Page 309 - Problem-Based Feline Medicine

PART 6

Cat with weight loss or chronic

illness

17. The cat with weight loss and a good

appetite

Danièlle Gunn-Moore and James B Miller

KEY SIGNS
● Thin cat eating well.
● Weight loss and a good appetite.

MECHANISM?
● Weight loss with a good appetite occurs when the cat is unable to gain sufficient nutrition from
its diet.

WHERE?
● Diseases involving many body systems can lead to weight loss with a good appetite.
WHAT?
● In older cats the most common causes of weight loss with a good appetite are hyperthyroidism,
diabetes mellitus and inflammatory bowel disease. In younger cats, inflammatory bowel dis-
ease and intestinal parasites are the most common causes.

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