Hi Laura,

I have a 14-year old cat at home which was just diagnosed with severe
cardiomyopathy,  the stage just before CHF. The situation was exactly
the same though as far as her behavior was concerned...Lilly lost a lot
of weight, refused to eat, was very depressed and unresponsive. Only
the third vet diagnosed the HCF and I was actually ready to let her go
because she was so emaciated. When she was diagnosed, I had her
hospitalized initially for 24 hours to see whether aggressive treatment
would lead to any results or whether it would be better to let her go.
Within 24 hours, she improved greatly. She was rehydrated via IV-fluids
(this may be more difficult with your cat depending on the severity of
the heart failure), put on ACE inhibitors as well as an antacid and an
appetite stimulant. No diuretics (lasix) as she was so severly
dehydrated, which by itself will make a cat extremely depressed. She
started eating within 9 hours and was discharged after 36 hours.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying the condition can be reversed, but
your cat can possibly be made comfortable for long enough to give you
time to say goodbye. The vet is not giving Lilly more than a few weeks,
but although she is of course declining (she is now generally very calm
and sleeps a lot), she is not starving herself to death (which will
invariably also lead to hepatic lipidosis which makes her appetite
worse) and seems to enjoy life again. Surely to a lesser extent than
previously, but she now again comes into the hall to greet me when I
come home from work, and when I am at home I notice her move from room
to room with the sun again, which she had stopped doing during the
crisis.

Best of luck,

Petra