My cat won't eat wet food after gastric surgery, what can I do?

I think a big factor missing in this question is why did she get stitches. I would say that surgery is painful and it is possible the anesthesia or pain is causing her to not want to eat. I would call your vet and make sure pain was addressed properly and discuss her not eating since they know what surgery was completed. I would recommend trying to warm up some wet cat food to help stimulate her eating. Also can food has more water that can hydrate her. I would bring the food and water bowls close to her so she does not have to move very far to go get them. hope that helps

There is a possibility that she may have soft stool for the rest of her life, but not diarrhea. This will depend on where the piece of intestine was resected. This is usually no problem. As for diet, I would always recommend a good quality canned kitten food, and later as an adult, a good quality canned cat food. That is one sweet kitty. Thanks for taking such good care of her!

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!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Kent. I am sorry to hear that he is still not eating after his surgery. Is his pain well controlled? Being painful after surgery is a big reason why a cat will refuse food. Perhaps ask your veterinarian to prescribe an additional pain medication. Do not give any over-the-counter pain medications as these can be toxic to cats. Also make sure his incision site is clean and there is no pain, redness, discharge or swelling that could possibly indicate an infection. I hope this information helps!

You should let your vet know that he is not eating. Your vet can prescribe pain medications and/or an appetite stimulant to help get him eating again. Offer him a variety of canned food and see if he will eat something.

I hope Jones is feeling much better. String and cats just don’t mix, do they? In my experience, it has been long enough to start your regular food without any problem. You may experience some diarrhea due to a sudden dietary change again, however. But I will say that I would make absolutely certain with your regular veterinarian that performed the surgery, that this would be OK to do so before actually switching back to your regular food. I hope I have helped you. Thank you very much for your question.

You may want to try mixing a little bit of his old food in with the new food to gradually transition him to the new food. If he still doesn’t want to eat it you could ask your vet if there are any other foods to try for his condition.