posted 05-18-2003 11:39 PM         

What kind of tests were done? I recently lost my 14 year old cat Mouser from a range of complications from hyperthyriodism, and he grinded his teeth for the last year of his life.

One vet said they grind their teeth when they start loseing such a lot of weight, but the other vets that saw him were stumped. His last vet wanted to do x-rays on Mouser's jaws but Mouse was in no condition at that stage for the procedure.

I suggest get full blood tests, FIV test, and x-ray those jaws. Expensive I know, but at 10 your cat may have years left. With Mouser the teeth grinding was a red herring that masked his true illness till it was too late. We saw 10 vets and had his teeth cleaned twice before we found a vet willing to spend my money on tests. If it had been done sooner, then I would have been able to save my best friend as his illness is easy to treat.

As for helping him eat, try everything you can find. Try heating it up a little as his teeth maybe painful. Check his hydration level by pulling his skin up in a pinch test. If the skin falls back straight away then hes ok, if it takes time then he is dehydrated and won't eat anyway. You will need to force water into his mouth with a syringe (there is a gap between the teeth on the side of his mouth), but if his hydration is bad take him to the vet immediatly.