Take her to the vet anyway. "IF" nothing is wrong, the vet can prescribe an appetite stimulant like Periactin (Ciproheptadine is the generic). It's an ant-histamine that also acts like an appetite stimulant. Many vets use it. In people medicine it's primarily used for babies & elderly to stimulate their appetite.

I would suggest to get it compounded by a pharmacy, so you can just give your kitty a tiny squirt into the mouth, instead of the huge people dose. The pharmacy can make it chicken or tuna flavored...A good pharmacy can compound it so its good for 6 months. Keep it refrigerated, so you can have it on hand, just in case. It's NOT expensive.

Your vet should know of an enexpensive pharmacy that compounds. I believe in having most meds compounded (changed from a pill form into a concentrated liqiuid, or an injectable for small dogs or kitties who are difficult to pill), because it's less stressful for the pets and the owners, esp. when they're on meds for most of their lives and become difficult to pill.

I've been there with my old dog ;)

Not eating and obvious change of behavior (not playing, especially not grooming) are the first signs of sickness. Go to the vet to make sure she's ok.

Do you think maybe she is grieving the loss of someone at the other house? Is it possible she is missing your dad or another animal at his house? Anybody at the old house that she was very close to?

It can be dangerous for cats not to eat, though it sounds like she's at least nibbling. Taking her to a vet would probably be a good idea. Maybe she is sick and the timing of the move is just a coincidence.

Not eating or a decreased appetite IS an obvious clinical sign that needs to be addressed immediately. There are many causes of decreased appetite, and while stress is certainly one of them, the fact that she's moved without problems in the past is cause for concern. At the least, and appetite stimulant like Laurie mentioned can be used. But *something* is causing her to not eat as she should, and that something could be serious. She needs to see a vet.

A 5 year old cat moved 3 times, moving from parents to boyfriends- I take it that you are going through the young adult time and (I'm guessing) cat is de clawed,out of ignorance as well. If not de clawed- great, you DO NOT want to do it.

Iams is not a good brand of pet food there's even a site called www.Iamscruelty.com

Cats for-runners unlike dogs don't move around as much, wildcats never moved more then 5 or 6 miles in a day outside of their living space ,while wolves often make a habit of 30 miles a day.

I would if this is your last move take things slowly and confine her to a room for a few days, this will allow her to unwind and get used to yet another strange environment.

If you are gong to be moving a lot more, I would re home the cat into a more stable living enviornment and get a dog- dogs are better about new things-new people, new pets and new lifestyles.

Foods to try for both cats and dogs, Innova EVO, Ziwi peak,Instincts,Orijen.

Wow, how incredibly rude and judgmental.

Assumptions are terrible things.

And, Mwhitehead, good on your for taking your cat with you when you move - too many animals are in shelters and on the streets because people DON'T take them when they move.

Responsible owners give their pets forever homes, regardless of circumstances.

Hope your kitty is doing okay!!

I'm just assuming, and sorry if its rude but its fact.

Cats don't handle changes well, we had to PTS Nina one of Graces-my moms cats because of health issues and that pus her already fussy temperment was ruined by tramatic change led to it.-5 hour drive from up north in car with a second cat with no carriers- we didn't have one with at the time.. At one point we had three dogs none on heart worm preventive and all on poor diet, one of which was practically getting ready to die from old age., one, younger dog was re homed, older dog was pts. Cat (Nina) started pooing all over the rug flooring and was found to have advancing cancer from poor diet- nothing I could have done she wasn't my cat. We now have one dog- last of the three, who hasn't been on heart worm preventive for over a year now because mom refuses to test dog for heart worm because up north vet said testing should not happen right before you give heart worm pills, none of the vets in our area will give heart worm meds to us without testing, so dog isn't going to be getting that, I buy food out of my money for all our pets.

Responsible owners KNOW when they cannot/ or should have not taken on pets with the idea of taking them with because they are- Moving to a group home that probably de claws cats/ thereby posing risks for both humans and cats, had a woman at work get a cat bite from a group homes stupidity/ cannot afford proper food and vet care, has aging or disability that effects longevity or quality of life for cat or dog as well as human.

These responsible people are getting rarer and rarer- sad to say.

I didn't mean to upset you Mwhitehead, I just hope all is going well for your cat.

Yeah. Cat's don't get cancer from poor food. They don't get old from poor food, either. And it is of course a great idea to take your cat with you when you move.

However, heartworm can occur from not giving heartworm prevention medicine. Especially with dogs. Heartworm prevention is money-better-spent than expensive food.

i have enough money/income now for both actually, Mom doesn't allow me to buy heart worm meds because a vet where she had lived previously told her she doesn't need testing that she should just get the treatment, and sense no vet here can just give us the meds without testing first it isn't going to happen. Nothing I can do about it.. Shadows not my dog.

Actually yes you can get cancer from eating a poor diet its been proven... eat alot of red meat, chew curtain gums and drink beer and your up for cancer.

You could go two different directions with this. 1. Confine your baby in a room to lessen the trauma and allow her to collect herself. If she's eating alittle, better is good, than not at all. Some cats adjust differently with each move. I have to give you credit, I've fostered enough older cats that don't get to make the move with the owner. 2. Take her to the vet just to be sure. Better to be safe than sorry.

I didn't mean to be hard, I hope all goes well... but Cats aren't my first choice for people who move a lot or value things like sofas/rugs/ect.

good luck.

There's another thread similar to this but I'll post the response here also:

My cat was not eating or drinking, not peeing, or having bowel movements. She was throwing up green foamy stuff & gagging at the smell of wet food. She was hiding under the bed, not wanting to come out & very lethargic. This went on for 5 days when I finally took her to the vet. The vet only did a physical and told me he needed to do a billion tests to find out what was wrong & it would come out to be $356. I didn't have that money so I just got fluids subcutaneously injected. They said it might help with her appetite. They gave me all the possible causes that it could be which have been listed on this site already.

That night I gave her 10ml of water via a syringe every 2 hours 3 times. I blocked her way of getting under the bed. I added a scoop of her dry food into a cup of water & in the morning it was soggy enough for me to mush into a paste. When I added water I got it thru the syringe. I gave her 5 ml of the food mush the next morning along with 10 ml of water before I went to work. There are videos on youtube that show you how to feed the cat. It took me about 15 minutes.

While I was at work my mom gave my cat 10 ml of water every two hours & 5 ml of olive oil every 2 hrs. Her friend has a cat that gets into everything & often has blockages & she uses olive oil for about a week and it helps her pass it. When I got home from work I gave the cat 10 ml water & tried with the food. Later on she ate a bit on her own and was drinking on her own.

Today, I went to a clinic that my mom found online (Women's Humane Society) and they were cheap compared to all other local places. I told them the symptoms and based on that the vet did an xray. They saw that she was very constipated which has been causing her enough discomfort to now eat. They gave her an enema & stool softener & she was passing stool for about 20 minutes. The vet prescribed stool softener, a/d cat food (which, of course, she happily ate infront of the vet after I said she wasn't eating), & an appetite stimulant. She's not drinking water on her own but still not eating. I'm sure her tummy just hurts from the enema. He told me I MUST have her eat a can of food a day. He used a popsicle stick and smeared it on the roof of her mouth to feed her. It was $205 total. (30 physical, 120 xray, the rest was for the Rx)

Good luck to everyone. 24-48 without eating isn't a concern for vets. Don't let the vets fool you into a million tests, insist on just fluids & an xray. Make sure you search around for a place that provides great care & is inexpensive like the place I went.