She is not going to worry about this for awhile.   Her better half came home
and found Hunter dead on the floor this was at 4:30pm.  She was at work and
headed home.  We in the other group are waiting to hear from her to see what
happened

I don't think so - they weren't eating all of it, there was always
left-overs.  They may not have been eating as much as they should have, but
I think I was feeding them enough.  the little bit of dry food, added to the
canned, has helped them regain the weight they lost.

However, I have something else to worry about.  Ben came home and found
Hunter, the cat we found and brought in from outside about 3 months ago,
dead on the bathroom floor.  He wasn't in physical contact with our other
cats (he was still "quarantined" in his own section of the house since he
wasn't due for his "final" FIV/FeLV test  until the 31st), but I'm still
worried that he had an airborne virus that could have been transmitted to
our other cats (this is only a remote possibility, but I still worry - it's
my nature).

We just got finished, a few minutes ago, burying him.  We couldn't afford a
necropsy, and it wouldn't really make a difference except to let us know for
sure how he died, but we think it may have been heart problems since he was
such a young cat and he had no other symptoms up until the time he died.  He
"coughed" when he got excited or upset, but we thought he was trying to
cough up a hairball (heart problems didn't enter our minds since he seemed
very hale and hearty and played boisterously).  My friend, who's a nurse,
says it sounds like he may have "thrown an embolism" - and died when the
blood clot got to his lungs.  He did have a bit of blood next to his mouth
when Ben found him.

When we first brought him in he was tested for FIV/FeLV (he was negative)
and had a thorough physical exam along with a feline distemper shot, rabies
shot and worming, and he was pronounced healthy.  We then had him neutered
and he did just fine through that - healed up very nicely.  Then we brought
him back for his follow-up visit (second feline distemper shot and worming)
and the vet didn't find anything wrong then either.

I'm just really devastated about this, he was such a sweet tempered and
gentle cat and he died WAY too young,  his life was just really starting.
The most comfort I can take from this is that 3 months ago he was on the
street and starving, and when he died today at least he was in a safe home
and well fed and loved.

Hugs,

CatNipped

Do you weigh your cats at home? I would suggest weighing them before
starting canned food, then make sure to feed them each *from separate
bowls*. Make note of how much each cat is getting and monitor their
weight once per week or so. I say feed separately so you can closely
monitor their intake vs. their weight. Yes, this is a lot of extra
work, but IMO worth it. If someone if not feeling well and is off
their food, you will know immediately (instead of someone else gulping
down their food).

The body chart.  I am as vigilant about their weight as I am my own, I know
that being overweight can cause all kinds of health problems.  Jessie at her
perfect weight at 7 pounds 12 ounces and went down to 6 pounds 10 ounces.
Demi was at her perfect weight at 7 pounds 5 ounces and went down to 6
pounds 7 ounces.  Sammy, who I'd wanted to lose one pound, lost two.  Even
the boys (less than a year old) started losing weight.  I was weighing them
weekly and kept giving them more and more canned as they lost weight but
they didn't eat it.  I was hoping I could stop the downward trend, but when
their weight got so low that I was worried about their health, I just gave
up and added their 1 - 2 cups of dry food in addition to the canned.

Ok, that's good to know - she hasn't been displaying any other symptoms and
she's as lively as ever (the boys give her a good workout).  I think it's
probable that she's just a bit thirstier with the addition of dry food to
her diet (after meals is when I notice her drinking now where before she
didn't drink after meals).

If she shows any other signs of distress I'll take her in immediately and
have the tests done, but for now I think she's OK.

They really like the Fancy Feast, and it seemed to fill them up since they
would leave left-overs, but without the addition of that bit of canned food,
they just lose too much weight.  They still eat at least 95% canned, but
they just seem to need the extra calories from the dry.

Hugs,

CatNipped