Cat crash (dehydration) - preceded by pica, and it may be recurring
March 11, 2016 9:41 AM   Subscribe

Electra had an episode of dehydration that took quite a bit of work to get her over. She is showing signs of recurrence and one of them is pica. What is she saying here?

Electra went from a brief spell of vomiting consistent with hairball clearance but no hairball, to a very... gradual... fussiness about her food. At that time she began to lick humans and a yoga mat. Not a lot, just a little, but persistently. The food pickiness gradually worsened over the course of a month until she was not drinking any water, eating little and eliminating ditto and that very dry. She had two X-rays showing normal cat but with rather shrunken intestinal contents and no foreign objects, an ultrasound that agreed with the X-rays (the doc claimed he'd be able to see a hairball with the ultrasound and he was sure there was none), a fecal float showing no parasites, a blood panel all normal except for hematocrit consistent with dehydration, and subcutaneous Ringer's. The sub-q fluids perked her up but her appetite did not improve and a couple days later she was back to the vet's. This time she got Hills' a/d which she liked; baby food which she thought was ok; famotadine (Pepcid) and Miralax and some more sub-q fluids. Perked up, crashed again with dehydration. Third vet visit: another X-ray showing foods were going into the cat and a full bowel, but still dehydrated. She had more sub-q fluids, a shot of Convenia (antibiotic), and added Periactin (appetite stimulant) and Cerenia (anti-nausea) plus Petromalt on her paws. She pulled out of her loop a week ago and has been fine for a week, though she was slow to recover all of her behaviors - the last being her chattiness and her urge to play Fetch; that returned on Tuesday.

Thursday she started licking people again and going to the place where the yoga mat was, today she delivered a drier-than-normal poo, and she is looking at her water but not drinking it, though her appetite seems fine.

Does this set of behaviors ring any bells for you? Is there something that needs closer scrutiny?
posted by jet_silver to Pets & Animals (17 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Best answer: Not sure why, but cat foods with broth or gravy may be more appealing to her than water and bump up her fluids.
posted by AlexiaSky at 10:42 AM on March 11, 2016 [1 favorite]


How old is Electra? The only time I had a cat with these symptoms it was kidney problems, but I see the blood panel was normal. Maybe try different foods? Could it be an allergy?
posted by clone boulevard at 10:47 AM on March 11, 2016 [1 favorite]


Best answer: Does the vet have any ideas at all? If she's getting dehydrated again, what about doing sub-q at home for a bit of time, see if it kicks her back to normal? She's beautiful, btw.
posted by clone boulevard at 10:49 AM on March 11, 2016


some cats prefer to drink running water, maybe try leaving a tap running a bit, or getting a fountain water bowl? My boyfriend's elderly cat is starting to have kidney problems, so he gets sub-q every few days and it has kept him in really good shape.
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 11:28 AM on March 11, 2016 [2 favorites]


We mix a bit of water into the wet food we feed our cats to get more water into them.
posted by telophase at 2:06 PM on March 11, 2016 [1 favorite]


Your vet needs to rule out kidney dysfunction, hyperthyroidism, diabetes, FIV, anemia, and cancer. If all of this has been ruled out, then it's time to investigate alternate fluid delivery. My cat was extremely fussy about water and drastically preferred running water. He now drinks out of a water fountain that uses filters and hasn't had issues with dehydration since. Some cats have issues with certain bowl designs--try putting some cups of water, wide, shallow bowls, and deep bowls around. See if she prefers one of them. Some cats also develop urinary problems associated with their litter, so they avoid drinking/eating in order to avoid the litter box. You may wish to try a new litter type--something without perfumes, clumping, etc.
posted by xyzzy at 3:34 PM on March 11, 2016 [1 favorite]


How are her teeth? May be a strange question, but my cat's pica was generally sparked by bouts of gingivitis or stomatitis. It generally also corresponded with not eating or drinking as much-- though what you describe sounds more extreme.
posted by frumiousb at 6:50 PM on March 11, 2016


Just a note with my. Two cats I owned eating litter was a sign of IMHA which eventually killed both cats.

You didn't mention that but if it happens Pronto get yay carry back to the doctor abs insist on another blood panel.

Pale gums are also a sign.
posted by AlexiaSky at 7:08 PM on March 11, 2016


Our normal-sized cat had weird issues like you describe and she had a bladder stone that caused a kidney infection.
posted by fiercekitten at 7:09 PM on March 11, 2016


Response by poster: Thanks for posts so far.

Electra will be four years old in June. She is otherwise a fabulously healthy, active, chatty and engaged cat - and this afternoon she was drinking from her water bowl which is far from her feeding place, so I may be fretting unduly: however, the last month was fraught and I am very worried whenever I think a reversion is under way.

She's a Maine Coon mix and they are supposed to be interested in running water. I bought her a bowl with a pump in it so the water would flow and when she saw it she was suspicious - then she looked at me with the strangest look: Human. This is water. How could you fuck -that- up? IT IS MOVING. Make it stop. Once her self-made pottery bowl was restored she was fine.

Her litter - she ate the clay type - is fine silica. She likes that the best, never eats it. She is very *very* fussy about her box and if it is neglected she pees on the down comforter so forestalling that is a big deal.

She gets Hills t/d (dental) food mixed with her other dry food and eats that preferentially. The vet is big on Pet Dentistry and has no complaint about her teeth.

TBH I think the vet was shotgunning at the third visit, and that was not what I had had in mind. However, she got Electra out of a bad spot and for that I am grateful.
posted by jet_silver at 8:10 PM on March 11, 2016


You can add a little water to the dry food to up the water content. See if she'll eat it that way.

I had a cat (one with IMHA) that had to be on a wet food only diet because he just would not drink enough water and kept getting stones.
posted by AlexiaSky at 8:15 AM on March 12, 2016


Some cats like to drink drips from the bathtub tap. You can also use a fork to mix half a can of wet cat food into a slurry with a tablespoon or two of water, and let her drink that for extra hydration.
posted by pseudostrabismus at 12:12 PM on March 12, 2016


She gets Hills t/d (dental) food mixed with her other dry food and eats that preferentially. The vet is big on Pet Dentistry and has no complaint about her teeth.

I'd try giving her mostly wet food for the water plus a bit of dry dental as twice daily treat/tooth cleaner, maybe.

It's my impression that introducing new dry foods to a cat is a bit tricky on their gi tract, whereas introducing new wet foods is uncomplicated for their gi tract. And that historically they were getting a lot of their daily water from their wet-food-type prey animals, and so dry-food cats aren't wired to alway drink as much as they should from their bowl.

Unless the vet doesn't like the idea.
posted by sebastienbailard at 6:04 PM on March 12, 2016


One of my cats was having water intake problems. I solved this by letting both cats free feed on dry food and then give them a half can of wet food with water added to it. It's just a matter of finding a wet food they like (my cat refuses any pate products, for example).
posted by zug at 7:11 PM on March 12, 2016


My rescue lad came from a pet hoarding situation, and oddly, it seemed to make him disinterested in food. I mean, he'd eat, but only a tiny bit at a time and then he'd want to run off and play play play. He was very skinny when I got him. He did like the social aspect of eating, but the other cat in the household wasn't fond of him eating with her, so he was sad. I fixed most of that by having multiple feeding stations. I have a free-feeding bowl of dry in the kitchen along with water for both cats. At mealtimes, I feed him wet food at first in the kitchen with OtherCat, but then I bring his (mostly uneaten) dish into my room and put him up on my dresser next to my desk, where I usually eat. So we then eat a bit together. In the same spot, I have a bowl of dry (his preferred food) and a bowl of water. He spends most of his time with me, but he still has ready access to food and water where he doesn't have to miss anything by leaving the room. He's put on a few pounds since I've had him and is sleek and beautiful now.

So a long way to suggest maybe have water in multiple places? Especially where Electra hangs out the most. If she's fussy about her litter box, she's probably pretty demand-y about her water, too, so make sure it's fresh and tasty. When I had kidney problem cat, he always got filtered water from a squeaky clean ceramic bowl and that kept him a little more interested in drinking.
posted by clone boulevard at 3:36 PM on March 13, 2016


Response by poster: So Electra is now eating well and hydrating herself.

The water is nowhere near the food, she seems to be fine with it. It is well water, same as I drink, and she has a slight preference for the water in the overflow saucers from the plant pots. Pure water has no place in her wishes. Toilet water was fine until I found out about that and started closing the lid. When she's outside she will drink with gusto from puddles and ephemeral streams.

The food is (dry) free-fed mix of Iams adult cat and Hills t/d + (wet) Fancy Feast. Electra has a habit of slow oscillation among preferences and one is the wet food. Texture and composition both have a place - just now she is preferring paté style seafood, but that will not last: next will have to be paté style beef, then chunk style poultry - except we are talking about a cat and the oscillations are not periodic.

She's playing Fetch and interacting much more than even a week ago. She's over this - for the time being.

Thanks, all.
posted by jet_silver at 7:53 PM on March 14, 2016 [3 favorites]


Response by poster: Update: water sources. Electra was seen drinking from the shower floor. No one knew she was sneaking in there. And her crash started shortly after I bought shampoo with tea tree oil in it - promptly discarded. That was the only change to the washing chemical inventory in at least six months. She is thriving.
posted by jet_silver at 9:45 AM on March 26, 2016 [2 favorites]


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