Question:
My poor cat has been recovering from surgery - doing pretty well but doesn't eat much and when she does, she makes loud noises, smacking her lips and throwing her head around. Most of the food falls out of her mouth. Her regular vet says she doesn't have teeth problems. She does have chronic pancreatitis. I am going to call another vet today for a 2nd opinon although I love our regular vet who is very dedicated and is trying hard to find out what's wrong.
Although she isn't eating and is frighteningly thin, she is still happy to see us, carries her little ball around in her mouth and brings it to us, etc, so I am not ready to give up yet.
Has anyone else had this experience??

Answer:
So sorry to read about your kitty,I have no advice to give,but agree with a second opinion..
She definetly has to eat,it sounds like she would have trouble swallowing or chewing,poor girl,hopefully you'll get some answers from a second vet
What about syringe-feeding her,something really sloppy and wet
Hopefully someone else can give you better advice.

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What sort of surgery did she have done? Could this be related? Does she have trouble drinking too or just eating?

Sorry, I haven't had any experience with this, I hope one of your vets can figure it out. poor kitty.

Answer:
Thank you both for replying - I have an appointment for tomorrow morning at another vet, plus I have asked the surgical vet to call me. She had exploratory surgery because she was vomiting (everything all the time - even water) and she had some non-malignant cysts removed from near the back of her stomach (on the outside). She seemed to recovery well from the surgery but had lost lots of weight and wasn't eating much, and was having this strange behavior. The strange behavior seems to have increased and this morning she was doing it even when drinking water, so I don't think it can be dry mouth, etc.

Anyway, thanks for listening - I will post anything we find out here in case it may help another cat owner.

Btw, very cute pictures of your kitty/doggie!

Answer:
I also don't have any advice. Sorry to hear what you and your poor kitty are going through. Is she keeping down the food that she does eat?

Glad you are going to see another vet for a second opinion. Good luck and keep us posted.

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Did they have any idea why the cysts were growing in her stomach? That's odd. Was her esophagus clear of cysts, maybe she has trouble swallowing?

I hope she's ok.

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Misstippy,please let us know how tomorrow goes,hopefully they will find the problem

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Will she let you look into her mouth, if so have a good look under her tounge for a cyst. good luck

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Do you have an update from the vet today?

Answer:
Hi All,
We have got back from seeing two vets at once - my usual vet and another vet who is working with him today. They did a barium xray to see if anything was blocking her esophogus or growing somewhere along the way from her mouth to stomach, but there was nothing. It seems like maybe she is just feeling sick to her tummy all the time.

The real problem seems to be that she is not absorbing anything she does eat (she has lost another 1/2 lb in the last 10 days) so now we are going to give her some pancreatic meds to help her digest her food and absorb it properly. We hope that once she is getting some nutrients we'll be able to just sprinkle it in her food and she can eat like a regular cat.

I really appreciate everyone's concern and, just in case someone is reading this whose cat has the same symptoms (mouth smacking and tossing of head) here are the things they have checked that it might be:

- tooth or gum problems
- neurological problem
- blockage of esophogus
- swollen lymph nodes
- just plain sick to stomach; apparently changes in the chemical makeup of an animal's blood or whatever can make things taste bad to them, and they may exhibit these symptoms.

Thanks again to all of you for your support and concern! You are great pet people!

Nicki and Miss Tippy the cat

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It is really frustrating when the vet cannot figure out what is wrong,I am sure it's not for lack of trying and you seem to go all out for your kitty
I hope it's tummy-problems and she will recover with the meds

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I hope she feels better soon.

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How is Miss Tippy doing?

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