What To Do When Your Cat Won’t Eat

What Do You Do When Your Cat Won’t Eat?

As a cat parent there is one thing that may cause you major concern. If you have a kitty cat who refuses to eat, you’ll want to know whether you should bring them to your vet right away or not. It’s important to know whether it’s safe to wait until morning or if your pet needs to be seen immediately. 

With cats, it’s important to keep an eye on your cat and make sure they’re eating regularly.  Cats who don’t eat for more than a day or two are at risk for a condition called fatty liver.  Fatty liver can cause your kitty to go into liver failure. Fatty liver happens when the body moves stored fat and uses it for energy during the state of anorexia. The process overwhelms your cats liver, which is involved in processing that stored fat. Fatty liver can happen to any cat, but obese or overweight kitties are at the highest risk. It’s important to be sure your cat is eating regularly and if they’re not we encourage you to bring them in to see us immediately. 

Other potential complications of your cat not eating can include dehydration, electrolyte imbalances, nutritional deficiencies, weight loss, and delayed healing.

If your vet has ruled out your pet having a medical condition and has determined your kitty’s loss of appetite is due to being a picky eater, then we can certainly help find different techniques to establish a healthy eating schedule. We can recommend that you try a new food or try switching from dry food to canned food as it tends to be more palatable for cats with picky tendancies. Some cat owners have also had success with mixing in fish oil or a small amount of canned tuna into their cat's meal. Just remember, you don't want to rely on feeding you cat human foods as your pet won't get all of the nutrients they need (that's why we suggest trying a canned cat food first).