? How to help Tyler gain weight ?

Afternoon from a warm and sunny autumnal New Zealand.
I thought I would ask here as I've come to a block on what to try next.

My old cat Ty is losing weight or maybe it is that he is not gaining weight after his pancreatitis bout. He should be really at 5kg / 5.3kg but currently remains around 4.8kg & one can see from looking at him that is just too low . Ideally if I could find a way to help him gain weight it would be in muscle mass rather than pot belly fat of course.

I need to be careful because of his CKD. Also that he had that very prolonged bout of diarrhea which neither of us wish to revisit. Then one needs to think about the carbs v calories.

I have asked around assorted vet practices when picking up food but all say the same thing . Dry kibble. Meh! I'd even consider it as part of a diet for a while but it seems most is low quality protein and very high carb.

At present he has a right odd mix of foods.
Iams grain free - watching that in case of poop-athon
Royal Canin renal and Royal Canin digestible pouches - he likes those so it helps with pills /potions etc.
Wellness Duo turkey or chicken to try out.
Wellness chicken
Cooked egg white : Pumpkin: A little poached chicken.

Raw seems to give him loose stools for some reason.

Ty is eating very well & a good amount.

Any ideas please? I am concerned for his very bony self.

I do realise there may be some other underlying reason for this weight lose given his age and health issues but it is unlikely there will be much intervention in the event of there being a sleeping krakon.

 

a high protein low carb dry kibble is how i put all the weight back on my cat but, if dry food like that is not an option where you are than i would suggest making him a low carb homemade cooked food. 5lbs of cooked ground chuck beef with a can of pumpkin and a complete cat supplement like TCfeline or whatever brand is available to you is about 230-240 calories per 4oz and around 2-3% carb max. what i fed my two underweight newly young ones who didn't get dry food and it put weight on them quickly. for your kitty, you would add Epakitin powder to this cooked food for his ckd..

 

I supplement the Fancy Feast meals with chicken. All 3 kittehs love it. I used to cut off the fat before cooking. Now I leave it in, and helps with the broth.

For our kittehs, the chicken is their ultimate food. I cook it in the oven in a pan with a little water. Then it makes its own juice. As soon as it starts to warm up, the cats don't leave me alone until some of the chicken exits the oven and lands in some kitteh bowls. Anyhow, I think some fatty chicken, or some with skin would be a good weight increaser.

But I have always been so jealous - that Ty has lived to be 19.5 years. That is really just amazing to me to have him for so long. Some health problems are probably there with age.

 

Thanks @Sylvie It is very much appreciated.

I am not sure that I can get any of the 'complete cat supplements' here in NZ. I think they cannot get this in australia either. If one orders from overseas it will likely be destroyed or held up for aeons. No canned pumpkin either . I buy actual pumpkin, bake it and then freeze portions. I haven't found a dry kibble that has quality protein , low carb and also low phos.

I did try Ty on some cooked hoggit ( older lamb) but it didn't go down too well. I could try a little chuck beef. I've also tried some of the wet kitten food .

Perhaps I should try doing that with the chicken @JeffJ . Not poach the chicken but bake it with some skin. He could go for that.

....and Jeff......

Ty is just a couple of months from his 20th which I hope he makes. I honestly believe much is down to his genes. I know his sister only passed away late last year.

 

Those are some great genes that Tyler and his sister have inherited. You are real lucky.

When I was a "kid", 20 years old, one of the older "40 years old" ladies at work had a 21 year old cat. I wasn't into cats then (yeah, sad). Anyhow, she used to tell us how much time she spent keeping the kitteh going - like helping it into the litter box, etc. I didn't get it at the time. Now I'm an evolved cat Dad and my life is richer for it.

 

I have always heard that Hi-Tor Neo is good for weight gain but don't know whether it's really the case, or even if it's available in NZ. When I got my little Bengal girl she was desperately underweight, and a breeder recommended a powdered fat supplement, that they give kittens and breeding moms, for her; I can try and find the name of it if you're interested.

Squallie always has that "old stray" kind of look, now. He's lost a lot of muscle mass in the past couple of years, especially in his hindquarters. I weigh him a lot because I'm always concerned that he's losing weight (he's about 19 1/2, too). Prayers for no sleeping krakons, for any of our elderly loves!

 

I wish there was a good food for kidneys, carbs, & vitamins our cats need. Especially the elderly & ones having trouble gaining. I cooked Baby chicken in the oven when she had pancreatitis & she loved it. Finally got her to eat something.
(Still having some poo problems though) now I cook chicken each week for her & I together...
Worth a try with Tyler.

 

Love this!