Does Metacam cause a cat not to eat

[Harry101]

Hello, me again. We have been injecting Metacam into Sophie every few days because it is the only thing that helps the cystitis but I have noticed her food intake has decreased rapidly. She has hardly eaten anything this weekend but seems alert and bright. It does not make sense. One of the side effects of metacam is decreased appetite but because she is on injectable form could this take away her appetite altogether? I last injected her Saturday morning and will not do it again until Sophie eats more. It is a vicious circle as the metacam stops the squatting around the house but when she is stressed she hardly eats then. So now we have got a situation where is she is not drinking or eating hardly at all. What can I do? Thanks

[bobbys girl]

She's got to eat and, even more importantly, drink. Willow was on Metacam for a while. I don't remember it affecting her appetite too much. But then she has always been a picky eater.

I'd call the vets tomorrow and see what they say.

[Crewella]

I hate those vicious circles you can get into with trying to get a poorly cat to eat, so frustrating. I've not personally experienced any problems in giving Metacam like this, so all I can suggest is the usual tricks in trying to get a picky cat to eat - try something like sardines with a strong smell, add a little warm water to make any food smell more appetising, offer things you know she likes, even if they're not ideal nutritionally and are usually reserved as 'treats'. At this stage, getting anything at all into her is good news. You might also try getting something like Hills a/d from your vet - it's highly packed nutritionally and easily digested, so they need less of it to benefit. I really hope her appetite picks up, but agree it's worth a call to the vet - they might also be able to give her an appetite stimulant.