My Cat Is Not Eating
Why cats stop eating, why it becomes dangerous faster than in dogs, and how long is too long to wait.
Is this an emergency?
Cats that go without food for more than 48 hours can develop hepatic lipidosis, a liver condition that can be fatal. Do not wait past two days.
A cat that stops eating is not being fussy. Loss of appetite is one of the earliest and most reliable signs that something is wrong, and in cats it also creates a second problem of its own.
Why it is more urgent in cats than in dogs
A cat that stops eating begins mobilising its own fat stores. The feline liver handles that badly: fat accumulates in the liver cells faster than it can be processed, and the liver begins to fail. This is hepatic lipidosis, and it can be fatal.
Overweight cats are at the greatest risk, because they have more fat to mobilise. A fat cat that stops eating is in more danger than a thin one, which is the opposite of what most owners assume.
The practical rule: more than two days without food needs veterinary attention, whatever the underlying cause.
Why cats stop eating
Almost anything that makes a cat feel unwell will do it. The common ones:
- Dental disease and mouth pain, which is very often missed
- Kidney disease, particularly in older cats
- Any cause of nausea, from worms to pancreatitis
- Upper respiratory infection, because a cat that cannot smell will not eat
- Foreign body or obstruction
- Stress, a house move, a new animal, building work
- Pain anywhere in the body
What you can try first
If the cat is otherwise bright and this has just started:
- Offer warmed wet food; warming releases the smell
- Try strongly scented food such as fish
- Feed somewhere quiet, away from other animals and away from the litter tray
- Check the food is not stale and the bowl is clean
- Look in the mouth if the cat allows it, for redness, a broken tooth or drooling
What not to do
Do not simply wait for hunger to win. Do not force feed by syringe without being shown how, because a frightened cat can inhale the food. Do not give human appetite stimulants or any human medication.
When to come in
Bring your cat in if it has eaten nothing for two days, if it is eating far less than usual for more than a few days, if there is weight loss, drooling, vomiting or hiding, or if the cat is a kitten, elderly, diabetic or already unwell.
We examine the mouth first, because dental pain is so often the answer, and then run blood and urine tests to look for the systemic causes.