[Felvtalk] Syringe Feeding

[ROBERT CHAPEL]

For folks who have Syringe Fed cats... 
How much do you " force" at each feeding when a cat shows little 
interest in even swallowing that which you manage to get into his 
mouth...   Jelly fights it tooth and nail...   I am WAY behind in his 
caloric needs because he fights so vehemently now about taking meds or 
being fed that I feel that it is hurting more than helping....   I was 
using AD with High Density calorie paste but he doesn't like it at ALL 
so I am now using bits of baby food and alternating with KMR Kitten Milk 
and literally forcing him to swallow a couple of oz's...which is also 
far too little......  He still drinks water on his own and is urinating 
a large amount... for all I know at this point his Kidneys could be 
shutting down

He is  lethargic enough at this point that I am 75% sure that I will put 
him down before the weekend is out...  If he were just battling anemia 
I'd have more hope for the Win/Pred/Doxy combo but with the tumor I'm 
feeling I might not be doing him any favors.... Admittedly... it was 
only a couple of months back that I watched my other little boy fade 
away at home over the course of a couple of months but HE was eating at 
least.... Mostly... I don't think " I " can take much more of watching 
my lovely boy die... Every day I'm here living my life around trying to 
get him to eat.. watching that he doesn't eat cement or other detritus ( 
Pica r/t anemia) putting food in a thousand places so that if he IS 
inclined at one moment TO eat there will be something near at hand TO 
eat and getting more and more depressed with each passing day at the 
lack of response.....  This damnable disease!!!   6 short weeks ago he 
passed his wellness exam with flying colors....  They can be claimed in 
a heartbeat.       I don't know that I will take in another FeLV cat 
unless I can find a damn vet that will work WITH ME and give a dying cat 
a fighting chance.......  I can't take this amount of sadness again for 
at least several months...


> Date: Thu, 06 Apr 2017 02:19:39 +0000
> From: Sheri Burbridge To: "felvtalk at felineleukemia.org" Subject: Re: 
> [Felvtalk] New FELV mom
> Message-ID:
> 	
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
>
> I've struggled with Mo since he came home, literally, the only thing 
> he
> will eat on his own is the Temptations treats. I count them so I know 
> he's
> gotten more than his basic needs every day but he's never bowled us 
> over
> with his appetite, even on mirzapine (definitely misspelled that). He 
> will
> lick the gel off his feet still, I feel lucky to have found anything 
> he
> likes but a bit stuck as he won't try anything else!
>
> On Wed, Apr 5, 2017, 5:30 PM Amani Oakley  wrote:
>
>> Good luck Sheri. I understand all too well the reluctance to add 
>> stress by
>> syringe feeding, but I think that the ?gas in the engine? is also 
>> dependent
>> on getting in those calories. I rely on baby food. I find that it is
>> usually palatable enough that you can usually syringe a wee bit of it 
>> on
>> their lips or just inside their lips ? if they sit or lie down beside 
>> you
>> or in your lap (my preferred position), and they will lick at what is 
>> in or
>> on their mouth. I think this helps to stimulate their appetite. The
>> Winstrol will often also help improve appetite, strength and a sense 
>> of
>> feeling better so that they want to eat a bit more.
>>
>>
>>
>> Amani
>>
>>
>>
>