Suzy Cutes replied: "Yes, this is a time when you "screw the rules," and just about anything goes, I've dealt with anemia in two cats, Baby Bars who passed at 20 years 2 months, and Rusty who just turned 18. Baby Bars, in his older years, developed Heinz anemia, which is a result of eating too much onion (who knew?). Rusty was constantly borderline anemic from IBD and just over a year ago developed severe anemia as a result of fleas; he was so bad that two vets didn't give him much hope to make it through the summer. The good news is, Rusty just celebrated his 18th birthday a week ago, and has actually gained 7 ounces in the past three months. One of the things I discovered with anemia is that the system seems to be off, with more nausea and more digestive issues, ergo less appeitite, even with appetite enhancers. A human nutritionist once told me that the lack of oxygen is a factor in the lack of appetite in anemic people, so I suspect that would hold true with any animal. I also know that there is a severe lack of oxygen in the body with anemia, which can affect physical as well as mental health. Armed with that info, at a desperate point, I gave Rusty an oxygen infusion with some diluted hydrogen peroxide. This is something to discuss with your vet; at Rusty's state at the time the vet had no objection. I also invested in the NASA list of oxygen-producing plants, and whether it has helped the cats (all of them) I don't know if I can say for sure, I certainly know I am more oxygenated, so I suspect they are also. I also gave both Bars and Rusty Pepcid, but this is something you should ask your vet about as each cat responds differently to it. I found yogurt to be tummy-soothing and appealing (again, damn the sloppy poop). For Bars I would frequently use yogurt instead of milk in his egg and food mix (see below). The probiotics in yogurt are great. You can add a touch of Metamucil and a teaspoon of canned pumpkin to counter any sloppy poop. Speaking of probiotics, in both cats I used enzyme/priobiotic supplements. The ones I still use for Rusty I get from Dr. Goodpet, and they are fungal based enzymes vs. pancreas ones. The enzymes have been a huge help in nutrient absorption and digestive stabilization. So, here are food suggestions. Okay, you are right. Even crappy food is better than no food. You said your cat liked to lick the gravy; ditto my Rusty (what a waste of food!) However, I found out that the wheat glutens in gravy foods can upset the digestive tract and inhibit nutrient absorption; two things you don't need in an anemic cat. I would take pate wet food, add water or tuna juice, a wee bit of the vitamin paste and liquefy it into a gravy. It went over very, very well. I found this worked well with Fancy Feast (they have non-gluten varieties and cats just seem to like it), Innova (pretty tasteless but dressed up with FF or vitamins helps) and Max Cat which also went over pretty well in the taste department. Yes, I started off with Friskies and 9-Lives tuna, desperate for any food, then moved to Fancy Feast and back to better quality. Both Baby Bars and Rusty loved their raw/lightly cooked egg yolks. Lots of protein, and if you can't fully remove the yolk, cook the egg lightly to make sure any white is cooked. With Bars, I mixed this with condensed full-fat milk (damn the sloppy poop) and vitamins and some pate cat food. Nummy! Baby Food is often appealing, but get onion-free turkey or chicken. Gerber still makes onion-free varieties. Mix in your enzymes, vitamins, and a little Metamucil for a firmer stool. Dry food. Because of other issues, Rusty needed to eat several times a day, and well, when you're out most of the day, then dry food is the option. I started Rusty out on kitten dry as he has no teeth, but it is higher in protein. Ask your vet about kitten food for your cat. It is more important to gain muscle weight than fat weight, as anemics will eat their own muscle for protein. Get a good quality dry; one that has meat as the first ingredient(s), with low-no grains, and try and avoid corn, wheat, wheat glutens, and soy. Dry food is "sprayed" with fats and vitamins to make it appealing to cats, and frequently a pungent aroma will help. I counted out how many kibble bits I left out each day so I could judge how much was being eaten, if any. At first it was only a few morsels, but a few morsels is better than no morsels. I also got some powdered vitamins (very flavorful) and used a sprinkle or two on the dry food for extra appeal. When it comes to home-made foods, on top of everything, I started feeding raw to the cats. I had a hard time with Rusty, but it is now about 30% of his diet. There are raw and cooked recipes on the internet, but bear in mind that if you commit to actually making your cats foods, you will need genuine supplements besides the vitamins. I use Feline Instincts, and they have a pretty idiot-proof raw recipe on their website. If you don't want to go so far as to try making your own food, it is perfectly alright to cook up some chicken; roasted or pan seared is much more flavorful than boiled; dark is usually more flavorful than white. Feeling brave? Let her try a little raw chicken. I give my cats raw chicken necks to chew (bones are not an issue when raw). The kitchen floor tends to get pretty messy, but it is soul-satisfying to see the cats enjoy themselves. Try and keep beef to a minimum, however, if she'll eat it, go for it. Again, try a little lean ground beef raw. If your cat seems to enjoy raw, you can mix a little raw in with the wet food, or consider going on a raw diet. While I know you just want to get some food in her belly, please do avoid ham/pork. The salt in these are incredibly high, and salt not only stresses a cat's kidney (dehydration), but inhibits potassium and electrolyte absorption, and those are the last thing you need when trying to rebuild red blood cells. When it comes to water, give your cat bottled or filtered water. The chlorine and Fluoride in public water supply is not only good for cats, particularly a compromised cat, but cats can smell it, and if a cat is off their drink or feed to begin with, these additives just make it worse. I found a huge improvement in water intake in all the cats when I switched to bottled water. Those little water fountains are appealing to cats and have been shown to improve water intake. Good luck. Baby Bars was anemic from the Heinz until the day he died, but at a ripe old age of 20, I think we handled the last three years of this life very well. Rusty has lots of good blood and, while it was a long, painstaking battle, he has gained a few ounces, is brighter and more sociable, and has a good appetite. I wish you the best of luck. As a note, when Baby Bars was at his worst at age 17, he did get a blood transfusion which helped greatly. My vet and I discussed that with Rusty but never did it."

Sarah L replied: "Just spit instead. Edit: Like the talking asshole from Naked Lunch? Badass. I am honored to be compared to such a dog. (I wish there were more people who take the internet as seriously as you do.)"