Throwing up after eating too fast, suggestions?

My cat Toby acts like he has an eating disorder. He has done this throwing up thing for years now, but now that he's back on wet food, it's a once/twice a week occurance.

He's currently eating Royal Canin Urinary S/O. He gets 1/4 cup dry in the morning, and 1/4 6oz. can at night, so not much food at all. He's one that doesn't chew his food whatsoever, and because the RC dry food is small kibbles, he really gulps it down. I had taken him off wet food prior to his latest UTI episode due to the throwing up so often after eating it. Put him back on it a couple months ago, and it's starting again. Before being back on wet, it was 2-3 times a month.

He definitely seems to throw up more after he eats the wet food, but he'll also do it sometimes after eating dry. I know he's not chewing, because when he does throw up, it's whole kibbles .

I've tried elevating his bowls, but obviously that's not helping. He just eats so darn fast! He's perfectly healthy; he'll throw up then continue playing, etc. He's a great weight, drinks plenty of water. My parents say he's bulimic

It's just getting to the point where I'm really sick of cleaning up throw up. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Take him to the vet. It could be a digestive issue or the food is not agreeing with him for whatever reason, maybe an allergy to one of the ingredients.

My Abby throws up her food sometimes, but it's intentional on her part. I swear she is bulemic! About 2 or 3 times per week she will practically inhale her dry food. Then promptly go and throw it up followed by another throw up of a hair ball. I quit worrying about that because it seems it's just her way of being able to eliminate hair balls.

Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

Take him to the vet. It could be a digestive issue or the food is not agreeing with him for whatever reason, maybe an allergy to one of the ingredients.

My Abby throws up her food sometimes, but it's intentional on her part. I swear she is bulemic! About 2 or 3 times per week she will practically inhale her dry food. Then promptly go and throw it up followed by another throw up of a hair ball. I quit worrying about that because it seems it's just her way of being able to eliminate hair balls.

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He's been fully examined by my vet. He's done it before on different brands of food, so I don't think it's an allergy. He just eats way too fast, and pukes soon after. I would think if it was an allergy or digestive issue, he'd be doing it daily, not once/twice a week. He did better when he was on the Maine Coon formula by RC because those kibbles are pretty big and made him have to chew (at least sometimes, he'd still swallow some whole, but he was chewing some too). Now that he can't be on anything but the prescription food (he was on Nutro Chicken before this, and got another UTI, his 3rd one, so I decided to quit trying to wean him off the prescription stuff), he's back at it again.

He's never had a hairball, so I don't think that's what it is.

Is he part siamese? they are well known for this!~!

FOr this issue I have done the following.....

Elevated his food dish (on a phone book) and he now eats on a FLAT plate, no sides, especially important for wet, stops them from shoveling it down (for lack of a better word)

For dry I switched to california natural which has the biggest pieces so it encourages him to chew, and when I feed I split his meals into three over the course of an hour or two and just give him a third each time~!

He throws up now (instead of 5 times +/week) only once or twice a month!

Good Luck!

If your schedule allows you might try giving him smaller, more frequent meals. 1/8 cup of dry food in the morning followed by 1/8 can of wet food 3-4 hours later. Another 1/8 cup of dry and 1/8 can of wet spread out every 3-4 hours. If you aren't home during the day, maybe you could at least feed him half the dry food as soon as you get up in the morning and the rest at the last minute before you leave for the day. Then give him half the wet food as soon as you get home and the rest right before you go to bed.

I'm not sure what he is actually, I adopted him back in '03. He's just your 'standard' brown tabby DSH. He's a big boy, about 15lbs. and TALL. He's an odd creature; throwing up is just one of his many hobbies

I'll try elevating his food bowls more. I just have them in one of those rod iron holders right now, so they're not THAT high off the ground. I can also try putting the wet food on a plate or something like that so that it has no sides to it.

As far as feeding him smaller amounts, more often, it would be hard. I have 3 other cats, and they're all extremely food motivated. I have to separate them all while eating, so that everyone gets their food, and the right amounts. Toby won't eat if I shut him in a room (he's busted through a cat door before when I did that), so everyone else gets shut in a room while he gets full run of the house during feeding time. So finding another solution would be best, but if it comes to that, I guess I can try. If he would just stick up for himself it'd be fine, but he's a wuss and lets everyone else push him out of the way.

Originally Posted by kady05

If he would just stick up for himself it'd be fine, but he's a wuss and lets everyone else push him out of the way.

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Maybe that's why he eats so fast. He's afraid somebody else is going to come along and take it away from him.

Originally Posted by GoldyCat

Maybe that's why he eats so fast. He's afraid somebody else is going to come along and take it away from him.

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Could be. But he's 5, and he's been this way since he was a kitten. I've been separating them for years now, so you'd think if that was originally the issue, it would've resolved itself by now. But who knows!

My older cat does this, I have to feed him mostly wet, the real fine pureed kind, small amount at a time. I smush it with a fork all over a flat plate, takes him a bit longer to eat it that way. For dry you can buy special food bowls for this, they have pillars molded into the bowl that stick up creating obstructions, the cat has to work at getting the bits out thus slowing down the eating process

Originally Posted by Javern

My older cat does this, I have to feed him mostly wet, the real fine pureed kind, small amount at a time. I smush it with a fork all over a flat plate, takes him a bit longer to eat it that way. For dry you can buy special food bowls for this, they have pillars molded into the bowl that stick up creating obstructions, the cat has to work at getting the bits out thus slowing down the eating process

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I was going to mention a flat plate....he won't be able to get ahold of mouthfuls that way.

I didn't know about those special bowls though....great idea.

I'd try an elevated plate if you can't spread the meals out.

We tried all sorts of crazy stuff for Bella (what is it with these brown tabby pukers ) including changing the dish, putting in large marbles (which kind of worked, but it was really gross to clean with wet food) and elevating the dish. What ultimately worked (we are not completely puke free, but much better) was to give her a wider bowl (almost a plate) and more frequent, smaller meals. Oh, and buy nature's miracle by the gallon

Good luck. I know your frustration.

Originally Posted by Javern

My older cat does this, I have to feed him mostly wet, the real fine pureed kind, small amount at a time. I smush it with a fork all over a flat plate, takes him a bit longer to eat it that way. For dry you can buy special food bowls for this, they have pillars molded into the bowl that stick up creating obstructions, the cat has to work at getting the bits out thus slowing down the eating process

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I actually saw those bowls at the vet a couple months ago and was thinking about buying him one. I tried smushing his wet food in the bowl last night, but he threw it up still. I'm going to order one of those special bowls, and get him a plate for his wet food and go from there! Thanks for the suggestions everyone, good to know he's not the only one!