My cat is injured and can't swallow. When will he eat on his own?

You can ask your vet about putting in an esophageal tube. This is a little operation where the vet cuts a tiny hole into the skin and esophagus and inserts a feeding tube the will be sewn to the skin. This will make feeding her so much easier and it can stay in for many weeks until she starts eating by herself. So you would just have to syringe her food into the tube and flush it clean afterwards with some water. This is far less stressful than trying to force feed her or giving her tablets she does not want. At the end of the day it will be much cheaper than having her hospitalized until she eats by herself and also far less stressful. If your vet cannot place a tube, then any larger specialty hospital can do it in no time. Many cats have had a tube after going through serious illness and eventually started eating again and live a happy life afterwards.

I am so sorry to hear about your cat, that sounds awful. I would discuss additional treatment options with your vet. It sounds like he may need a feeding tube placed. There are different types of feeding tubes, some can be placed with a very minor surgical procedure through the side of the neck into the esophagus, allowing easy feeding while bypassing the oral cavity/throat. It sounds like he may also need a sedated exam to look in his throat/oral cavity and do imaging such as x-ray or ultrasound to determine what is causing this. I don't think the pain is causing the color changes but likely some physical abnormality.

I would feed her soft canned food until you are able to get her evaluated by your veterinarian. She could have an injury, an abscess, or even a tumor that could be inhibiting her swallowing. Watch her breathing closely as it is possible that what is inhibiting the swallowing may progress to inhibiting breathing. Best of luck and I hope she improves soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

Oh my goodness! Poor guy! He does need nutrition. What was your vet's recommendation for feeding him? Its hard to assess the risk of infection without knowing what the area looks like more specifically. Definitely offer him water. Is he on antibiotics? If he is on antibiotics, offer him a liquid diet; you can soak cat food in water, mash it up with a fork and let him lap it up. Sometimes a temporary feeding tube is needed to help patient's recover from significant oral injury. Regarding the IV, My understanding from the information you gave is that he was on IV fluids during the surgery, but he went home after surgery. The IV fluids will help him maintain hydration for the time that he's getting them, but not much beyond that, so he does need to be offered water and if he's unable to drink it you need to take him to a vet and either discuss subcutaneous fluids (fluids you can give under the skin at home) https://icatcare.org/advice/cat-care/how-give-subcutaneous-fluids-your-cat or possibly a feeding tube, as subcutaneous fluids don't provide nutrition (calories, fat, carbohydrates), only hydration and electrolytes. IV fluids also do not provide nutrition. Thank you for asking PetCoach!

Oh no that is awful! The cat will have to be sedated to remove the tongue and the tongue may need stitches to close the hole. The tongue is an amazing organ and actually heals quite quickly, so I expect it would be a great prognosis. This will be extremely painful to the cat and it's serious he can't eat or drink. This is a medical emergency and he has to see a vet now. Please take him into an ER vet clinic; if there isn't one in your area, there will be a vet on call for emergencies. The information to reach that vet is found on a clinic's answering machine or website. Best of luck.

Without knowing the course of his illness, test results, etc. it is difficult to give accurate advice. It does sound serious enough that your cat likely needs a feeding tube surgically placed so that you can give him the necessary amount of food each day. It is quite difficult to force feed a cat who is sick and doesn't want to eat. The feeding tube is often needed in these situations. You should discuss this option with your veterinarian and inquire about having it done asap. It may also be necessary that your cat remain hospitalized for more intense supportive care including IV fluids. Please consult with his doctor right away.

This wound does look very uncomfortable and ideally a feeding tube and repeat surgery to remove further dead tissue would provide room for healing. Alternatively, oral antibiotics, medical grade honey on the wound and feeding a blended, high calorie soft food such as royal canin recovery may provide enough relief for him to heal it over time but will not work if he is unable to swallow either from pain or swelling in which case euthanasia is recommended