so the cat i adopted has thrown up 8/18days ive had her

i dont know what the deal is. its like every other day she is throwing up. ive only had her for a little over two weeks and the day before i got her she went to the vet for her exam and she passed they said. i was feeding her the food the adoption lady told me to feed her. its science diet the hard kind. well today when she threw up i thought i noticed a huge hair ball in the throw up so it made me think maybe she has hairballs. so i went and got science diet hairball control and woke up today from my nap and she had thrown up again. the owners before her fed her hard food but whats the deal? should i switch to soft food to see if that helps or is she maybe sick? this has been happening since day one and she seems fine just throws up all the time. please anyone let me know what i need to do.

Welcome to TCS! First of all, I think it might not be a bad idea to discuss this with a vet. Lots of cats are pukers.

Is it mostly undigested food and hair? Then yes, probably the issue is hairballs and a regular program of good brushing will do more than "hairball" food which is usually just high fiber to try and flush the hair through. You can also try a hairball paste (they are usually mineral oil based or petroleum jelly based) which will help move things through. Not all cats will eat the paste.

I think you will find the consensus on this board is that wet food is a very good thing. It gives kitty needed hydration and its consistency is closer to what they would naturally eat.

Is she eating fast? My puker eats too fast. She is good for at least one upchuck a week if we don't watch how much she eats. I can't just leave her food out because she will eat too fast and up it comes

Is this an adult cat or a kitten? Please don't be discouraged, there are lots of folks on this board who've dealt with this kind of thing.

I agree about the food ... change to a quality premium cat food is my suggestion, after you confirm with the Vet the cat is healthy.

This web site has a lot of posts about quality food, what ingredients are good, and what ingredients are not.

Age: how old?

Welcome to TCS, a great website!
g

Unfortunately hon, she needs to go back to the vet. This is a shame for you since you've only had her such a short time, but sometimes you get a bad run and find yourself at the vet a lot. All a frustrating but necessary part of pet ownership. How old is she?

well she is a 3 year old female cat.

yes her throw up looks like she didnt even chew her food. thats basically all it looked like to me is undigested food but today was the first day i thought i noticed a really nice size hair ball in the throw up. i do limit her food though. i give her a 1/4th of a cup in the morning and the evening sometimes she doesnt even eat all of that. so i dont know. i will try the soft food today. do u all recommend a curtain brand of soft food?

i would love to take her to the vet if i could catch her. she has been so shy for the last two weeks. i just touched her for the first time yesterday. barely touched her in that. everytime i come around she runs off. yet she meows and meows alot and when i come to see what she needs she runs off.

Originally Posted by HwMchUBnch

well she is a 3 year old female cat.

yes her throw up looks like she didnt even chew her food. thats basically all it looked like to me is undigested food but today was the first day i thought i noticed a really nice size hair ball in the throw up. i do limit her food though. i give her a 1/4th of a cup in the morning and the evening sometimes she doesnt even eat all of that. so i dont know. i will try the soft food today. do u all recommend a curtain brand of soft food?

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I recommend canned - is that what you mean by "soft" food?

I feed mine Trader Joes, Natural Balance, and Wellness - all premium foods without byproducts, without grains, etc ... the website has info - just do a search, and you'll find all sorts of info - look for Sharky's posts, she has a lot of good info about quality ingredients.

Maybe your cat is allergic to a grain in the dry???, food may very well be your problem .... or ... how's her teeth?

She's not chewing? Maybe she's too hungry and when you feed her she just gulps down the food without chewing?, then gets an "air pocket" and can't burp so she quits eating, then "burps" the food back up??? .. . a 1/4th cup in the a.m., and p.m. doesn't sound like a lot of dry food to me???? that's only 1/2 cup of food a day - how's her weight?

Just "brainstorming" here ....

Still - gotta have a vet visit to check her out...
g

Originally Posted by Jean44



The fact that your cat won't let you get close to her indicates that she is still under a lot of stress due to the move from the shelter to your home. Stress can certainly lead to digestive problems. She may be gulping down her food in part due to stress and the desire to eat quickly and get back to a "safe" location.

Have you tried sitting quietly in the same room with her, maybe with soft music playing or talking softly to her? She needs to feel comfortable with you and with her new environment. Some cats do take longer to adjust to a new environment.

I also agree that a vet visit is in order as soon as she is comfortable enough to allow you to put her in a carrier.

Good luck to you and your new kitty. Positive thoughts and healthy vibes to her.

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This is some very good advice. Is her food bowl in a quiet "safe" place? I mean, if she's hiding under the bed, is it possible to put her food bowl near the bed? That may give her some level of security. Also, I don't recall any mention of other cats? She may be worried about competition, or if she was in a multicat environment, she could still have the tendancy to eat fast because she expects the competition.

Another possibility is constipation. Have you noticed regular poo in the litterbox?

Try putting her food in a coffee mug so she has to dig it out-- this will keep her from eating too fast and is a fun game all the while. Leave it out all the time, unless she has a weight problem, at least until she feels comfortable with you. Most cats can be fed as much as they want to eat without a problem.

And I agree about the wet food, it would be much healthier and would help with many of these problems.

Riley has issues with hairballs and won't let me brush him yet (another whole story!) so for now he gets the hairball paste twice a week. He likes the flavor and just licks it off my finger. You might try giving her that until you can get her diet and eating habits straightened out.

If you try the hairball paste (also good for temporary constipation relief)... and they don't like it, you can put a decent sized dab on their paws and then kind of "push" it in to the fur.. (the first thing they're going to do is pick up their paw and try to shake the paste off..so mush it in pretty good).

Originally Posted by CatsAreBetter

If you try the hairball paste (also good for temporary constipation relief)... and they don't like it, you can put a decent sized dab on their paws and then kind of "push" it in to the fur.. (the first thing they're going to do is pick up their paw and try to shake the paste off..so mush it in pretty good).

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This is why I love this site!! I have such a hard time giving Cairo her paste. I'm gonna have to try this next time. Cairo is obsessed with cleaning her paws. The fur under her paws is actually shiny from being groomed so much.

yes my whole house is a quiet safe place. its just me and petrina all the time and sometimes my girlfriend. so far ive been feeding her canned food and she hasnt throw up. (knock on wood) im going to continue this for a little while until i feel i can start slowly putting her back on hard food. who knows though i dont mind feeding her soft canned food.

If she likes canned and she's not having problems on it, you may want to stick with it. Sometimes it just simply works better for them.

Let us know how it goes.