Hi cat lovers!

[angieh]

I have found this site because I have been searching for tips to tempt a poorly cat to eat. Hello to all fellow cat lovers! I'm so worried about my dear old cat Merlin. He is 21 and suffered "staggers" last Wednesday. Of course I took him straight away to our vet. His opinion is that Merlin may have had a small stroke. By the time he was walking around at the surgery, he seemed fine again. But he doesn't want to eat. He did manage some tinned tuna, but not much but is drinking both milk and water though not excessively. Back to the vet the following day for a steroid injection to try to stimulate his appetite but he has not eaten that much since. He has had some raw beef mince and a very small amount of his normal food. He follows us around and seems to want to eat however. He is certainly not himself. I did read a post about CRF and that has got me wondering. I guess it will be back to the vet tomorrow. I don't know what to do in his best interest. He looks so forlorn. Any advice welcome. Angieh :cry:

[Kay]

Welcome to Catsey although I wish it was under different circumstances. First of all don't feed raw mince unless it has been previously frozen to kill a certain bacteria on it. Try and get some Science Hill AD food from your vet. I am surprised he didn't suggest it anyway. It is for sick cats. They don't need to eat a great deal of it so is ideal to feed little but often. It can heated up in the microwave to bring out the flavour a bit and tempt Merlin to eat.
Has the vet run any sort of tests on him yet?
I do hope he picks up. You would probably be better posting a thread in the health section as well.

[Fran]

Warm welcome! Merlin is a grand age and sounds such a lovely boy. I had a similar situation myself with my 18 year old girl Lucky, who's now at the bridge. She went off her food and although I knew she was hungry nothing would tempt her. I used to try really smelly foods like sardines, tuna etc, I'd also warm her cat food up a little in the microwave to try and tempt her, I tried watering food down so that she could lap at it. One food that I have found that always seems to tempt a cat with a poor appetite is Applaws.

www.applaws.co.uk (http://www.applaws.co.uk)

Good luck and do let us know how Merlin gets on

[Grete]

I don't have anything to add that hasn't been mentioned already but wanted to say welcome to Catsey and I hope Merlin picks up soon.

[Elaine]

I am so very sorry to read that your cat is poorly. Has your vet taken a blood/urine sample to try to determine whats going on?
My old boy one morning fell off the bed, lost the use of his hind legs for what felt like an eternity but was only a minute or so in reality. Later that day he was diagnosed with CRF. That doesnt mean that this is what may be wrong with your cat but may be an idea to confirm or eliminate it.
There are many ways to try to help encourage your cat to eat. Raising food bowls often helps as does heating the food up a little either by popping it in the micro for a few seconds or adding a little boiled water to it. Heating the food enhances the smell. Sardines, I think some already mentioned that can also be good coz of the strong smell. Sometimes adding a little gravey helps too. Cooked eggs can also be good as they are easy to swallow, cooked is better coz the egg white contains an enzyme which stops the cat being able to absorb the B vitamins, once the egg white is cooked the enzyme is destroyed.

http://www.catsey.com/showthread.php?t=16080&highlight=Winstons+legacy

[dandysmom]

Angieh, sorry to hear your old boy Merlin isn't doing well; can't add anything to the excellent advice already given, except maybe try some human tuna or cooked prawns; that worked when one of mine went off his feed due to illness years ago. Sorry your intro to Catsey was on such a sad note.....
Please let us know how he's doing.....

[Amber]

Here is a link to a post I did a while back, hopefully some of it will be helpful to you :)

http://www.catsey.com/showpost.php?p=406337&postcount=8

[angieh]

Thank you all for your kind wishes for Merlin and good advice and tips. Some I have already tried but some I haven't. As Merlin has had urinary problems for many years, he has been constantly monitored via blood tests etc over the years but probably need retesting. He has had some food today and is taking fluids.

I am also new to this posting lark - so not sure what I'm doing yet!

[Moli]

Hi, warm welcome to Catsey, sorry to hear about Merlin...

[Mags]

Thank you all for your kind wishes for Merlin and good advice and tips. Some I have already tried but some I haven't. As Merlin has had urinary problems for many years, he has been constantly monitored via blood tests etc over the years but probably need retesting. He has had some food today and is taking fluids.

I am also new to this posting lark - so not sure what I'm doing yet!
You are doing fine :D ....... if you need any help about anything on the forum, just ask away, there will always be someone here to help you ;)

[angieh]

Just to update all the kind people who have sent messages - Merlin has just eaten a saucer of Whiska's tuna in jelly! He is washing his face quite normally now. Fingers crossed, what a relief!

angieh:D

[yola]

So pleased to read that Angie! Nice you have you here. Maybe you can post a pic of Merlin for us now that he's feeling a bit brighter . . . hint hint ;)

[angieh]

Hi Yola!

Would like to do that, but don't know how - can you help?

Angieh
:oops:

[yola]

Hi Angie . . . hopefully this thread will give you some options on how to post pictures successfully :D

http://www.catsey.com/showthread.php?t=8195

[Fran]

So pleased to hear that Merlin has enjoyed his food this morning :D Looking forward to the piccies ;)

[Jane]

Yay that's great news - glad he is doing a bit better now and hope he continues to eat :)

Can't wait to see pics of him :D

[dinahsmum]

Good news!
Smoked ham is sometimes irresistable and can kick-start the appetite

[Mags]

So pleased to hear Merlin has got his appetite back, Angie! :D

[dandysmom]

Great news, Angie! Regular ham works too! Looking forward to pics of Merlin!

[tilly]

hi welcome to catsey. I am glad to hear Merlin is improving. I hope he continues to do so.
SAlly

[Kay]

Glad Merlin is feeling better today and has eaten. Can't wait to see some pics.

[Grete]

Yay I'm really glad he is feeling more like himself :) Can we have some pics please? :lol:

[angieh]

Here's my lovely lad (hopefully!)
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/cc44/angieh_bucket/Merlin2.jpg

http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/cc44/angieh_bucket/Movecloser.jpg

http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/cc44/angieh_bucket/Merlinandrose.jpg

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction so I could show you all some pix!

Angie

[Mags]

Merlin is a handsome boy, Angie ....... no wonder you're proud of him...:D

Well done on mastering the art of posting pics!! :D We have a "Your Cats Pictures" section on Catsey where you can post further pics of Merlin whenever you wish, just click on 'New Thread'...... looking forward to seeing more of him!

http://www.catsey.com/forumdisplay.php?f=55

[yola]

He's LOVELY Angie :D :D :D He certainly looks very sprightly and youthful for his age :-D

[dandysmom]

Lovely pics; Merlin is a very handsome boy! Does not look his age at all...

[Grete]

Awww Merlin is a gorgeous boy :) He doesn't look his age at all :)