Hi everyone
I'm brand new to the Forum and would massively appreciate any advice you can offer.

My venerable moggie Barney: - Maine Coon cross - has had crf for 2 and a half yrs and recently also developed cardiomyopathy...but has still been trogging along OK.
But for the last few days he completely refuses to eat.

He has seen the vet and had complete bloods and the numbers are not bad given his age (17 and a half) and condition. By no means has he fallen off a cliff, and he is drinking normally but I can't persuade him to eat - and I have tried everything I can think of -20 diff varieties of proprietary foods, tuna, sardines, poached chicken...and he looks at it and walks away.

Any ideas, please?

Ah bless him. I can't promise any of these will work but I would try the following if you haven't already:

- Try warming slightly the food he's shown most interest in (5-10 seconds in the microwave should do it). This will increase its aroma and make it more appetising.
- Try crumbing his favourite treats over the top, I find that if I crumble thrive or pets at home freeze dried treats over the top I can get my cat to eat foods she otherwise refuses.
- Are there any treat foods he really loves? Tuna, Applaws, Mince anything? The most important thing is trying to get him to eat no matter what it is.
- Try feeding him off your knee or try standing with him and picking a small piece of food out of his bowl and hand feeding or placing it on the floor in front of him. I'm not sure why this works but a few of my cats have eaten like this when they've been refusing food just put down in there bowl.
-Try a veterinary food like Hills A/D which is made to be particularly enticing for recovering cats.
- Failing the above I would talk to your vets to ask if there's anything they can give him to stimulate his appetite.

Best of luck

Welcome to the forum! Just to add to Ali82's excellent advice, not sure whether you have seen Tanya's CRF site before? Loads of information on their website - because what they don't know about CRF isn't worth knowing and often exceeds the knowledge of a vet. They also have a yahoo support group. Here is what they have regarding getting your CRF cat to eat: Tanya's Comprehensive Guideto Feline Chronic Renal Failure - Persuading Your Cat to Eat

HTH and good luck!

Would you consider syringe feeding him? It sounds really horrible, but some cats take to it quite well....my paddy rather liked it! .....sometimes they need this to kick start their appetites again.
Drug wise....Tanyas site will recommend some antacids, and Cyproheptadine is often used to sharpen the appetite. Ask your vet about both of these.

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Nellie Paddy Mitzy Milo Peggy Murphy

Millie and Monty, the White Devils!

Also by identifying what the problem goes a long way towards eliminating it. CRF cats invariably suffer from stomach acid, for instance which is easily remedied with some slippery elm, available at most health food shops.

Here's the section in the wonderful CRF site which can appear overwhelming!

Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Renal Failure - all about stomach acid ( nausea, vomiting, appetite loss)

Hope his appetite resumes as it's soo important he eats! As PP has said sometimes syringe feeding can actually kick start the appetite!

Many many thanks for all the advice. And yes I know about Tanya's crf site - it is my bible....but I had been resisting syringe feeding as it feels like another inexorable step. And in fact the vet has put Barney on a diuretic for a week and he has begun to eat again albeit not with his normal appetite....And today he started hiding under our grandson's bed - so we are pretty worried.

We'll try some slippery elm bark (though he is a past master at eating around anything sprinkled on or mixed in with his food) and absolutely WILL NOT eat veterinary foods of which we have tried pretty much every variety under the sun....And he is already on Cyproheptadine/ (Periactin) which we obtained from Canada since it went off licence in the UK. After hours of research we found a reputable and inexpensive supplier - so if anyone needs to know I can explain the process we used.

But he is a stubborn, single-minded old boy so we haven't given up yet. The vet we saw in France in July gave him a couple of weeks and he has proved her wrong. ( we were there on our boat and he comes too, obviously).

Thanks again and we'll keep you posted.