Jasmine's change in eating habits

I don't know what to think about this. Jasmine is a 4 year old gray DS
that has always had a healthy appetite and a strange aversion to canned
food. So I feed her Iam's, try to tempt her with the occasional canned
food in an attempt to vary her diet a little and she has thrived.

The past two days she has totally refused to eat any food in her bowl. If
I scoop some out of the bowl in put it on the floor, then she inhales it.
Same bowl that I have had for about a year for her, and I wash it
regularly, etc.

Yesterday I watched her actually creep up to the bowl, really staring at
it, then she reached out, grabbed one kernel of food, then backed off a
foot or so quickly and ate that one kernel of food. Repeat until until I
had mercy and took some out of the bowl and put it on the floor right next
to the bowl. She was acting as if the food in the bowl was going to attack
her or something.

This is all rather strange and has happened once or twice before. Any
thoughts about what may be going on? I can get her to eat, so I am not too
concerned, but it is rather strange...

Thanks!

Catrin

"Catherine K" wrote in message
news
I don't know what to think about this. Jasmine is a 4 year old gray DS
that has always had a healthy appetite and a strange aversion to canned
food. So I feed her Iam's, try to tempt her with the occasional canned
food in an attempt to vary her diet a little and she has thrived.

The past two days she has totally refused to eat any food in her bowl. If
I scoop some out of the bowl in put it on the floor, then she inhales it.
Same bowl that I have had for about a year for her, and I wash it
regularly, etc.

Yesterday I watched her actually creep up to the bowl, really staring at
it, then she reached out, grabbed one kernel of food, then backed off a
foot or so quickly and ate that one kernel of food. Repeat until until I
had mercy and took some out of the bowl and put it on the floor right next
to the bowl. She was acting as if the food in the bowl was going to attack
her or something.

This is all rather strange and has happened once or twice before. Any
thoughts about what may be going on?

Your cat is insane. It happens. Seriously, could there have been
an insect or something that surprised her by appearing in her bowl?

On Sat, 27 Nov 2004 17:12:51 +0000, Mary wrote:


Your cat is insane. It happens. Seriously, could there have been
an insect or something that surprised her by appearing in her bowl?


It is possible. I DID find a dead gasp! roach gasp! on my kitchen floor
the other day, and I am still not certain if it was tracked in from
outside or not - for it was smashed VERY flat. That being said, the
apartment complex baited for roaches a couple of days later at my request.

Hmmmmm, her odd behavior started either the day they baited or the day
after.

I even put her food on a saucer, and she wasn't having any of that either
(though she did deign to eat a couple tablespoons of Iams canned


Catrin

"Catherine K" wrote in message
news
I don't know what to think about this. Jasmine is a 4 year old gray DS
that has always had a healthy appetite and a strange aversion to canned
food. So I feed her Iam's, try to tempt her with the occasional canned
food in an attempt to vary her diet a little and she has thrived.

The past two days she has totally refused to eat any food in her bowl. If
I scoop some out of the bowl in put it on the floor, then she inhales it.
Same bowl that I have had for about a year for her, and I wash it
regularly, etc.

Yesterday I watched her actually creep up to the bowl, really staring at
it, then she reached out, grabbed one kernel of food, then backed off a
foot or so quickly and ate that one kernel of food. Repeat until until I
had mercy and took some out of the bowl and put it on the floor right next
to the bowl. She was acting as if the food in the bowl was going to attack
her or something.

This is all rather strange and has happened once or twice before. Any
thoughts about what may be going on? I can get her to eat, so I am not too
concerned, but it is rather strange...

You should be very concerned. A cat that stops eating is at risk of
developing a very serious and potentially fatal liver disease (hepatic
lipidosis - a/k/a/ fatty liver syndrome).

If you're feeding her in plastic bowls, switch to ceramic or china. Plastic
bowls are porous and can retain odors even after washing. A cat's sense of
smell is much more sensitive than humans'. So, even though you can't smell
odors, a cat surely can.

Also, don't pour fresh food over the food left in the bowl - throw out the
old food, wash the bowl, and replace it with fresh food. When cats eat dry
food they drop saliva moistened crumbs back into the bowl. Moisture + air +
food = an excellent breeding ground for bacteria and odors.

Phil

in article , Catherine K at
wrote on 11/27/04 10:36AM:

I don't know what to think about this. Jasmine is a 4 year old gray DS
that has always had a healthy appetite and a strange aversion to canned
food. So I feed her Iam's, try to tempt her with the occasional canned
food in an attempt to vary her diet a little and she has thrived.

The past two days she has totally refused to eat any food in her bowl. If
I scoop some out of the bowl in put it on the floor, then she inhales it.
Same bowl that I have had for about a year for her, and I wash it
regularly, etc.

Yesterday I watched her actually creep up to the bowl, really staring at
it, then she reached out, grabbed one kernel of food, then backed off a
foot or so quickly and ate that one kernel of food. Repeat until until I
had mercy and took some out of the bowl and put it on the floor right next
to the bowl. She was acting as if the food in the bowl was going to attack
her or something.

This is all rather strange and has happened once or twice before. Any
thoughts about what may be going on? I can get her to eat, so I am not too
concerned, but it is rather strange...

Thanks!

Catrin

I wonder if she has a bad tooth that hurts her and she associates it with
the bowl?

"Catherine K" wrote in message
news
On Sat, 27 Nov 2004 17:12:51 +0000, Mary wrote:


Your cat is insane. It happens. Seriously, could there have been
an insect or something that surprised her by appearing in her bowl?


It is possible. I DID find a dead gasp! roach gasp! on my kitchen floor
the other day, and I am still not certain if it was tracked in from
outside or not - for it was smashed VERY flat. That being said, the
apartment complex baited for roaches a couple of days later at my request.

Hmmmmm, her odd behavior started either the day they baited or the day
after.

Could be this. Bear in mind that my Cheeky approaches her pillow
on my bed (where she sleeps) with great trepidation, reaching out a
paw every other step across the bed to poke at the covers, a kind
of test poke to flush out any scary creatures. She has slept on this
pillow for three years, but just started this about a month ago.
I don't know if she imagined something there or if there was some
sort of (ugh) critter there while I was asleep one night! They are
just very odd little critters.

"Catherine K" wrote in message
news
I don't know what to think about this. Jasmine is a 4 year old gray DS
that has always had a healthy appetite and a strange aversion to canned
food. So I feed her Iam's, try to tempt her with the occasional canned
food in an attempt to vary her diet a little and she has thrived.

The past two days she has totally refused to eat any food in her bowl. If
I scoop some out of the bowl in put it on the floor, then she inhales it.
Same bowl that I have had for about a year for her, and I wash it
regularly, etc.

Yesterday I watched her actually creep up to the bowl, really staring at
it, then she reached out, grabbed one kernel of food, then backed off a
foot or so quickly and ate that one kernel of food. Repeat until until I
had mercy and took some out of the bowl and put it on the floor right next
to the bowl. She was acting as if the food in the bowl was going to attack
her or something.

This is all rather strange and has happened once or twice before. Any
thoughts about what may be going on? I can get her to eat, so I am not too
concerned, but it is rather strange...

Thanks!

Catrin

Maybe put her food on a small plate rather than in a bowl? Do whatever
keeps her happy for her to continue to eat


--
-Kelly
kelly at farringtons dot net
www.kelltek.com
Check out www.snittens.com

I started using flat plates to feed the cats. I thought that their
whiskers might touch the side of the bowl which could bother them.


---MIKE---

On Sat, 27 Nov 2004 23:38:01 +0000, KellyH wrote:



Maybe put her food on a small plate rather than in a bowl? Do whatever
keeps her happy for her to continue to eat


I have tried this, and it doesn't seem to help. She will eat heartedly if
I take it out of the bowl and put it on the floor, but not if it is in.on
any container. Her usual dish is ceramic and it is washed very frequently.
I even tried moving her dish to another room to see if that helped, not at
all.

In the end I think that she will get over whatever this is... she shows no
signs of pain when she IS eating, so I don't think it a bad tooth. I think
that something startled her, whatever it was, and that she doesn't feel
quite, safe, to eat out of a dish.

I would prefer not feeding her off of the floor, but if I have to do that
a few times before she gets over this again, then I will.

The last time this happened she decided that she had to *kill* every
kernel of food or treat - that was a hoot to watch

Catherine K.

"Catherine K" wrote in message
news
I have tried this, and it doesn't seem to help. She will eat heartedly if
I take it out of the bowl and put it on the floor, but not if it is in.on
any container. Her usual dish is ceramic and it is washed very frequently.
I even tried moving her dish to another room to see if that helped, not at
all.

In the end I think that she will get over whatever this is... she shows no
signs of pain when she IS eating, so I don't think it a bad tooth. I think
that something startled her, whatever it was, and that she doesn't feel
quite, safe, to eat out of a dish.

I would prefer not feeding her off of the floor, but if I have to do that
a few times before she gets over this again, then I will.

The last time this happened she decided that she had to *kill* every
kernel of food or treat - that was a hoot to watch

Catherine K.


Your cat sounds very interesting! Maybe she would like one of those balls
that you can put treats or dry food in. The cat can roll it around and
dispense food, it's supposed to be like hunting to them.

--
-Kelly
kelly at farringtons dot net
www.kelltek.com
Check out www.snittens.com