Hey there, so I have a 3 year old bengal male, and up until the last few months has always been happy and healthy. About 6 months ago, he went off his dry food. I thought nothing of it at the time, as he was still eating his wet food, which is all raw food so no yucky additives. He would still occasionally eat his dry food, but that began to be less and less. Then around 3 months ago he began to go off his food altogether, and loosing weight, and I really began to worry. I took him to the vet, and they examined him, and it bagan to get a bit strange. They thought his liver to be enlarged and slightly hardened when they felt for it, but his bloods came back normal. They scanned his liver for anything unusual, and although it still looked quite large, there were no abnormalities. So they decided the liver wasn't a problem, and put him on antibiotics, and sent me home to see how he would go. Within ours of receiving the first antibiotics, his appetite came back, and he put on almost half a kg in 2 weeks, and was looking sleek and lovely again. But unfortunately, about a week after his antibiotics ended, he began to go off his food again. So again I went to the vets, and this time they put him under and did a thorough check , looked down his throat and xrayed his chest, did his bloods again, and even took some fluid from his liver, which they still thought felt enlarged and hardened, but once again, everything came back normal. They have tried steroids, laxatives and pain killers, none of which made the slightest difference, a longer course of antibiotics, which worked while he was on them, but now he is off his food again. I don't know what to do, we have spent so much money with no result, any help would be much appreciated!

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Dallas, TX USA
Diesel - snow Bengal born 09/01/2013 adopted Feb 2014
Tuck, Chloe, Buddy, Lewis & Tia - rescue kitties
Clyde, Bleu & Coal - Great Danes

I am so very sorry to hear your baby is sick! One important thing all cat owners need to be aware of is that if your cat does not eat for 48 to 72 hours, things get bad with the liver.

"Feline hepatic lipidosis, also known as feline fatty liver syndrome, is one of the most common forms of liver disease of cats.[1] The disease officially has no known cause, though obesity is known to increase the risk. The disease begins when the cat stops eating from a loss of appetite, forcing the liver to convert body fat into usable energy. If this process continues for too long, fat builds up in the cells of the liver, and the disease has officially onset. Prognosis varies depending on the stage of the disease, with both a high recovery and mortality rate at different stages. The disease is reversible through intense feeding."

The fact that the liver was enlarged would suggest to me that this had started in your kitty.

"Feline Hepatic Lipidosis shares similar symptoms to other problems, including liver disease, renal failure, feline leukemia, Feline infectious peritonitis and some cancers. Diagnosis requires tests that target the liver to make an accurate diagnosis. Jaundice is highly indicative of the disease. Blood tests and a liver biopsy will confirm the presence of the disease."

Treatment needs to be swift as most cats will die from this.

There must be something your vet has MISSED!!! There is definitely something going on medically. Trying to diagnose a severe illness is not cheap, you already know that. However, there are vets who specialize in different areas (cardiology, neurology, ophthalmology, etc.) and you may need to have your vet find one and send you over there for more tests. Force (syringe) feeding may have to be an option at some point.