My 16 year old cat eats all the time, without any weight gain?

Question

He was tested for the complete blood panel. It's not diabetes and not the kidney disease. What is it? The vet doesn't know either. He is so thin and fragile, yet he is still fairly active. What is your opinion about a younger cat possibly guarding the food bowl at night? Could this be causing it? I feed him in a private room during the day and evening, and he eats all the time and drinks a lot of water.

Answer 1

check the thyroid function!

feed the old kitty separately.

Answer 2

CBC (blood work) always includes T4 elevations- soooo your vet has probably already looked at that - some times they just want a change of food- also older cats lose muscles mass- this definitely makes them look thinner- try a food that has a higher quality of protein Wellness- or Merrick make a good food - low carbs and no grains is the key to a good diet for your cat-  

Answer 3

Have the thyroid checked. But older cats are very hard to keep weight on, even without thyroid issues. And feeding a rich diet can cause more problems, because the gut can't handle the additional load.

Edit:  A CBC does NOT include a T4 (thyroid level). A CBC is a Complete Blood Count and looks at the red cells, the white cells, the type of white cells, the platelets. In other words, a CBC looks at the blood itself. A CHEMISTRY panel will include a T3, T4, Free T4. And you might want to have a T4 by Equilibrium Dialysis (ED) done also. It is more expensive to have the T4 by ED run, but it is much more accurate. I have it run on my cat when she has her bloodwork done, because she has been borderline hypothyroid for a number of years.

Answer 4

he needs to have his thyroid checked.  Read about hyperthyroidism.  It is very common in old cats.

http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/brochures...

Answer 5

maybe he just has a high metabolism???  if he got the ok at the vets i wouldnt worry about it too much

Answer 6

you said two big issues but what about thyroid?

Answer 7

he is so old poor thing.. make sure it's not feline leukemia, and ask your vet of possible cancers that might show in an elder cat... and becasue he's so old, get him some chicken (or any meat flavored) baby food, that's right, baby food. most cats adore baby food, especially elder cats.. hope he's ok :( poor guy