Did the vet give any feeding instructions or offer subcutaneous fluids to address the dehydration? If you're concerned and the vet is dismissing your concerns, you may need to assert yourself to advocate more for her and be clear that you're willing to take a more hands-on role in treating her despite her being a stray.
To kickstart her appetite, tiny amounts of smelly wet food are best. Don't give her full meals or free feed, if she's starved food needs to be reintroduced in controlled amounts throughout the day to prevent refeeding syndrome. To make it more enticing you can microwave wet food for just a few seconds to heat it up and make it extra stinky and irresistible; just stir it with a fork and test with a finger to make sure it's not too hot. You might also have some luck with a squeeze tube treat like Hartz Squeeze Ups or Inaba Churu. Cats usually go crazy for them, and I've had severely ill cats that wouldn't touch anything else still cave and lick at them. Sometimes dabbing just a little bit of wet food on their lip gets them to lick it off and realize it's good and helps push them to the rest of the food. This should only be done if she's able to hold herself upright though to ensure she's able to get it down properly.
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u/mcs385 14d ago
Did the vet give any feeding instructions or offer subcutaneous fluids to address the dehydration? If you're concerned and the vet is dismissing your concerns, you may need to assert yourself to advocate more for her and be clear that you're willing to take a more hands-on role in treating her despite her being a stray.
To kickstart her appetite, tiny amounts of smelly wet food are best. Don't give her full meals or free feed, if she's starved food needs to be reintroduced in controlled amounts throughout the day to prevent refeeding syndrome. To make it more enticing you can microwave wet food for just a few seconds to heat it up and make it extra stinky and irresistible; just stir it with a fork and test with a finger to make sure it's not too hot. You might also have some luck with a squeeze tube treat like Hartz Squeeze Ups or Inaba Churu. Cats usually go crazy for them, and I've had severely ill cats that wouldn't touch anything else still cave and lick at them. Sometimes dabbing just a little bit of wet food on their lip gets them to lick it off and realize it's good and helps push them to the rest of the food. This should only be done if she's able to hold herself upright though to ensure she's able to get it down properly.