throw up often

I took my cat to the vet a couple weeks ago for a check up and when I mentioned he had been vomiting every few days, they didn't seem worried about it. They said if it got worse to bring him in again. Well, since then I've been recording every time it happens and what it looks like. So far:

Sunday, Oct 17 - watery
Tuesday Oct 19 - hairball
Thursday, Oct 21 - watery
Wednesday, Oct 27 - wet food (1/2 an hour after bolting it down)
Sunday, Oct 31 - partially digested dry food
Wednesday, Nov 3 - lots of partially digested dry food

I know cats can throw up without being sick and it's not necessarily a bad thing, but doesn't this seem a bit excessive? he's had a problem with bolting too much food down at once sometimes, but there's not much I can do since my kitten is eating his food too, which makes him compensate by eating some of the kitten's, and the only advice i get on that problem is "can you feed in different rooms?" which i do already. heck, i feed alll the way across my apartment and it hasnt done any good. so if you think its overeating, can someone please give some real advice on how to stop the kitten from going to his food and him eating the kittens to compensate?

Have you elevated the food dishes??

Oh and NO vomitting in a cat is something to always keep an eye on and get to the vet if not a hairball or the grab and dash

If he is eating too quickly you can also feed them on a flatter surface like a plate instead of a bowl. This will help to slow down the eating because it is spread out more and they can't pick up as much at a time. Also depending on what you are feeding you could try a dry food with a larger kibble.

I hope this helps.

Thanks for the advice guys. I think I rooted out the problem. The days marked watery were when all he had was a treat, and today my roommate gave him two treats and he threw up 5 minutes later. I only give him treats every other day or so, and these sort of coincide with it. I guess he was allergic to something in them, they're just Whiska's Temptations.

It's very possible it's a food allergy. You can try changing his food (gradually) if you always feed the same thing. If you feed a variety of different foods, you can try by eliminating certain foods and seeing if he stops vomiting. Vomiting in a cat is NOT a good thing, btw, and should rarely, if ever, happen.

Originally Posted by rad65

, they're just Whiska's Temptations.

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How old is your cat? Have you noticed to see if they're urinating anywhere outside the box?

Temptations, like almost all dry treats, are mostly cheap grain, flavored with meat or fish. Cats are NOT designed to digest grain. Grains are high in carbs and produce excess sugar. Grainy dry food and cat treats are like soda pop sweetened with corn syrup. Very tempting yes, but healthy? Many people (myself included) get tricked into thinking that because these treats are expensive that they must be healthy.

Vomiting may mean your cat has the beginning of an illness associated with eating an unbalanced diet containing too much grain-sugar. They may be rejecting the treats for this reason.

If you notice any excess or different behavior (like where or how often they urinate) they may have feline diabetes. If your cat is 5 years or older, it might be wise to have their blood tested for the glucose levels. If they're high, it is probably early enough to change their diet and prevent serious and expensive and heartbreaking problems later.

Since it seems from your description that your cat only gets a few treats here and there, it's probably just an allergy. But keep an eye on them, and don't be afraid to have the blood test if you're concerned. A stitch in time...

Originally Posted by rad65

Thanks for the advice guys. I think I rooted out the problem. The days marked watery were when all he had was a treat, and today my roommate gave him two treats and he threw up 5 minutes later. I only give him treats every other day or so, and these sort of coincide with it. I guess he was allergic to something in them, they're just Whiska's Temptations.

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Temptations are a food with many allergens... First thought food colorings ... grains would be second and NO grains to not make sugar as they have all three Macro nutrients( carbs(true no need) , fats and protein)

If stopping those treats fixed it , great avoid them... If it returns talk with the vet, Not a tech...

That was the story for a few days with my Sweetie. I took her to the vet, they prescribed LaxTone and an antibiotic. After a few days without them helping, & she was still vomitting it was back to the vet again. They gave her fluid under the skin and said give it another day or two with the LaxTone, cuz it sounded like a hairball was stuck. Two more days passed and Sweetie was in surgery. The vets removed a mass of hair that was stuck in an loop of intestine. If she did not have the surgery she would have died. Sweetie is a short hair domestic cat. I brush her every day. This occured less than 2 weeks ago and she just got the staples out Monday. She's doing well now. So far the vet bills are over $1,000. But she's worth it. Thank goodness for credit cards. I guess the moral of my story is : watch the cats, constant vomitting is not normal or good. Occasionally they do eat too fast or too much, just keep an eye on their eating habits so you know what's going on.

It's been 5 days since I stopped feeding temptations and switched to greenies, and he hasn't thrown up once . I'm thinking that was the problem, since it was ~ every other day before.

One of my little, black, DSH, Lily (who is leaning on the keyboard right now and complicating getting this post typed), throws up sometimes. She grooms A LOT (but no over grooming bald spots). She's meticulous (and soooo lovely).

I figured out she eats too fast. I use a 5" across stainless steel bowl and put a ball, about the size of a golf ball, in her dish of dry food. She gets dry food twice a day, and it is a measured amount (all my cats on same program). Since I started using the ball, the vomiting has much decreased. Sometimes it's from hair. Someone else here said they put a spoon in the cat's bowl. Works the same way as the ball - slows them down.

She also gets wet food once a day (also carefully) measured. She has very seldom vomited it. But when she has, I'm sure it has been because she was extra hungry and ate it too fast. The dishes are pretty much empty before each feeding. So her anxiety about that (she was a stray her first 4 years - we think) and being hungry makes her bolt her food. But slowing her down really helps. She'll goes weeks now without vomiting.

As far as keeping cats from eating each other's food, that is a continuous problem at my house. My big boy, Claude (also a black DSH) gets mostly diet food. For the wet food meal, particularly, I close the other 4 off from him for 30-60 minutes so they can eat in peace. Then I throw away any remains because then I let them all loose again and Claude would clean up their leftovers.

Robin

Originally Posted by NutroLori

If he is eating too quickly you can also feed them on a flatter surface like a plate instead of a bowl. This will help to slow down the eating because it is spread out more and they can't pick up as much at a time. Also depending on what you are feeding you could try a dry food with a larger kibble.

I hope this helps.

Click to expand...

Thanks you for the post.



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My cats are barf machines. It's usually either because they love to eat grass/barf, or because they ate too fast or too much. I started feeding them 2-3 times a day, with less food, and that pretty much fixed the problem.

Those were good ideas Kelly - I will have to try the plate thing to slow them down.

Sharky - what did you mean about elevating the food dishes... is that known to help?

I think that was very smart keeping a calendar of events - sometimes looking at the record overall helps us, or the vet, detect a pattern. Here's hoping all is solved!