Feline Hepatic Lipidosis: The Cat Who Stopped Eating

Learning Objectives

• 1Explain the obligate carnivore metabolic cascade that makes obese cats uniquely vulnerable to hepatic lipidosis within 48-72 hours of anorexia, including the role of VLDL export limitation and carnitine depletion
• 2Recognize the classic FHL bloodwork pattern — disproportionate ALP elevation relative to ALT, severe hyperbilirubinemia, hypoalbuminemia, and Heinz body formation — and distinguish it from primary biliary or hepatocellular disease
• 3Apply the esophagostomy tube placement technique, calculate RER at ideal body weight, and implement a graded refeeding protocol to prevent refeeding syndrome
• 4Identify and manage refeeding syndrome through pre-emptive electrolyte monitoring, potassium and phosphorus supplementation, and appropriate escalation of caloric delivery
• 5Describe the mechanism, dosing, and evidence level for each hepatoprotective agent — SAMe, silymarin, L-carnitine, ursodiol, vitamin E, and cobalamin — and establish appropriate criteria for feeding tube removal

Course Syllabus

1. 1
   Meet Butterscotch — The Cat Who Stopped EatingPreview

   module-1-meet-butterscotch

   7 min
2. 2
   The Metabolic Trap — Why Cats Are Uniquely Vulnerable

   module-2-pathophysiology

   9 min
3. 3
   Diagnosis — Confirming FHL and Ruling Out the Trigger

   module-3-diagnosis

   9 min