Cat will only eat sardines

Q

My 10-year-old cat is refusing various tinned supermarket foods and has decided that he will only eat tinned sardines in fresh water. Is this OK for him as a regular meal?

A

This is not a balanced diet for your cat and to avoid possible nutritional deficiencies you need to act now to wean him off the sardines.

It is curious how much cats like fish, even though in the wild they have little contact with them.

It is interesting that he has decided not to eat anything else and in the past I have seen this with cats refusing to eat anything except raw liver.

These cats seemingly became addicted and would starve themselves for days sometimes until their owners caved in. Raw liver causes all manner of problems with calcium deposits in the spine and elsewhere. Sardines are less likely to cause major problems in the short term, but a good quality commercial brand cat food is desirable.

The problem, as you are finding, is transitioning him back to a normal diet.

He is now 10 and a sensible starting point is a consultation with your vet to ensure there are no obvious underlying problems, such as teeth or gum problems, and to get his or her advice on various diets.

Changing food is best done gradually. It could be worth trying good quality commercial dry food, ensuring that fresh water is abundantly available.

There is no doubt that many cats find these nutritionally balanced dry diets very tasty, and it may persuade your cat to forget sardines.

I am concerned about my sevenyear-old rescue cat. She eats good quality commercial food but she

sometimes strains to poo, and often there is blood in it. Any suggestions?

A

You mentioned that you have spoken to your vet and she is not overly concerned at present, as the problem is only occasional. However, if this issue continues on a more regular basis or worsens, a veterinary check-up will be advisable.

The straining with blood suggests a large bowel problem, and my main suspicion would be colitis – which is inflammation of the colon.

It is more a description of the problem than a definitive diagnosis as there are a number of possible underlying diseases.

These will require a step-by-step approach to rule out possibilities before making a definitive diagnosis, enabling specific treatment.

There are some symptomatic treatments that are often tried first in order to control the symptoms and give some comfort to the cat.

These may involve a combination of an antibiotic and anti-inflammatory drug. This treatment is sometimes successful in the longer term, but more often than not the symptoms return after treatment, and a more detailed approach then becomes necessary.

A discussion with your vet at this stage, with an agreed plan, would be worthwhile.

Testing and/or treatments for bacteria and parasites are likely, and an endoscope examination may also be needed. Some cats will respond to a veterinary prescribed hypoallergenic diet if other causes are ruled out.

David Grant MBE has been a vet for more than 50 years. Email questions to him at pamperedpets@people.co.uk