Cross-post -- Vomitting.

samhainborn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
May 26, 2009
Messages
536
Purraise
1
Location
Brundidge, AL
I'm posting for a friend of mine.

My friend Crystal has a 5 year old russian blue that vomits about once a day. He's ok some days, but some days he vomits twice. Sometimes the food is mostly undigested, but sometimes it's just stomach soup.

She has no idea what could be causing it, and says she's tried everything from changing foods to hairball remedies and brushing him. Can anyone give me any tips, or tell me what she could be looking for to further track down this problem?

Thanks all.
 

sharky

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Jan 30, 2005
Messages
27,231
Purraise
38
I would ask her what foods she has tried ... sometimes shape and size will slow them down...

ask her if she is feeding off a flat plate that is elevated
 

nutrolori

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Mar 29, 2010
Messages
357
Purraise
1
Location
Midwest, USA
Originally Posted by SamhainBorn

I'm posting for a friend of mine.

My friend Crystal has a 5 year old russian blue that vomits about once a day. He's ok some days, but some days he vomits twice. Sometimes the food is mostly undigested, but sometimes it's just stomach soup.

She has no idea what could be causing it, and says she's tried everything from changing foods to hairball remedies and brushing him. Can anyone give me any tips, or tell me what she could be looking for to further track down this problem?

Thanks all.
I have few suggestions she could try, I made similar suggestions to someone else the other day.

Is it not too long after he has eaten? Does the vomit consist of food, not really digested?? It could be possible he is just eating to quickly and swallowing too much food at once if it is food being thrown up. If this is the case try feeding him on a flatter surface, like a plate, smaller amounts more frequently. This will help prevent him from eating too quickly and throwing it up shortly after. A larger kibble like Sharky recommended is helpful too. What is she feeding?

I have seen many pets vomit yellow bile when they have an empty stomach. One of my dogs in particular used to do it. He was on a strict schedule, if we were late feeding him he would get nauseated and throw up the yellow frothy bile. I get nauseated if I am past meal time too.
She may need to increase the amount he eats or feed him more frequently. How much is she feeding him per day?

Keep us posted.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #4

samhainborn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
May 26, 2009
Messages
536
Purraise
1
Location
Brundidge, AL
I don't personally know the answers right off hand but those sound like good tips and I'll pass them along when I ask her for more details. He's a normal weight cat, so he's not starving, but he's also obviously not gorging himself, either. Thanks for the advice.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #5

samhainborn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
May 26, 2009
Messages
536
Purraise
1
Location
Brundidge, AL
I asked her your questions and she typed this in reply.

"It conist Of both. HE can go all day without vomiting then in the afternoon he will. I've gotten him the 9 lives for dry and friskies for the can. Not the best food but the best I can afford. Doesn't matter anyway, he throw up everything. I put some water in it last night, he seems to be doing ok today. I usually feed him one can in the morning then he'll have his dry all day. I was feeding him on a plate i put it in a bowl this morning and just half a can. Thank you."

Does this sound like acid reflux to anyone? If he's throwing up about the same time every day? Hmmm. Or maybe a food allergy?
 

nutrolori

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Mar 29, 2010
Messages
357
Purraise
1
Location
Midwest, USA
Originally Posted by SamhainBorn

I asked her your questions and she typed this in reply.

"It conist Of both. HE can go all day without vomiting then in the afternoon he will. I've gotten him the 9 lives for dry and friskies for the can. Not the best food but the best I can afford. Doesn't matter anyway, he throw up everything. I put some water in it last night, he seems to be doing ok today. I usually feed him one can in the morning then he'll have his dry all day. I was feeding him on a plate i put it in a bowl this morning and just half a can. Thank you."

Does this sound like acid reflux to anyone? If he's throwing up about the same time every day? Hmmm. Or maybe a food allergy?
Well 9 Lives can be harder to digest. The coloring can't be good either. If there is anyway she can try to feed something better and continue the plate feeding in smaller amounts. Feed the dry on a schedule instead of leaving it out all day. Then she can more determine if when he eats it how quickly after he eats does he throw up. If there is food in the vomit and it is whole with a little stomach acid it could still be the eating too quickly. It is really hard to say. Switching foods could be a step in the right direction. Chester is eating Nutro Max Cat right now and it is a little more than the 9 Lives but better in the ingredient list as far a digestion.

I would suggest if she can, get him to the vet if it continues. I really hope she gets it all figured out.
 

sharky

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Jan 30, 2005
Messages
27,231
Purraise
38
Originally Posted by SamhainBorn

I asked her your questions and she typed this in reply.

"It conist Of both. HE can go all day without vomiting then in the afternoon he will. I've gotten him the 9 lives for dry and friskies for the can. Not the best food but the best I can afford. Doesn't matter anyway, he throw up everything. I put some water in it last night, he seems to be doing ok today. I usually feed him one can in the morning then he'll have his dry all day. I was feeding him on a plate i put it in a bowl this morning and just half a can. Thank you."

Does this sound like acid reflux to anyone? If he's throwing up about the same time every day? Hmmm. Or maybe a food allergy?
Realize those foods have the top four allergens.... which at least in me food allergies cause issues...

Good food s are had at every budget level...

I would second getting away from the coloring which IMHO cause alot of these issues ...
 

mizmelzy

TCS Member
Adult Cat
Joined
Jun 2, 2010
Messages
239
Purraise
4
Location
Wisconsin
I was having the same problem with my Russian Blue smokie. He was throwing up so much that his stomach got irritated. I couldn't figure out why he was throwing up. The vet tested his blood and they didn't find anything out of the ordinary.

But what I did do was put him on all wet food, friskies for a week until he stopped throwing up and this worked.

Then once he stopped I looked at all the food that I had been giving him for the past 6 months and looked at the ingredients. I noticed that they all had beet in them. Once I switched he has been fine and have gotten him down to 1/2 a can of wet and the rest dry. So far no throwing up.

I know that they can become allergic to any food even if they have been eating it for years without any problem. If it is the dry that he's allergic to and you can't afford a better quality food, you can give him all wet. That should stop the vomiting.

I just put my cats on Chicken Soup for the Cat pet lovers Soul. So far it seems to be agreeing with everyone (I have 6 cats).

I've learned that it takes a lot of trial and error before you find a food that will work with your cat.

However, if the cat hasn't been seen by a vet yet, I would recommend that it be seen so that they can rule out any other problems that may be the cause.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #9

samhainborn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
May 26, 2009
Messages
536
Purraise
1
Location
Brundidge, AL
Thanks for the input, and I will pass it along. I tried getting her to join the site, but she said she was intimidated by forums.

He has been doing a lot better lately, throwing up much less often. She said she's noticed him playing a bit more during the day, so I suppose this means that he's feeling better, and likely more hydrated.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #10

samhainborn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
May 26, 2009
Messages
536
Purraise
1
Location
Brundidge, AL
Oh geez.... Now we're getting some real problems. Someone suggested that she try Pepcid, but only after talking to the vet. Apparently she didn't realize there's a difference between pepcid and other things...

"I've been giving him tums before i feed him and I've only been giving him a half a can of food but it doesnt seem to be helping. I don't know what to do anymore."

I told her to immediately stop the tums. I don't know if those are even safe for cats. I TOLD her to at least call her vet. I've even told her just a few minutes ago that her cat needs to go to the vet now, because he shouldn't be throwing up this much for this long. Something's wrong. I don't know what else to do other than beg.

Can I get suggestions for specific brands of food for her to try? I don't know what allergen might be causing this. It seems to me that he's throwing up after eating the canned food. So could someone do a comparison for me and see if we can figure out what's in the canned but not in the dry that's making him throw up? The dry is 9 Lives and the canned is Friskies.

I really am so close to telling her just to find him a new home with someone with more financial means that can get him the care he needs. I don't like the idea of him suffering like this, but I don't know any other way to persuade her to take him in for vet care.
 

ruthyb

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Oct 28, 2009
Messages
5,314
Purraise
16
Location
Derbyshire UK.
My British Blue Billy had this problem, it was every day and was mostly undigested food. I can't afford a prescription food and I was feeding whiskas which is a very rich food. I took Blly to my vet and he asked what I was feeding and I said whiskas and he said that its one of the richest foods and basically just made up with additives and flavourings. He basically suggested trying different foods. So I did, I bought a couple of tins of everything at the supermarket in my budget range and tried them. It took me a few weeks but Billy has settled with KiteKat wet food and Go cat dry food but only the indoor cat type and touch wood he has been fine. I think your friend has just got to try this as long as it is nothing medical. I wouldn't advise the tums either, they could cause more harm than good.Its like humans, not everything agrees with us
x
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #12

samhainborn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
May 26, 2009
Messages
536
Purraise
1
Location
Brundidge, AL
That's a really good suggestion, and it has been passed along. If she tries something different every day and he doesn't throw up on one of them, she can get more of it and see how well he does on it for a week. On the other hand, if he throws up all the time no matter what food it is, then she's going to have to take him to the vet. Do you think she could get care credit just for taking him to the vet and getting those labs done? Is there a minimum spending limit for Care credit?
 
Top