my cat has hardly been out of my room for the last three days. she has had very little to eat and drink even when i bring the food to her. she has started finding it difficult to move and she has lost a lot of weight very suddenly. i dont know whats wrong with her. has anyone had this with their cat?

Hi Fredkat

I would suggest you take her to the vet if you are short of money then your local PDSA would help you

will take her to the vet tommorow but am still worried about her. i dont know if my vets will be ope tomorow

Vets normally open on a Saturday, mornings anyway. How old is the cat?

im not sure how old the cat is because she was a stray when we got her but i think shed be about fifteen or sixteen.

I've never had this problem with a cat of my own but I do work in a veterinary surgery.

I don't want to worry you but has she been losing weight over a longer time period? Just because with older cats losing weight can be a sign of various different problems. Usually diagnosed by a blood test unless it's really obvious to the vet.

Another common thing is some cats do get pyrexia without the vet being able to find an underlying cause, but they can be lethargic and not wanting to eat or drink. Obviously if your cat hasn't been eating or drinking for a few days it can cause rapid weight loss. But in most cases an injection and sometimes medication to give at home can sort the problem out and you'll never know for what reason the cat got sick.

Best to see what the vet says. Could be a number of things. My own cat had a overactive thyroid but the weight loss was gradual.

How do the eyes look? Often a tell tale sign of how ill a cat is.

ive only noticed the weight loss in the past two days but its only her back legs and hips that have gotten thin. shes had pproblems with dislocated hips before.could this be affecting her?

Vet. ASAP.

If it was one of mine I'd have been at the vets yesterday.

Even at her age there are a number of conditions that can be treated easily and if treated quickly, leave no lasting damage but if left lead to kidney/liver damage. Which is perminant and life limiting.

I did have this with one cat - Gomaz. He had underlying problems (colitis) and was under treatment from the vet. Mostly OK, then one week end took a sudden turn for the worst. Friday OK, Saturday very under the weather, Sunday couldn't walk properly. Emergency vet, but with his history and age he was PTS Sad as it was, it saved him suffering.

How old is she. EDIT: Sorry seen earlier posts answering this now. Could be Thyroid

Does she seem to be responding to you. Does she purr - that can sometimes be a sign of pain as well as contentment as well.


Have you checked to see if your vets opening hours are on the net.

It's quite hard to tell really, the vet will probably examine her hips to get an idea.
But generally if you have an older cat, they will start to 'wind down' and become less active and you might notice the hips and back legs getting thinner (like you mentioned). Which in itself may not mean there is anything wrong but from your description it sounds like your cat has been unwell over the past few days so I hope the vet can sort the problem out for you.

I would take the cat too a vet asap like now. I lost my cat in july. He lost weight, Wouldnt eat, or drink at all. It could be its liver. He had a bladder problem all his short life and i wouldnt have had him as long as i did if i hadnt got him too vets when i did

Fredcat, as others have said, get your cat to the vet asp. Lack of food and fluid can make a slight illness, seem ten times worse as they're not getting the energy to fight for themselves, from the food they're eating.
If possible, boil a piece of chicken, and try to get some of the juice that you've cooked the chicken in, into your cat. If you have a syringe, (sometimes supplied with cough medicines) use that, but only 2 to 3 mil at a time. Or use a small teaspoon to get the fluid into her. Don't add anything to the chicken, whilst you're cooking it, no extra flavourings or anything. Just plain old water and chicken.
Any amount she has, will help her, and might encourage her appetite. But, get her to as soon as you can. As a previous poster said, you should be able to find your Vet on the net, and find out their opening hours for the weekend.

Will keep everything crossed for you both. xx

sigh. Get to the blooming vet with the cat instead of posting on here. Seeing a vet will cost you 3 times as much at the weekend. Sometimes people just make me so mad. You take an animal on you should seek vet care for it as soon as you notice your cat is ill. Hope the poor cat isn't suffering.

Vet should not be any dearer at the weekend. Mine isn't anyway. Am sure the OP has the cat's best interest at heart.

My regular vet charges under £30 a consultation during normal hours (8:00 AM to 6:00PM Mon to friday, 8:00AM to 4:00 PM Saturdey) but £105 a consultation for the OOH vet at any other time.

Prices may vary, but that seems to be the ball park.

I was meaning normal Saturday hours in reply to previous post, not out of hours. Of course it will be more for OOH. I would follow the advice of trying to get something down the cat, food or liquid and take it as soon as vet is open tomorrow.

I wouldnt care what the vet cost me. If any of my animals are ill they go then. I realy hope the cat is ok. I wasnt having a go but if you have a animal you must have vetinary care when they need it. an aimal can go down so quickly. My cat Simon became ill at around 7am, I booked him in at 9am the next day but at 6am i took him in if we hadnt he wouldnt have made it through till 9am.

i'm the same MM. My animals come first. They depend on me for care and i give them what i can and when they need it. I could happily re home more unwanted pets but i know i couldn't afford the vet bills. I wish i could.

Ive got 12 mostly rescue. I would have my OH wont let me.

i was up to 11 then down and up and down to the final 6. My oldest is a 17 year old boy and i have a 4 year old baby girl. The old boy has problems with impacted bowels but touch wood its been 4 months since his last blockage. Thankfully the rest are all in tip top shape. Hope the OP comes to tell us that he's been to the vet and that moggie is ok.

Hope the vet as now seen the cat and been able to help.

It doesn't sound like overactive thryoid. My cat had this, but the weight loss goes hand in hand with a huge appetite and hyperactivity, rather than a refusal to eat and lethargy.

Fingers crossed here too, but this is exactly what happened to our Oscar. The biggest giveaway to it being terminal was foul breath, probably from ketosis. It was kidney failure for our Oscar, but just because that's what it was for ours doesn't mean that's what it was for yours.

I completely agree with you reaction time is important when dealing with a pet. I have two almost 18 year old sisters (cats) and one has on going renal problems and she goes to the vet once a month for an injection and has a tablet daily, we have been doing this for 5 months or so now.
It was her drinking more water than normal that had me off to the vet with her, tests were done and the vet's diagnosis gave us such a shock, she was a very chunky longhaired tortieshell but now she is very thin around the areas the OP mentioned but that took a few months to get like that. We didn't think she would be here for Christmas but she celebrated that and due to her trememdous spirit despite going completely deaf she is happy in herself and not in any pain or discomfort, so we make the most of the time we have with her.
Sophie is such a wee gem!

So OP please take your cat to the vet, time is very precious indeed.

piper

Fred, any news on the kitty? I've been wondering about her all day.