Kitteh parents, my almost 14 yr old male tiger is getting sooooo skinny and light as a feather.

[GreenPartyVoter]

He's still pretty active, though, and bright-eyed. Is the weight loss just an old age thing? (He hasn't been to the vet since he was 2, but if he gets any skinnier we're going to have to scrape some funds together somehow and get him checked out.)

[Critters2]

1. Get his thyroid checked. It's a good idea to get all his numbers--

thyroid, liver, kidney, glucose, etc--checked at this age. You'll find out if anything's wrong, and you'll have baseline numbers for the future.

But the skinniness does sound like thyroid to me. It's treatable with medication if caught early. If you're willing to spend a couple of thousand dollars for radioiodine treatment, it's cureable. So, see you're vet as soon as possible.

[GreenPartyVoter]

2. I don't have thousands of dollars. :^( I will try to get him checked out, though. My dad's cat has

a thyroid issue but he was in way worse shape than Pretzel, who is just skinnier than he used to be. (And his sister is is fatter. LOL)

[Rosemary2205]

6. Is his sister butting in every time he goes to eat?

he could be tired of fighting for food.........

[GreenPartyVoter]

10. I just keep a box of kibble on the floor, which is why she is a butterball. She can eat as much as

she wants whenever she wants. But there's always food available to him because there's such a pile of it.

[Rosemary2205]

13. No, that's not what I meant

We had 2 cats and part of the reason our guy stopped eating was, him being tired, he got cranky, wanted to eat in peace and not have his sister coming in to feed every time he did. If he goes to feed, she shows up and he leaves, that may be part of it.

Just meaning it might be one thing you can look for.

[GreenPartyVoter]

16. Hmmm. That's a good point. The food is in the laundry room but I will try to

catch him eating. (I saw him eating last night and told him I was very proud.)

[deucemagnet]

8. The thyroid medicine is reasonably priced.

I'm watching my mom's cat right now, and she was daignosed with hyperthyroidism this past summer. She's on a transdermal medicine that's applied to her ear once a day. She really bounced back. She has gained weight, and is much more active now. Definitely get it checked out, because it is treatable.

[Critters2]

18. Sorry, I should've been clearer. The medication is not expensive at all.

It's only expensive if you go with the radiation thing. But there are pills, the name of which I've forgotten, which control it well and are not at all expensive.

[SoxFan]

22. I was thinking the same thing

Mys sister had a kitty that had a thyroid problem when she got up there in years. I don't think it's too expensie to take care of the problem.

[Wcross]

3. Find a vet that does blood work.

It sounds as if it may be kidney failure. Has he been drinking more than usual?

[GreenPartyVoter]

4. He's always loved water, so it is hard to tell. I also thought of kidney failure, esp after the

food scare.

[Wcross]

12. My vet charges 58 bucks for a blood scan.

I recently lost a good friend (dog) to kidney failure. You are better off knowing sooner than later.

Rest in Peace Angel.

[GreenPartyVoter]

14. What a face! Yeah, I am trying to talk hubby into getting a cat carrier next week and

letting me set up an appt.

[Wcross]

25. Just use a pillow case.

Seriously, thats what I do. My guys (cats) hurt themselves in a carrier, they chew on the cage front. Nothing wrong with carrying him in a sack.

[GreenPartyVoter]

29. What if he got out, though?

:scared:

[badgerpup]

32. I spent $29.00 at the Store Which Must Not Be Named...

...and got a Petmate brand soft-sided cat carrier for each of my cats...$29.00 each, that is.

Looks kinda like this...
http://www.catchannel.com/cat-products/cat-travel/soft-sided-pet-carrier-11in-x-18-1-2in-x-11in-high.aspx?index=0



My guys are quite comfortable in them; there's enough room to lie down, and they can see out but aren't subjected to "Ooooh KITTEH!" :scared:

Plus the soft kennels are light enough that I can carry all three at the same time (by slinging one with the attached shoulder strap :thumbsup:).

The bottom stabilizer is removable and (I've found) can be hosed off in case of 'accidents'. :blush:

[murielm99]

35. We discovered recently that my cat has

chronic renal failure. She only weighs six pounds. I noticed her getting lighter and drinking more water.

The vet put her on a special diet designed for cats with renal failure. Since being on the diet, she is perkier and she seems much happier. She plays with her toys again. She has caught two mice, and she even got into some gravy yesterday.

My cat is either 11 or 12. I think I may have her for awhile longer, if her recent behavior is any indication.

Please get your cat checked. I don't know what vets do in your area. I was able to pay for her tests, bur our vet does put some people on a payment plan if they are short of money.

[Rosemary2205]

5. Been there done that.

it's going to take a lot of work on your part. First comes the vet visit. Ours had developed a heart problem and it was treated with an inexpensive med. A bit of a pill crushed into some food the cat finds irresistable -- he was just too sickly and tired to care about food. Then comes getting him to overeat and gain a little weight back. When does he want to eat? What does he want to eat? For us, he wanted to eat whenever we eat. And he loved junk food - that cheapo canned food from the grocery store - heated in the microwave just a little bit.

I fed him wet food, dry food, people food anytime he asked. Restirred it, reheated it, you name it. He never got fat again but we got him stablized.

[GreenPartyVoter]

7. Gonna be dounle hard since his chubby sis will try to steal his nummies. LOL

[Madrone]

9. Sorry to say that kidney failure was the cause of weight loss for my old boy.

He's been diagnosed for over 3 years now - but he's so thin I honestly wonder sometimes how he can still get up. Other than the weight loss, his spirits are fine and he acts normal.

[GreenPartyVoter]

11. Hmmmm that sounds a lot like my Pretzel. Skinny but otherwise normal

[Madrone]

15. Well, there are other symptoms - barfing a lot being one....

and actually the only other thing besides waste away that he seems to do regularly. Not sure how I managed to not have the severe symptoms, but I'm not complaining.

[GreenPartyVoter]

17. He does barf often, but so does sis and they always have. Not sure if

ge is doing it more and I can;t always tell which one did it unless there is a hairball with it. (he's blond, she's brunette.)

[Madrone]

19. LOL - I have three cats and I UNDERSTAND.

Mine are all black though - so I can't tell unless I catch them.

[Wcross]

26. Yep, my girl Angel was diagnosed late & died within six months.

The sooner you know the better off the animal will be. I've got eight animals now but I have decided to spend the 464.00 a year my vet charges for blood work (8 x 58 per animal).

[SOteric]

20. It could be a bunch of things. Kidneys, Cancer, Parasites,

Thyroid, Diabetes...

Better scrape up the funds to get him checked out.

(I'll be sending vibes for the little guy.)

[GreenPartyVoter]

23. Thanks! He is the sweetest, gentlest baby you could ever imagine and I want

to keep him and his sis for as long as possible!

[Quantess]

21. As WCross suggested upthread, it could possibly be diabetes.

I should know. One of our cats was diagnosed with diabetes just a month ago. He was always chubby, but then he started losing a lot of weight even though he was always wanting to eat. He even ate dog food, he was so hungry. I didn't notice that he was drinking a lot of water. I did notice that he had weird breath that smelled a little like antifreeze. That's ketosis breath. Our cat needs 2 insulin shots a day.

Another possibility is worms, of course. Cross your fingers that's all it is.

[GreenPartyVoter]

24. I haven't noticed sweet breath on him, but I haven't actively checked that. Worms is less likely as

they are inside kittehs who never eat the mice they catch.

[Adsos Letter]

27. Is he able to eat?

Our 18 yr. old had the same symptoms...turns out the dry food had gotten to be too much for her old teeth...we switched to a wet food for older cats and she put the weight back on. She still sleeps most of the day, though.

[GreenPartyVoter]

30. I never thought of that. I will check his mouth

[jab105]

28. might be diabetes...thats what happened to our 18 year old tabby...

it was so sad...

Hope yours is ok...

[GreenPartyVoter]

31. I hope so too. I have to convince hubby that we should do a trip to the vet.

[grace0418]

33. *IF* it is diabetes, there is hope. Not all vets know about what I'm going to tell you

so check this out before you go to the vet. Luckily, my vet specializes in diabetes so he followed this treatment. Basically, they've discovered that diabetes can be reversed in cats because, unlike humans and dogs, cats are carnivores. The reason cats are getting diabetes in record numbers nowadays is because most cat food contains far more carbs than they should ever be eating. They simply do not need to eat the carbs that omnivores need.

Vets then discovered that an insulin (Glargine aka Lantus) originally intended for humans can in many cases actually kick-start the pancreas in cats, allowing them not only to be weaned off insulin but effectively cured! I cannot describe how wonderful this is because I had two boy cats (brothers) and both developed diabetes. One developed it 7 years ago, before they knew about this treatment. I had to give him insulin shots twice a day, every day. Eventually, his kidneys gave out and he died, breaking my heart. The other was diagnosed about 3 years ago, and within a few months he was off insulin and is now a robust 15 yr old. I do not feed him *any* dry food and monitor what wet food he eats very carefully. Even many wet foods have a lot of carbs.

Okay, here's the most important part to know before you go to the vet: the treatment is FAR more likely to be successful if it the first treatment attempted after diagnosis. For some reason, if the cat has already started on another kind of insulin, the Glargine is less likely to reverse the diabetes.

Sorry for the long-winded response, but I want everyone who might have a diabetic cat to know this.

Good luck with your kitty! I hope he's okay. I know how heart-breaking it is to lose one. :hi:

[XemaSab]

34. Have you looked in his mouth?

:shrug: :scared:

[kryckis]

36. My cat is super skinny too

He's 17 and incredibly frail. He's had cancer for 4 years but he only started losing weight a couple of years ago. Now he's just skin and bones, basically. Unfortunately the vet won't do much, and it's too expensive for me to just show up and be told the same as I was told 4 years ago - that they'd like to put him down.

Your cat is not that old though, so it's probably good to get him checked out. If there's, god forbid, something wrong that can be fixed then it's a worthwhile investment.

[Love Bug]

37. I just went through this with my cat last week

Is your cat hungry all the time but still losing weight? Mine was and she has an enlarged thyroid. She's now on thyroid meds ($30/month) and we'll see what happens. Do take yours to the vet soon.

[Bake]

38. You gots a TIGER?

Throw him some raw meat, maybe.

Bake