Losing one's appetite is unfortunately a common side effect of the battle with kidney disease. However, if a cat won't eat, it can quickly develop a secondary problem called fatty liver disease which can be deadly. If your cat won't eat, try these tips to get some calories into the poor little guy or gal.
Nutritional Gel
Nutritional gels are sold at most pet stores these days. These gels primarily consist of sugar and fat, along with a bunch of vitamins that are essential to keeping a cat alive.
Nutritional gel is a great way to get some calories and nutrition into your cat. Many cats like nutritional gel, as it's flavored to be tasty to kitties, and many animals enjoy sweet things. However, even if your cat won't eat it, it's easy to put a little on the tip of their nose. This will make them lick it off and eat the gel. A little goes a long way with these calorie-packed gels, so getting any of it into your cat is a step in the right direction.
Time for Treats
When your cat won't eat due to kidney disease, it's time to pull out all the stops. This means giving your cat its favorite foods.
Ordinarily, cats with kidney disease should be kept on a low protein diet that helps to reduce the amount of protein in the blood. This makes it easier on cats' kidneys. However, even the best vets will tell you that it's not worth anything if your cat won't eat it. Stick to feeding your cat their healthy food during the times that they're willing to eat, but don't be shy to break out their favorites when they won't. The goal here is to give them enough nutrition and strength to keep going.
Help from Vet
Lastly, get to a vet if your cat doesn't develop an appetite or refuses even its treats. At this point, it likely means that your feline friend's blood toxicity has risen and they need medical care.
Your vet can help with this by pushing IV fluids into your cat's bloodstream. This provides the kidneys with extra water and helps them to flush the blood of excessive built-up proteins and toxins that the kidneys ordinarily struggle to cope with. This should immediately start to reduce your cat's nausea and help them to feel better and more interested in eating.
In addition, your vet can provide you with prescription appetite stimulants that can be utilized at home when your cat just won't eat. These typically make cats have a voracious appetite, so don't be surprised if your cat is begging for food all through the day after giving them one of these.
Losing appetite is an unfortunately common side effect of kidney disease in cats. Talk to a vet and get the help from an animal hospital that you need and utilize the other tips to keep your kitty afloat until your appointment time has arrived.
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