down this time, as far as I know.

I am very worried about him. Right now he's napping.

Can entirely see why you'd be worried. Pet anorexia, especially the unexplained sort is equally distressing for animal & owner. Hope he starts snacking on his own good & soon...

It would be a lot less worrisome if I weren't so very worried about the expense right now.

He just had breakfast (half a can) and a bath (the second in less than 24 hours.) So far, it's all stayed in him, though he threw up a hairball this morning. I will give him another quarter of a can at lunch and again at about 6pm and then a big dinner about 9pm. I'm hoping to get a can and a half in him today and two cans tomorrow.

He also ate two tablespoons of yogurt last night by himself (he likes yogurt.) It's not a lot, but it's something.