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Why Cat Not Eating Much But Acting Normal?

By Kelley D. Barnett

Just like human beings, cats also reject to eat. But when you come across such cases, don’t ignore them because there must be a reason why cat not eating much but acting normal.

It is known that cats don’t lose their appetite easily unless there’s something wrong. There are many conditions that can lead to appetite loss.

These issues can range from minor issues such as stress through the bigger ones such as liver disease up to the biggest problems imaginable like cancer.

Here is an article that may help you if your cat is refusing to eat.

Cat Not Eating Much But Acting Normal

What You Gonna Read Here

  • 1 Top 3 Threats: If Your Cat Not Eating Much
  • 2 Why Your Cat Won’t Eat?
  • 3 What You Need To Do?
  • 4 How To Encourage Your Cat To Eat?
  • 5 Final Verdict

Top 3 Threats: If Your Cat Not Eating Much

🐾 Animals rely on the fat reserved for energy when they don’t eat. The liver processes the stored fat before it’s used for energy and this process needs adequate supplies of protein.

🐾 If your cat is not eating much, then he will experience rapid weight loss and the protein supplies will soon be exhausted and the liver will be overpowered by all the fat.

🐾 This will cause hepatic lipidosis which is a dangerous condition and it can lead to liver failure. If your cat loses his appetite, then it can indicate illness and you need to consult your vet once you notice the changes in your pet’s eating habits.

Why Your Cat Won’t Eat?

Here are some reasons that can explain why your cat is refusing to eat:

🐾 Recent Vaccination

Your cat may refuse to eat due to the adverse reaction to the injection. Vaccines are lifesavers for animals but at the same time, they may have side effects.

One of the sides of routine vaccination is a loss of appetite and this can be temporary and mild.

🐾 Illness

One of the key indicators of loss of appetite is illness and it shows that something is wrong.

There are some conditions that may be responsible for the loss of appetite, including, intestinal problems, pancreatitis, kidney failure, infections, and cancer.

But you don’t need to worry so much because even a toothache can result to loss of appetite.

🐾 Psychological Issues

If your cat is not physically sick, then he may be having depression or anxiety. This can make him/her refuse to eat.

Sensitive cats may be affected by changes in your household. Your cat’s emotional well-being may be affected by new changes or people.

One thing that you may suspect is that your feline friend may be a finicky eater. Cats need time to adjust to new varieties of cat food.

If you have changed his diet recently then that maybe the reason why he’s refusing to eat and you can adjust accordingly.

🐾 Travel and Unfamiliar Surroundings

Cats are creatures of habit and so when you change his routine, he may be stressed and finally loss of appetite.

Another thing is that some cats may experience motion sickness when they’re traveling by plane or car and this can lead to refusal to eat.

What You Need To Do?

Keep in mind that whether your feline friend is anxious, sick or just plain picky, a complete refusal of food is not something you can ignore because it has some consequences.

Don’t force or starve your pet to eat the food that you need him to take. Even if you have a doctor-prescribed diet, you should never starve your innocent cat.

You can have educational conversation with your vet if illness is the reason why he’s not eating.

Your vet will help you to make the best regime that will work better for your cat instead of starving him.

You can provide the best condition to enable your pet to eat food and this can include a change in his food type.

Your cat maybe also enticed to eat especially if you present a nice meal like Best Canned Food and you can do this when he’s unwell.

Your vet may also give you some drugs that act as appetite stimulants that will enable your pet to eat.

In more extreme cases, your vet may recommend syringe-feeding your feline friend a liquid diet.

If the situation is worse, you may prefer a feeding tube that can ensure there’s adequate nutrition.

Sometimes walking with cats can improve this unwanted situation. Cats enjoy travelling. What do you need to travel with the cat?

Just a Transparent Cat Travel Backpack to carry your furry friend outside.

How To Encourage Your Cat To Eat?

Certain foods, such as canned tuna or liver can be the best appetite stimulants and you can try one of them and see whether your cat may eat. You can give your pet this food in small amounts.

Keep in your mind that large amount of liver or canned tuna is harmful to your pet because it can cause an overabundance of certain vitamins.

You can give your pet commercial canned food instead of depending on people food. You can entice your cat by giving him warm food or mixing it in broth, fish oil, or cooked egg.

If you try these things and your cat refuse to eat, then you can take the food away and later in the day, you can provide fresh food.

Don’t let the food to harden and become stale because he will avoid it in the future.

Don’t let your cat’s food to remain there for long because it will harden.

Vet Recommended Best Cat Food | You Can Feed Your Cat

Best Cat Food Advisor | Expert Recommended Guideline

Transition your cat over several weeks especially if he used to be eating human food exclusively.

You can mix his favorite people’s food with what you think that your pet will love.

With time, you’ll be able to change the ratio up to a point whereby, your pet will be able to eat only cat food.

Another thing which you can try is that you can rotate your cat’s diet among various best cat food brands that are available in the market.

You can do this for like two to four times a year but ensure that you use a similar technique.

Doing this will enable you to reduce finickiness, as well as, development of food allergies and intestinal problems.

Final Verdict

Don’t starve your cat because he/she is not eating. Try to entice her by providing mouth-watering food and you’ll see its eating.

You can also provide him with the best cat food that you think he can love by feeding him with the smaller amount of food frequently so that he will not be emaciated.

Don’t joke with your finicky cat because it can be a serious issue especially if your cat won’t eat. But if the situation becomes worse, seek advice from your vet.

Kelley D. Barnett

Kelley D. Barnett

About Kelley D. Barnett

ThePetMeal.com was established by the people who have a genuine passion and affection for helping pets. We are The Pet Meal family always committed to the pet parents for 360 degree solutions of the pet problem and find out the best pet products from the market.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. AvatarMartha Hurta says

    February 9, 2019 at 2:53 am

    I have tried every wet food imaginable. My two cats will eat one can right up! Sooooo, I go and buy 6 cans of the same exact food, and one or both of them will not touch it again. I have often opened 4 different cans of food at each feeding, only to have them walk away from all of them. I am at the end of my rope…..and my budget for my kitties. What is up???
    I am about to give up and offer only dry food, though I know that that is not healthy.

    Reply
    • THE PET MEALTHE PET MEAL says

      March 11, 2019 at 4:44 am

      Dear Martha Hurta, Good Day
      You can Prepare homemade food for your lovely cat and it can be a good treat for your cat also. Especially when you use best quality ingredients such as fish, chicken, and beef. The great part is that you don’t need to be a cook to cook. You only need some little time like half an hour and some basic ingredients found in most kitchens & which is very common.

      Thanks & Regards
      THE PET MEAL TEAM

      Reply
  2. AvatarVinay Dipke says

    July 4, 2020 at 2:47 pm

    My cat stopped eating from morning she had an infection on skin Im treating infection by applying cream and giving antibiotics she’s normal not eating but drinking water
    What should I do?

    Reply

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