I had an older cat who almost stopped eating and besides the Science Diet A/D canned she loved the Fancy Feast fish flavors. She, too, wouldn't eat the trout. Good luck with Mickey.

Try the Fancy Feast "Liver and chicken". Our cats all like that. Have you tried "real" tuna or salmon?

Our kitty likes FF as well--refuses to eat anything else at all--but it has to be the kinds with gravy. There has been some conversation on Pets Forum that after cats start FF, the won't eat anything else.

My cats are addicted to FF, too, but they also will only eat certain types. Winners are the salmon, tuna, classic beef feast, and chunky chicken feast. It is worth buying all of them and trying them one by one. Each cat seems to have their own tastes.

Could you let him out of the bathroom to get some exercise? I also think he's depressed. My cat had to wear one of those collars once and I took it off of him when I was home and just kept my eye on him. When he wore the collar he just sat or laid still because he hated moving with it. He would bang it into stuff and he couldn't see anything. I say let him out of the bathroom and take off that collar when you are home. If he's depressed he could decline into failure to thrive.

Good Luck, Susan.

Boiled chicken always works for me. Once they get their appetite back, then I switch to other things.

Does he have any toys to play with? Can you give him a box (a big one) with some catnip sprinkled in that he can play in?

can you put the other cat in the bathroom for several hours and let mickey out to wander the house when you are home. I would be REALLY depressed too, if I were him. Have you tried one of the soft collars?

I have found that when either of my two Maine coon cats will not eat out of their bowl and are sick, hospitalized, or depressed, they will eat their dry food out of hand.

When my male cat recently had emergency surgery and was not progressing due to not eating, I was surprised that neither the vet, nor his assistants had thought of this.

Thank you for all the advice! I just tried feeding him dry food by hand, and he was not at all interested. BUT when I put some cat treats on the floor he got up and went for them.

I can see that I'm going to have to do something about getting him out of there, if just for brief periods. It's complicated because he's always been such a fearful cat, and since he's unfamiliar with this house I don't know what he'll do. It would be nice if I could let him loose in my bedroom, but it's almost certain he'd run under the bed, and then I'd be stuck.

I think I have two choices. One is to let him out downstairs when Wolfy (the dog) is out by himself and the other cats are upstairs with the door closed. If I do this, I MUST remember to also close the basement stairs door, as it would not be good for him to hide down there. I think as long as I follow him around, he ought to be okay downstairs. If he gets under the sofa, I can just move it.

The other possibility is to take him over to his old home in the barn for short periods, again under my watchful eye.

I love the idea of the box--why didn't I think of it? I gave him catnip this morning, which he loves, and hoped it would give him the munchies. :-)

Thank you again for the good advice.

Well, I took Mickey for a "walk" (I carried him) to the front door this afternoon so we could do some bird watching. The other animals were out of sight, but Mickey was nothing but scared. He didn't even want to look at the birds. He kept swallowing nervously, and when we walked back, as soon as I opened the bathroom door he tried to leap out of my arms to get back into familiar territory. He does this every time I take him out of the bathroom to soak his leg, too.

So I don't think letting him loose in the house is in the cards. However, I think I know what I need to do.

I always remove his collar when I pet him on my lap. This evening after petting him I put him on the floor--still without the collar. I put his food dish in front of him, and he ate some. Then he sat down away from his bed and began grooming himself, purring heavily the whole time.

I think I need to spend more time in the bathroom with Mickey so that he can go for longer periods with the collar off. Unfortunately, it's a small room, and the toilet is not exactly comfy to sit on. Maybe I'll bring a cushion and a book, or even my rug hooking. And maybe it's time to try the cayenne pepper and water the vet suggested I might want to paint on and around the wound to keep him from licking it.

I hope Mickey is all better before long. Poor guy.

Are you certain about the cayenne pepper? It seems it would burn his skin.

Alisande, it's good to hear that Mickey's slowly improving. I had a cat that was old (born 1992) and sick with multiple organ failure. I "kept her alive" with her favorite Fancy Feasts, the "sliced" varieties "with gravy". She finally passed last June, after two years of eating only Fancy Feasts. The problem is, I have a younger cat who became used to FF also, and now vocally loudly demands them, everey morning between 4 and 5. LOL. Life goes on.

I'd be getting a different vet if they told me to put cayenne pepper around a wound on an animal. That's unbelievable.

Although you don't continue in past postings, nobody knows the history without searching. So at this point it's just a guess and going with whatever you say now. So who knows.

My one cat was given a high fat, weight gain food from the vet. Although I've said it before, I'd still find a competent vet and work with them. The guy apparently needs calories and nutrition, not just bulk.

I definitely feel sorry for the little guy. Sounds like he definitely needs companionship, proper care and proper nutrition.

Good luck to the little guy.

She didn't exactly say to put cayenne pepper on him; she suggested a solution of cayenne in water. I don't think this would be a problem if the skin isn't broken, but I haven't tested the theory yet.

The history, very briefly, is that Mickey received a deep wound on his leg, probably a rat bite, in mid-November. He has had four visits to one vet and one visit to another. He's been on four series of antibiotics. He's 15 years old, very healthy until now. Beginning November 23 I've been soaking his leg in Epsom salts, starting at 4x/day. We're now down to 1x. Because it was badly infected for a long time, for weeks I changed his bed daily. I still maintain sanitary procedures in the bathroom.

He was healing very well until I made the mistake of removing his collar a couple of weeks ago. Within less than a half-hour he had done a fair amount of damage by licking the wound.

Today I brought cushions and a book into the bathroom and settled in for a while. I took Mickey's collar off and gave him a dish of Fancy Feast. He ate some, purring, and then sat down to groom himself, still purring. I kept looking up from my book to check him, and soon found him licking the wound. I put him on my lap and petted him, giving up and putting the collar back on when my back and hip got too sore. The bathroom is not a comfy place, and I don't have the benefit of Mickey's soft bed.

I'm thinking it's time to go back to the second-opinion vet for another consultation.

I feel sorry for Mickey, too, Cynic. Yes, he does need companionship, and he needs to stop losing weight. But I really hope you're not suggesting that I haven't given him proper care. This has been a long haul for Mickey, and for me, too. At every step of the way I've asked myself, my vets, and the good people of this forum if there's anything else I could be doing.

At his age, Mickey could go any time, from any cause. I sure hope it isn't from this wound, but whatever the reason, I want the comfort of knowing that when he was so terribly hurt, I did everything possible for him.

I've added vegetable oil (ingredient list said "soy") to canned food, I've used Nutrical, I've warmed water in the microwave & stirred it into canned food to warm it & to release the aroma, I've tried baby food, chicken & rice, canned sardines in oil, you name it.

Years ago, a neighbor brought me some shark to grill;
my elderly cat went wild & grabbed the raw chunks out of my hands.

I do think that he needs to get out of that bathroom;

a nurse friend told me that nobody, no matter how sick, stays in Intensive Care any longer than absolutely necessary, as they get detached from reality & go downhill.

We need to think of something else. What about getting a dog sweater for him to wear so he can't have contact with the wound? LOL-any chance he would tolerate that?....probably not. Maybe ask the vet about a less intrusive collar.

Gosh, Alisande, you have gone well above and beyond what many people would do! I really think there's nothing else that can be done, apart from what you're doing now. Really, after reading the whole post, how could anyone question what you have done for that kitty?? Sorry, Cynic, but I don't think that was fair.

What about a nice full fat meat broth...over a few bits of dry food and cooked meat? something to start giving him some richness to his meals??

And I'd be rubbing Virgin Coconut Oil onto his scab. It won't hurt him to lick it either. No harm...it will help the wound heal and soften that darn itchy scab a bit.

Gosh, Alisande, you have gone well above and beyond what many people would do! I agree completely!!

Many people I know would have just left the cat to fend for itself, they wouldn't have brought the cat into the house at all and certainly not have spent hours soaking a 15 year old cat's leg. I understand too about keeping him confined to the bathroom.. maybe some who have responded didn't read the post in which you said Mickey was fearful when brought out of the bathroom.
Keep up the good work ((Alisande)).

Taking him to his home in the barn is a good idea;
I've heard, & I can believe, that cats are more attached to places than to people.

I missed the thing about cayenne pepper;
as a former thumb-sucker whose mother tied her thumb with a pepper sauce-soaked rag (didn't "break" me of the habit, just made me miserable & insecure & took away my ability to comfort myself) , I would never use pepper or anything like it.

alisande, I think you are doing a wonderful job with Mickey - your patience & caring are examples for us. I'm glad he perked up while you were in with him. Maybe a few, but shorter, times a day would help him?

A remark of yours: "he spread so much of it around the floor" made me wonder if there could be something wrong with his mouth that could cause him not want to eat, a bad tooth, tumor, etc. Has the vet checked his mouth?

The vet did check his mouth, and she said it looks fine--in fact, his teeth look better than most cats his age.

Weight loss and eating less were the first indications I had that something was wrong, before I noticed the wound on his leg. Because Mickey was so elusive, he had the wound for some time before I saw it.

The wound looks worse than it did a few days ago. I'm calling the vet--probably the one that has seen him the most--first thing tomorrow. I'm guessing we need to get him back on antibiotics and the DMSO. I ran out of both a couple of weeks ago. Because he was healing so well at that time, the vet felt I didn't need to replenish. But the wound, and his eating, have been backsliding. Plus he sneezed a couple of times today. I've gone back to soaking more often again. Fortunately, I had a spare 6-lb. bag of Epsom salts in the house.

But we had a nice time together this morning. I took his collar off and brushed and petted him, and then he ate--more than he has been, I think. I let him remain collarless while he groomed, but put it back on at the first clue that he was going to lick his injury. I'm about to mix up some food and go back in and try the same routine again.

Thanks for all your encouragement and support, everyone!

Ohh, I am sorry he is doing worse than before, I hope the other vet can help. You are a wonderful caretaker for him, he is very lucky to have you. He does sound like a tough cat, so with any luck, he just might bounce back again and be okay.

I'm so sorry Susan. You must be feeling burned out at this point.

You are the best thing that could have EVER happened to Mickey, Susan, and don't you dare ever second guess yourself about that.

When we had a cat wander in and our other cat didn't tolerate him, we gave him Woody's gun room to live in. He could go outside or come in to be warm or cool, depending on the season. We always felt so sorry for Roughy, though, because he wanted to be with us. So we put a loveseat in there and a TV and every night about 7 PM we went downstairs to spend a couple of hours with him. He loved it. He went thru all sorts of things, spindle-cell carcinoma next to his eye, thyroid problems, etc. Once Tess was gone, we moved him into the house with us but he was never really comfy up here. I think he was just used to his old room.

Maybe Mickey needs some nominal exercise.... how about letting him wander a few rooms for an hour or two? And they all love a good box, with a cat toy inside it and a blankie over the top!

Favorite FF at our house- Gourmet Salmon and Shrimp in the very dark green can and Fish and Shrimp in the bright blue can. Ours dislike the sliced and strew it around everywhere, too.

Good luck with Mickey, I'm sure you'll get him back on track with another round of antibiotics and DMSO.

You might try using neosporin on the wound instead of the DMSO. I've doctered many cats with bite wounds using this. Just make sure to get the cream NOT the ointment (which is greasy). The neosporin will not hurt the cat if he licks at it.

((((((((((Susan and Mickey)))))))))))))))))

You might want to try honey on the wound. There are lots of studies (see link) that prove honey is excellent for healing.

Here is a link that might be useful: Honey research

My in-laws had a pack of hound dogs that they used for coon hunting. The dogs were always getting scratches and wounds. I remember the dogs licking the wounded areas a lot.

No one ever paid them much attention and they got well. I am not saying this was good, just wondering if there is somehing in the saliva that aids healing.

I guess there's a difference between cats and dogs when it comes to licking. Dogs' mouths are supposed to be pretty clean, but cats' mouths most definitely are not. Both vets stated that a cat can do a lot of damage to a wound or incision.

Lydia, that article presents compelling evidence for using honey on a bandaged wound. I'd heard that about honey, but never stated in a scientific manner. When I got to the part about the animal research, though, I could only read so far. They inflicted burns on those animals to observe the effect of honey. I know, I know . . . science.

But I would consider the honey option on Mickey if I weren't soaking his leg, or if a bandage becomes necessary. Thanks!

I have Neosporin, but it's the ointment.

I'm thinking I might take Mickey over to his old rooms in the barn and watch him there for a while. The rooms have been vastly improved since he left--I hope he recognizes them! My son put in new floors and painted all the walls and cabinets. Plus he closed up any holes where a rodent might have gotten in. The place has always been heated, but it seems cozier now, probably because of the holes being filled.

I think its probably normal to have ups and downs with that type of wound. I know you will stay on top of things. Maybe he would like a big paper grocery bag to explore. Let us know how the visit to the barn goes.

I bet the raspiness of the cat's tongue has a lot to do with damaging the healing wound.

Keep your chin up, Susan, you're doing great.

You can use the neosporin ointment. Since you've taken the cat to the vet, I'm assuming they shaved around the wound area. Does it have stitches or is it just an open wound? I would use peroxide and clean the wound then cover with the neosporin. You should see a marked improvement within a couple of days.

Pure peroxide is actually damaging to a wound. It burns the delicate tissue. If you use peroxide you are supposed to dilute it. I think 1/2 peroxide and 1/2 saline solution.

The wound was originally deep, especially in the center, with tendons ripped. The vet shaved it and trimmed away the ends of the tendons weeks ago.

At its best, which was a couple of weeks ago, the deepest part was covered by a neat scab, and the surrounding skin was pink and looked healthy. Now the scab is hairy (I don't know if that's at all significant), and looks like it might be loosening at one edge, and the surrounding skin is red and looks irritated. I hope it's not infected, but that's a possibility.

I was told not to use peroxide because it can damage tender tissue. In Mickey's first week in the bathroom, he was on an antibiotic, but the only other treatment I was told to do was to wash the wound daily with an antibacterial soap. During that week I watched the wound grow more and more infected, to the point where by the weekend it smelled terrible. Unable to get to the vet until Monday, I used Neosporin on it but didn't see any improvement. I don't think I remembered to ask the vet her opinion of the ointment, but I've always had good results using it on me.