Cat With Bad Teeth Feeding Suggestion

Question
My boyfriend and I adopted an 8 year old cat about 1 1/2 months ago from
our local animal control/adoption agency. He had all of his shots, except
rabies. We assumed that he had been seen by a vet prior to us adopting him,
however when we brought him into our vet for a check up a week after we got
him she said that the pets from that agency are given the shots by a vet tech
and are usually not seen by a vet, which is why he didn't have his rabies
vaccination.

At that visit she checked him over very well and felt fluid in his abdomen,
after sending it off for tests we found out that he most likely has FIP, an
incurable virus and the most we can do for him is keep him comfortable and
happy until he passes. She also noticed that his teeth were pretty bad, but
given his age, the fact that he has FIP and the infection in his mouth, she
doesn't want to do a dental on him because she doesn't feel that he will
survive the surgery.

Until a few days ago we were mixing his food with water and heating it up in
the microwave for a few seconds so that it wasn't cold and it was a bit
smellier, this way he could basically lap the food up without having to actually
chew on anything so his teeth wouldn't hurt from eating. Now he will only eat
small bits at a time, maybe 2 bites about 3 times a day. We are switching
foods like crazy trying to find something that he will eat; so far we have tried
Friskies (wet and dry), Fancy Feast (wet), Taste of the Wild (dry), Oven Baked
(dry), Whiskas (wet pouches), and a few other brands of wet that I can't
remember at the moment.

Sometimes he will just look at the food and walk away, other times he will
paw around it and then walk. Lately he's been eating a few bites and then
either walking away or pawing at it and then walking away. He does not come
back to it, in fact he tries to get as far away from it as he can.

His energy level is a bit lower than it was when we first got him, although to
be honest all he's ever really done is lay around in one of the dog beds we
have, occasionally scratch at the floor and walk to the litter box. He is still
doing all of those things, just a bit less frequently. He will still play with
things you swing in front of his face and he is using the litter box
consistently, just less feces because he isn't eating much.

He is still drinking water fine as well.

He is an 8 year old black domestic shorthair, neutered male. He is current on
all vaccinations except rabies and more than likely has FIP.

Do you have any suggestions on what we can do to get him to eat something?
The vet did prescribe and apetite stimulant last week, however it had little to
no effect on him.

Answer
Well Alicia,
you may have to face the fact that he isn't going to start eating well and that in fact he may be steadily going downhill from the FIP. Cats with this disease do not usually last long once it's been diagnosed. It doesn't drag on for years like a cat with leukemia can do.

The food isn't the issue. The issue is the way he is feeling and the fact that his mouth probably does hurt. Most dental pain comes from the gums being inflamed and sore.

Soft food certainly helps with that, but changing food all the time is not the answer. That will only cause digestive upsets which will make him even less likely to eat anything.

Some cats will start to associate the pain from their teeth or gut to the food and avoid the food as a result. In their mind the food made them hurt, and in some cases they are correct!

You should get him one kind of food and stick to it. I would get him a soft food, preferably Science Diet canned food for senior cats. There are dozens of flavors.

The fact that the appetite stimulant isn't working coupled with his reluctance to eat makes me feel that he knows his days are numbered.

Animals will stop eating when they are ready to go. When he does that, you must be able to give him the final gift of caring- ending his suffering.

As hard as it is, it is a gift of love that we can't even give our own loved ones.
He is relying on you for that and I know you won't let him down. I know it will be painful, and you cannot prepare yourself for it.

All you can do is know that you gave him a wonderful end to his life- months of love and play and touching and caring. You made his last days full of joy and love and most of all, you made him feel loved again.

Thank you for doing that for him. Talk to the vet about what you might want to do at the end so that you are prepared in that way ahead of time. It is much harder to make the decision when you are upset about whether or not you want him cremated or to take him home and bury him.

Just do what you can for now. Stick to one food and make it softer by adding water and/or broth and let him just lick it up. Baby food is good for this reason as well. He can live on that if needed.

I hope he hangs in there for you for a while,but don't let him linger if he is in pain.
Please let me know how he does.