Expert: Charlotte Sherrell, DVM - 8/20/2008

Question
HI there,
My long haired female cat - Shadow; is spayed and approx 2-3yrs of age. (We adopted her from a shelter!)
She has been vaccinated against rhinotracheitis, calici, panleucopenia and rabies. Admittedly her vaccinations are a few months overdue.. However, she has always had an extremely vocal voice, especially around the kitchen and also a HUGE appetite though she is not overweight.

Recently we have noticed that she has been drinking more water than normal though not what I would call excessive and she has lost her voice. I have to admit it is part blessing!!

Whilst her behaviour and everything else seems mostly normal (loss of voice aside) in the last 2 days when she has been on my lap I have noticed her coat smells of urine, which as you can imagine is not very pleasant. She also seems to have lost a bit of weight though still eating as much as she can possibly get. She has been vomiting a little bit more than usual but it is usually just fluid and hair which she has a lot of! Her behaviour otherwise hasn't changed at all.

I am wondering if you may have any suggestion as to what the problem could be?

Answer
Pippa -

You should have your cat examined by a veterinarian.  Decreases in appetite are red flags that indicate that she needs to go see a doctor. The fact that she is not grooming herself also indicates that she should see a doctor.  She may be diabetic or she may have a bladder infection.

Best Regards,

Charlotte Sherrell, DVM