I have a happy, healthy, active 15-1/2 year old cat who shows no signs of slowing down, but he has always been on the light side, about 8 pounds max.  Over the past 15 years has been xrayd, probed, scoped and had blood, organ and countless tests and no one has found a major problem.  His only illnesses are feline herpes, which shows no symptoms and causes no problems and some gum disease over time that resulted in some tooth extractions, but not all. He is a bit of a barfer, but it's inconsistent.  Short haired, but prone to hairballs so he gets a remedy for that.  He eats prescription A/D, which is high in nutrients and also Wellness canned food, mixed.  I add a tiny squirt of salmon oil once a day, using the reco'd amount for his weight.  He loves his food and while he would never consume a whole can or even half in one sitting, he will eat smaller portions all day long, from early morning to bedtime. We feed him whenever he indicates hunger.  That said, he is 15-1/2 and has gotten even lighter, about 7 lbs, but still shows no signs of illness or slowing down.  Is there anything else I can do to put weight on him?

I have been thinking about the same thing!   I have 16 years old cat, she does exactly the same.  She has been between 8 - 7.5lb.  I consulted my vet and he said that she is fine and other cats I see are overweight.  But now she is 7.2lb (she is active, curious and playful) and looks thinner.  She does have some health issues, but should not really affect her weight.  So I am searching for a good products which can make her eat a bit more, too....

Now I am considering to start CoEnyme supplement.  I will let you know if that increases her appetite!

 

 

Thanks for your reply.  Definitely interested in hearing how the supplement works out.  It's baffling to me that my cat is so scrawny yet has endless energy and happiness.  He also has another cat (age 5) and two big dogs (age 2) so perhaps that keeps him on his furry little toes.

 

I am very interested  in the dosage of CoEnzyme

I had a hyperthyroid 20-year-old kitty-girl, and in her last year keeping weight on her was a real problem.  The problem is to pack as many calories and nutrients as possible into a small volume, because they have such small stomachs.  One thing she really liked was an egg yolk mixed into a little  whipping cream (both organic when I could get them).  If your cat is lactose-intolerant this will upset his digestion, but Annie tolerated milk products just fine.  Another thing you can try is "Duck Soup," which is a concoction people mix up for their sick ferrets; you can find lots of recipes by googling "duck soup" or "duck soup for ferrets."  Or you can try one of the Satin Balls recipes--this is something people mix up to put weight on their dogs, so you'll probably want to cut the recipe in half or even in quarters.  There are a couple of versions that don't have so much cereal, which would be better for your cat.  HTH!

Thank you for sharing this.  I've suspected a thyroid issue, but at 17 he is so happy and healthy and active (and has been tested and poked and prodded throughout his life) that I'd rather work on the calories vs. spending more time at the vet.  For others with this issue, we were also able to get the vet to prescribed canned A/D food by Hills for our cat - He has been on it for years.  It is very high in calories and nutrients, but only available via Rx.

I have a 10 year old petite Siamese, named Cricket.  She has been hard to keep weight on, but recently lost too much.  I found "Wellness Grainfree Core".  It has 50% protein. My Vet said to get a food that was 40% or higher in protein.  Protein is the key, not calories or fat content.  Cricket loves the food.  She has only been on the food for 5 weeks or so, and I am still waiting for the results.

I highly recommend this food for all pets.  I put my Golden Retriever on the Lamb and in a month I’ve already noticed a difference in his coat.  He is also eating a third less.

Thanks for your reply too.  Ironically my underweight cat eats both the prescription A/D food and Wellness too.  I mix them together and he gets about 5 small meals a day since he can't eat a ton at once.  Wellness is a great diet - all our pets (3 large breed dogs and 2 cats) are on Wellness.

I have 3 other cats too, 15, 13 and 4.  A Seal Point, Tonkinese and a Lilac Point. They are currently doing well on Nutro Natural, but am planning to switch to Wellness Indoor for them.

 

Cricket has been licking her fur off of her sides and tummy.  She started this after I moved into a new apartment last January.  I didn’t realize that the place had fleas because I never noticed them on any of the pets until a month or so ago.  Everybody has been treated with Frontline Plus, but my Golden, Max, brings them in every time we go outside.  Cricket also has asthma and is easily stressed.  It doesn’t help when Lilly, the 4 year, old helps to lick off the fur.

Do you have any suggestions for stopping the licking?

Hi, the dosage of coq10 is 1 capsule daily of 30mg "RX vitamins for Pets." I tried squirting in their mouths without much success. With me, they accept the first unsuspecting time and then after that they fight too much. Also, Pet Tinic 1cc two times /day or RX Vitamins for Pets Amino B-Plex dosage on label. he coq10 and b Plex were prescribed by a homeopathic vet. I found they tolerated the Pet Tinic more but have three half filled expired bottles because they wont listen to me The B's should help stimulate the appetite. Pet Tinic was prescribed for my cats to prevent anemia from fleas (I hate to put poison on them and try my best just vacuming and combing but I think I am going to have to succumb to advantage. I have tried every product out there after the food recall. Raw, organic wellness, merrick, paul nuemans and It is useless. I have been cooking and had to resort early on the go back on friskies, although I trust none of them. I lost my 18 yr old and 14 year old this year due to my giving them hills sci diet. I welcome all suggestions cause I am at my wits end. I am beside myself. I still have 7 cats left and lost my 18 yr old chickerina l month ago. she too ate all day long but was very thin and I was not about to put her thru any more vet trauma at her age, as long as she ate and stilled managed to jump. Good luck to all and again, I welcome any information.