I have a 17 year old cat who, of course, is beginning to "fail." She seems to be hungry all the time but only eats a little bit when I feed her. I feed her Purina Mature formula dry food and Fancy Feast cans twice a day but she is losing weight and her sides are beginning to cave in. She seems also to be urinating a lot. I have had other cats who have lived to 19-20 and they all seem to have the caved in stomach in their older years too. My problem is this cat is absolutely petrified of anyone but me and hides whenever anyone comes to the house -- including my sons when they come home, one of them being the one who brought her home from school many years ago.

I fear that taking her to the Vet would actually cause her to have a heart attack. Also, it's been my experience when you take older cats to the Vet and they do aggressive therapy which causes more pain, etc. they just give up and die. So, is there anything I can do to make her eat more -- any particular type of vitamin that I can get at the Pet store? Any special food? She's a very pickey eater -- what cat isn't I guess. I know her time is limited but I'd like to make her as happy and comfortable as I can in her last days.

Honestly, I have only had one cat who was a stray that visited us but when she was sick and would not eat we bought tins of sardines and mixed them in with her canned food we put out for her.

I am very sorry to hear about your cat, sounds like she has a very long, happy life and you care for her greatly. I do agree with you about the vet, if you call around you may be able to find a vet who does house calls, it may cost a little extra but they can examin your cat from home where she is comfortable.

Is her spine bony? That might be a sign of "wasting" which is not true weight loss. If it's "wasting" and not just losing weight she might have cancer of some kind and no amount of food is going to fix that. You might want to ask the vet for a tranquilizer so that you can bring her there. It's very hard to diagnose without blood work and some tests.

Yes, her spine is boney. She also has had like a little wart on the back of her neck for quite some time and I have noticed that it is seeping a little lately. I thought of that being cancer. The suggestion for a tranquilizer is a good one. I just don't want to do anything to her that will make her worse. I had a beautiful black cat who was 17 a couple of years ago who got an ulcer or sore on her behind. After having her glands cleaned out it still didn't go away and then one of the doctors. Finally went in and cut a huge chunk out leaving a large gaping wound. Despite giving her pain pills she groaned whenever she walked and then ended up just giving up, wouldn't eat at all and I had to put her to sleep just to stop her suffering. I don't know if another treatment (antibiotics, treating the wound to begin with) would have helped her but I said I would never do anything drastic to an older cat again. It broke my heart when that happened. She was a huge, loving lap cat and I still mourn her loss. I've also changed vets.

Your cat could have renal disease, or a thyroid issue, both of which can be treated. Susan's idea of getting a tranqulizer for your kitty is a good one... that way, she won't be so upset by her trip to the vet.

Thanks, everybody, for your help. I think I will try to get the tranqilizer for her so I can have her checked over. It's never easy to lose a pet. They're just like family.