Smell your cat’s breath. Does it smell sweet…..like acetone ( nail polish remover )? This is one of the classic signs of diabetes….indicates high levels of sugar in the blood. Also, drinking excessive amounts of water and eating regularly BUT losing weight are also signs of diabetes……which can be controlled with diet & insulin.

I have a cat who was diagnosed with diabetes over 3 years ago, and with care, good diet and insulin, he’s doing fine and has gained back all the weight he lost.

When the vet said he "couldn’t find anything physically wrong with him", did he run any tests…….blood test, etc? He needs a blood "panel" run, now, to see what’s going on inside…….thyroid, diabetes, kidneys, etc…….It really IS worth the money to find out, so he can be treated and not suffer anymore.

As for the diarrhea…….the cat may have worms or a parasite called Coccidia. He needs a fecal test to determine what the cause of the diarrhea really is, so it can be treated properly. Diarrhea is NEVER any fun……….for animals or us………so, please get him tested ASAP.

Hope this helps……….Good luck.

It could however be any number of things and the only way to find out is to have you vet examine the cat, test it, and make a determination of what it could be.

Good luck, but you’re doing the best thing for your cat by taking him to the vet–weight loss, especially in older cats, can be very serious and it sounds like he’s in pain.

It could be a huge number of different things and it’s impossible to guess what might be happening in an online forum.

Look here:
http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/brochures/hyperthyroid.html
at the section: What are the signs of hyperthyroidism?

Try not to freak out so much. Your cat can sense that you’re upset and that’s not going to help at all (especially with the vet visit.) For all you know, it could be something simple and easy to fix just as much as it could be something difficult to deal with. Your cat depends on you to take care of it and that includes being strong, calm, and peaceful. Don’t automatically assume the worst.

When you start feeling overwhelmed, find someplace quiet to just sit and concentrate on breathing slowly and fully for a few minutes until you get your emotions back under control. Be strong for your cat.

And best of luck, I really hope it’s nothing serious.

Renal failure–usually that kills the cat within a week, so you can rule that out at the moment.

Diabetes – which you check with a urinalysis, right there at the office, the vet can find out in 5 minutes if your cat has this. Was a urinalysis done? The fact your cat is drinking a lot more is a huge sign it’s either diabetes or the thyroid. Diabetes is treatable, and once you have your cat regulated it’s only about $12 a month (we had a diabetic cat).

Hyperthyroidism — you test for this with a standard blood test to see how the cat’s internal organs are functioning. Hyperthyroidism is treatable with either pills (tapazole) or the cream in the ear (methamazole) and runs $35 a month.

Kidney failure, also called CRF — TREATABLE, but the longer you wait the less chance of saving the cat. One of ours is CRF and we make sure he drinks more than usual and have him on the right diet.

You say a vet’s bills are no problem, why didn’t you get the cat checked at another vet to get a second opinion? No cat looses that much weight without a reason. The fact so much is gone from him may now indicate that you’ve already passed the threshold of being able to stabalize the problem and treat it. You waited TOO long with something that was not normal.

Tapeworms don’t do this kind of thing. They’re easily tested for with a fecal exam. I’m hoping you did rule this out with a fecal?

Did your vet discuss any of the options with you? Did he say what he ruled out? Did he say what he SPECIFICALLY looked for? If he did not and if he has offered you nothing other than ‘the cat is fine’ with this sigificant weight loss, I’d be turning my back on him and getting to a different clinic and getting the cat checked out there.

A full blood panel needs to be done to check for internal organ function. A urinalysis should be done, it’s a mere $15, just get it. Have the vet take a very close look at the cat’s mouth for infected or broken teeth and potential mouth ulcers. I’d be freaking out over himif it was my cat, and not just trusting one vet on this. No cat looses 10 pounds in a year and doesn’t have something way out of whack inside them.

Do you realize this is considered FELONY ANIMAL NEGLECT? I think I’ll track your IP address and send this admission of animal abuse to your local police. SHAME ON YOU. I surely hope karma comes back at you tenfold for this neglect.