Vomiting and Lethargy

Our cat Nigel has vomited 7 times in the last 24 hours. The first few times it was mush, the last few just yellow liquid. He was lethargic and slept most of yesterday, then perked up a bit in the evening, before the vomiting started again. Now he's curled up on my lap as I type this, being very needy.

We feed him dry food, probably not the best stuff around. We had changed it recently, and he hadn't been very keen on the new stuff. He has been drinking his water, though. Also, he seems to be constipated, we could only find pee when we cleaned his litter box out this morning.

We suspect, with all the Christmas stuff around, that he has swallowed somthing, but we can't be sure. Should we get him to a vet now or try and introduce a little food into his diet to see if we can sort it out? Needless to say, we're on a very tight budget and a vet's bill would be a problem right now.

Any advice or similar experiences?

I would go to the vet immediately - If you think he might have eaten something, and if he is lethargic as you described... the only thing to do is go to the vet, IMO

Definately see the vet. Vomitting that frequently, and constipation is not a good thing.

Have you seen pieces of anything in his vomit that would tell if he ate something?

Is he eating anything? How old is he?

The constipation could be from the new food (how long has it been) or some sort of blockage if he ate something.

Can you even call the vet, describe the symptoms and ask if he should be seen? Some vets will do a payment plan, that's something else to ask for.

Good luck, I hope he will be ok.

He's about 2 1/2 years old. He hasn't eaten his food, but will try and eat a cat treat, though he looks like it's a great effort. We can't see anything in his vomit, it's just liquid now. I'll have to wait till my wife comes home for lunch to see about the vet - I don't drive.

Not to scare you but my youngest kitten did that a few months ago and had surgery to remove an obtruction

Call the vet and get a appt for lunch time please

Well, here's the story so far, and it has its ups and downs.

On Monday 22nd December we took Nigel to the vet. He drew some blood and said he'd ring us back the following morning. He did, and said everything seemed fine. He had also done an x-ray, and noticed nothing amiss, although there was alot of feces in his lower intestine. When he rang us on the Tuesday, he had said that it looked most likely we would have to euthenise him on the Wednesday if there had been no improvement.

All of Tuesday he seemed to perk up a bit. We had kept him as an indoor cat but I decided, because it looked most likely he didn't have much longer, I'd let him outside. I followed him around most of the day, and he perked up no end. He was still not eating or drinking, though, and he was sick a couple more times.

the vet rang us again on Wednesday morning. To cut a long story short, he said he would go inside and have a look, if there was any hope he'd sew him up and send him home, if not, he would euthenise him. He rang us back later in the morning, after we had taken him in, and said that he couldn't find anything and that he would send him home and hope he would recover. That evening was extremely sad, seeing our poor cat sitting in the same place for hours, because the patches on his legs prevented him from lying down.

On Christmas Day he was perky again, but still not eating. He went outside and sat on the doormat, came in and even jumped onto my wife's lap and curled up to sleep. That night he came and curled up on the bed with us.

I spoke to the vet again this morning (he's such a great guy) and although he was pleased to hear about his perking up, his not eating was a huge worry. Now Nigel is just lying down, not doing anything. I've tried to tempt him with tuna, some ham and chicken, but apart from licking a bit of tuna juice from my finger, he just turns his nose up at everything. I'm afraid it's looking very bad for the poor fella unless we can convince him to eat something. We have an appointment with the vet tomorrow morning, so fingers crossed.

Why is it coming to euthanasia for a 2.5yr old kitty if nothing has shown up as being wrong? There's gotta be something wrong.... did the vet even put him on some fluids? I would think he'd be dehydrated from all of the vomitting and diarrhea.... He may not have the strength to eat. The vet can give him fluids and nutrients....

I am just wondering why euthanasia is being talked about already

My suggestion is to try another vet. A second opinion is often a good thing. Maybe the first vet is missing something. I agree, something is wrong and it is not being diagnosed.

I would like to know that also.
I think its odd for a vet to say to have him pts so soon without trying anything.
I had cats that acted way worse then that and the vet never said to have it pts.
You should talk to UC Davis.
I did when some of my cats were very sick.
You can force feed him and he can get fluids.
I was told to have Coco pts at when she was 9.5 because they did not give her much hope.
They did all these tests at the er and my vet found out what it was.
She is now 16.10 years old.

I would honestly see a different vet. Your vet should have at least recommended fluids and possible assist feeding with a syringe (its not too hard to do). Sending him home with nothing and offering no suggestions is just ridiculous and I have to wonder if your vet is an idiot!

Thanks for the responses. I think I may have misled you about the situation. Our vet has really gone above and beyond for us. When we had just about resigned ourselves to having to have him put to sleep, he suggested different options. He calls us every day to ask about Nigel's progress. He stayed behind on Christmas Eve to operate on the cat and get him ready for us to take home. He seems as concerned as you what a waste it would be to put a 2.5 year-old cat to sleep. I think he's just giving us options and preparing us for the worst, if it came to that. As I say, we're seeing him again tomorrow and he may well suggest other avenues than the one we wouldn't want. I'll keep you posted.

Originally Posted by Gannett

He seems as concerned as you what a waste it would be to put a 2.5 year-old cat to sleep. I think he's just giving us options and preparing us for the worst, if it came to that. As I say, we're seeing him again tomorrow and he may well suggest other avenues than the one we wouldn't want. I'll keep you posted.

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I hope so Ask you vet about fluids and tube feeding....Your cat was healthy prior to this right?

Is it possible he got into something toxic, a plant or something?

I'm at a loss as to why euthanising him was even brought up, if his tests are coming back clear, and his only issue is vomitting...those can be dealt with once the cause of them is figured out.

I wish you the best, and hope your vet puts some thought into fluids and tube feeding untill he can find out what's wrong with your kitty.

Good luck.

Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't you say he just had an exploratory surgery on Wed. and he was home on Wed.? Was he given any meds or anything?

I'm sorry, I don't mean to be rude or anything... this whole situation is very confusing.... your vet did some bloodwork and xray because your cat was vomiting, couldn't find anything and told you

When he rang us on the Tuesday, he had said that it looked most likely we would have to euthenise him on the Wednesday if there had been no improvement

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then on Wed. he had a surgery and was sent home.

No fluids to keep him hydrated? No meds? Nothing aside from bloodwork, xray and a surgery?

Your kitty is probally really stressed out now, sore from surgery (definately shouldn't be going outside if he had surgery.... he should be resting), groggy/nauseous from the anesthetic, and possibly dehydrated.... I doubt he would be able to eat right now.

I still would seek out a second opinon, or at least find out WHY he recommends putting your young cat to sleep when he's not finding anything wrong.

I am NOT a vet.....but this whole incident concerns me. I hope for the best for your kitty... he definately should not be pts if there is nothing wrong with him.

Thanks again for the responses. I just want to make it clear that the vet has suggested throughout that putting the cat to sleep would be a last resort. So far he has always tried whatever it takes so that we won't have to have it done. On the hydration front, I should have mentioned that he was hydrated via a catheter all day on Wednesday. The vet gave him an injection to control the vomiting and gave us tablets to feed the cat with the same medication, which he takes and this has worked. It's all down to getting the cat to eat and drink again, and we'll be asking the vet about that when we see him tomorrow. I really want to be fair to the vet, he has done a grand job in our opinion. If he thought Nigel was a lost cause, I don't think he'd be going to all this trouble. I can see what you mean though, and perhaps it's just the way I'm telling the story, I'm not getting it quite right.

It takes time to get them to eat.
I have had to force feed before.
What antibiotic is he on?
Some will make a cat not want to eat.

Originally Posted by Gannett

Thanks again for the responses. I just want to make it clear that the vet has suggested throughout that putting the cat to sleep would be a last resort. So far he has always tried whatever it takes so that we won't have to have it done. On the hydration front, I should have mentioned that he was hydrated via a catheter all day on Wednesday. The vet gave him an injection to control the vomiting and gave us tablets to feed the cat with the same medication, which he takes and this has worked. It's all down to getting the cat to eat and drink again, and we'll be asking the vet about that when we see him tomorrow. I really want to be fair to the vet, he has done a grand job in our opinion. If he thought Nigel was a lost cause, I don't think he'd be going to all this trouble. I can see what you mean though, and perhaps it's just the way I'm telling the story, I'm not getting it quite right.

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Ahhhhh The way you said it in your first couple msg's, it "seemed" like you and the vet were considerring euthanising a 2.5yr old kitty just because of vomiting.

Good to hear he got some liquids.

Most kitties after having anesthetics, do not want to eat for a day or two.

Ask your vet about tube feeding... you may have to, untill your kitty can get enough strength to feed/drink on his own... He's been through alot this week, and probally has very little strength left.

I wish you the very best

You started off by stating that xrays showed your cat's intestines had a lot of feces in them.........so, um.......did it never occur to the Vet that maybe kitty was constipated for some reason???? Of course if a cat is constipated they're going to throw up, not want to eat, be lethargic. This is such a no-brainer symptom that your great Vet seems to have overlooked. Treatment for constipation would be Vet giving him an enema or 2 to clear him out and then see how he is. This is just basic. Your Vet was willing to undertake exploratory surgery but not even consider the basics such as treating constipation? Sorry but your Vet sounds like an idiot. For him to have even brought up euthanasia right at the offset, that's very scary. Your Vet may be a nice person but it does not sound like he's doing much for your cat and your kitty's life now hangs in the balance as a result. If kitty was eating things he shouldn't have eaten and that caused constipation, it's imperative that vet does something to treat this -- it is not NORMAL for a cat to have their intestines full of stool (feces).

You should seriously consider getting a second opinion. Your cat's life depends on it. Your cat isn't magically going to start eating unless the feces-packed intestines are cleared out.