Worried about my cat, Mick

Hi guys, I'm writing about my cat Mick, who seems to be bulimic, although he's overweight. He's 11 years old, neutered, I adopted him from a humane society when he was 10 weeks old. He weighs about 18-19 lbs. He's a big cat.

Anyway, I have noticed that he will go and eat his food and then I'll come home from work and find little piles of cat vomit all over the floor. Sometimes I'll be home when he does it (it's so disgusting), and when he's done, he promptly goes back to his bowl and eats some more. I don't understand why he gorges himself this way.

Tonight, he started hacking like he was going to puke, and it got so bad that I thought he was wheezing so I freaked out thinking that he was choking. But then he calmed down and nothing came out. He's still jerking his head a little and I hear little noises coming from his tummy, but he seems to be ok otherwise.

He drinks plenty of water. He's been tested for diabetes because of his weight and how much water he drinks, but the test was inconclusive according to the vet.

I'm worried. I love this cat so much, he's been with me through a lot of hard times. It's like me and him against the world. I am really scared that there's something wrong with him.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

i am not an expert but every now and then mikey my cat will a. eat to fast or b. get nasy hairballs that mess his belly up for a few days.
do you ever find hairballs?

Welcome to TCS!!!! Glad that you found us!!!

Now about Mick. Is it possible he is bolting or eatiing his food too fast? I don't know how much you give him or if you free feed, but maybe you could try giving him half now and half later and see if that helps.

The other thing that may cause this to happen is hairballs. Do you see any hair mixed in the fluid?

Originally Posted by KittenKiya

Welcome to TCS!!!! Glad that you found us!!!

Now about Mick. Is it possible he is bolting or eatiing his food too fast? I don't know how much you give him or if you free feed, but maybe you could try giving him half now and half later and see if that helps.

The other thing that may cause this to happen is hairballs. Do you see any hair mixed in the fluid?

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great minds think alike!

My other cat Morganstern gets hairballs all the time. She's a longhair cat. But Mick is a shorthair and I don't often find any hair mixed in with his stuff. Just undigested pieces of his food.

I actually feed him less than what it says on the package because he's so overweight. He gets a half cup every day and that's it.

So....I don't think it's hairballs.

What brand of food are you feeding him? The cheaper food often has lots of carbohydrates, and less protein. What this does is what junk food does to humans...it doesn't satisfy hunger for long, and puts on weight. Have you tried a different brand of food? Without knowing your financial situation (and I'm not asking ), I suggest buying the highest quality food your budget will allow. You would need to buy it at a pet store...I have yet to see a grocery store sell a high quality food. You might see your kitty eating less, and trimming down.

He is probably eating too fast. You might give him smaller portions more frequently or leave something for free-feeding.

Also, it his age, it's important to have a senior bloodwork panel done. Drinking a lot of water and vomiting could also be signs of early kidney disease.

A half cup of dry food is very little for a guy of his size. Do you perhaps also notice he is constipated or has trouble pooping? After talking with your vet about it, you might try to add more canned food while decreasing the dry. The added moisture in his system will help with any elimination issues while also helping to keep him more hydrated.

try feeding him on a paper plate and not a bowl. My fatty eats too fast and throws up a lot of the time, but it seems to not happen as often when the kibbles are spread out so she can't just inhale the entire bowl at once.

Originally Posted by gayef

A half cup of dry food is very little for a guy of his size. Do you perhaps also notice he is constipated or has trouble pooping? After talking with your vet about it, you might try to add more canned food while decreasing the dry. The added moisture in his system will help with any elimination issues while also helping to keep him more hydrated.

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I had the thought also that if he's not getting enough food he may be "scarfing" down what he gets because he's worried about not getting any more.

I have also heard of elevating the bowl and putting something like a ping-pong ball in it that they have to eat around to slow them down a little bit.

Hi. My boyfriend's cat has been having this problem for a little over a year. He scarfs down his food and then promptly throws it up. He eats one cup of food a day, but we only give him about a teaspoon at a time spread throughout the day (which is only working because my boyfriend works from home). Plus Nitz is always hungry, he practically knocks you down trying to beat you to the kitchen if you head that direction. He also just sits in the kitchen and meows. In the last week or so he's started throwing up even though he's only getting a teaspoon at a time. This just doesn't seem good to me. There are rarely if ever hairballs in his food, just undigested food and liquid. If it's left there too long (like when we're not home) he just eats the vomit, but you can tell it was there b/c of the stain mark.

I've also noticed that he's wheezing periodically. Particularly if he gets yelled at for something or doesn't want to do something. Additionally he seems to be a lot more ornery than he used to be. He was always a really laid back cat. Now if he's visiting at my house (visits are frequent) he just walks around the house meowing (he rarely used to meow at all... at home or at my house). Nitz and my cat Ripley have been buddies for years, but he's just acting strange.

We've tried raising the food bowl, feeding in small increments and a bunch of different foods.

Science Diet - Hairball Formula (both wet and dry)
Science Diet - Sensitive Stomach
Pro Plan - Sensitive Stomach and Skin
Also some "semi-wet" food in pouches from the vet (this seemed to work temporarily)

Nitz is also a big cat. He's about 15-17 lbs and not losing weight. His fur looks healthy and shiny. He's about 8 yrs old.

Not sure what to do at this point. The vet just said he was eating too fast last time we took him. So we tried methods to slow him down... doesn't seem to matter.

Any ideas on what to do next? Are there tests that should be done. His bloodwork came back fine last time. This is very frustrating. We feel bad for Nitz because it can't feel good to throw up all the time, it's ruining the rugs and it's really annoying when he practically knocks you down every time you go near the kitchen. We're also wondering why he's gotten so ornery.

hi lucidblue..
my cat has food allergies which cause her to vomit and wheeze. it could be food allergies. ~ heidi