Food Allergies or Bulimia

My cat is 5 years old and a wonderful cat but she is driving us crazy throwing up. We have taken her to the vet several times. They first told us to try Science Diet Sensitive which we did. She still threw up. They then suggested Eukanuba. That didn't stop it. So now we have her on Hill's Prescription I.D. canned food. It seems to be helping but she still throws up at least twice a week and now is it extremely messy because the food is so wet. We did find out that she has very poor teeth. She has lost her front teeth, has one broken canine and her bottom teeth are poor. We got her from the animal shelter where she had been dropped off. We are now wondering if maybe she needs to be on a food for cats with allergies like Prescription Z/D. She doesn't like any kind of meat products. The vet says she is a carb kitty. She likes potato chips and crackers. She eats a bunch at one time and then hurls. When she was on dry food it was always undigested food because apparently it happens soon after she eats. She eats then licks herself and then we see her heaving and then there it comes. That is why I think she is bulimic. It is NEVER hairballs. The vet has checked her over and says unless we want to spend a $1000 dollars on tests just to find out she has IBS, we should just try gradually changing her foods to the premium brands. I need help. I feel like we are truly confusing this poor cat to the point she doesn't even want to eat. Any ideas or suggestions - I even read that giving them a bit of catnip every day might help. But I haven't a clue now.

Have you tried to elevate the food bowl? Feed more often with smaller portions? When you did change the diet, was it slowly or suddenly? Have you tried crushing up the kibble into small pieces? Using a wide bowl to spread the food out more? Has he been dewormed or checked for worms?

Buddy also throws up.. did today actually, yuck.

I would give the Z/D a try or also Waltham make a sensitiviy formula that we (my clinic) has prescribed in the past for IBS which has worked great.

Her food bowl is off the floor but I will try putting it more a her level to see if that helps. We did change the food gradually though. She loves the wet food but it is so nasty when she throws it up plus I know it can't be good for her already deteriorating teeth. I hear that when cats have to get their teeth cleaned the vet as to almost put them to sleep. I would hate that especially if I am making them worse by giving her no dry food. She gets a regular checkup every year and shots so I don't believe worms are the problem. It is just very disheartening to see a bit of improvement with the change in food and then here we go again with the hurling. It would be easier to cope with if it were hairballs. Then I would know the cause.

I'm so sorry your kitty is having these problems with her tummy. Natura's California Natural is a wonderful food for kitties with food sensitivities. Here is the dry, and here is the canned. Hope she feels better soon!

When a cat gets their teeth cleaned they do need to be put under an anesthetic. I can't think of a cat out there who would let you take this noisy machine that sprays water (to cool the tip and rinse where you are working) and get between the gum line and the teeth. Leaving an infected mouth is of much more danger to your cat than the anesthesia, so I would not the teeth problem go too long.

this is just an idea, but if she is throwing up all the different foods that you feed her, is it possible that she has a blockage and nothing is getting through?? does she use the bathroom??

She does use the bathroom at least three to four times a week. That doesn't seem to be a problem as far as I can tell. The vet recommended we give her a bit of vasoline once a week to help eliminate hairballs and soften stools. That has worked.

We plan to take her next month for her shots, checkup and cleaning. I hate they will have to do this but I know in her situation it is very necessary since her teeth are in such bad condition. I am convinced that may be part of her digestive problems.

Thanks for the advice on the food and your concern for our baby. She is a wonderful cat. We rescued her the day before they had planned to put her to sleep, She had been at the shelter for 4 months because they had wanted so desperately to get her a home. She is truly a blessing to us but we do worry about this problem for her nutritional sake.

Is Waltham the name of a store or a clinic? Where would I get this sensitivity food that you mentioned?

Waltham is a vet food... I would say talk to the vet about rx food and or try one with no wheat , corn , fish and soy

We have done everything possible to eliminate our cat's throwing up problem. We have taken her to the vet who says she has IBS. She was on prescription I.D. dry food for a while. She threw that up. She then went on prescription canned I.D. food. She threw that up and it was so messy. She is now on prescription Z.D. low allergen dry food and she has begun throwing this up. We are at our wits end. It is to the point my husband is considering either putting her outdoors (she has not been declawed) or even giving her away if we can't find an answer to this problem. The vet says that we can spend $$$$ to find out exactly what is wrong with her but there are no guarantees that anything will change this problem. We got this cat from the shelter and I really cannot see spending mega-bucks to learn that she will continue to throw up. She is obviously not a protein kitty because cheap cat foods with dyes in them and meat flavors really do her in. This prescription food helps but she still throws up on average of at least once a day or if we are lucky, every other day. Do any of you have any ideas on what we can do for this problem? These are not hairballs. It is cat food pure and simple -sometimes digested, sometimes not. I am at my wit's end!

Originally Posted by nbandsb

She does use the bathroom at least three to four times a week. That doesn't seem to be a problem as far as I can tell. The vet recommended we give her a bit of vasoline once a week to help eliminate hairballs and soften stools. That has worked.

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Is there anyone who too sees a problem with this? Marsh does a #2 at least twice a day.. i think 3-4 times a week is not regular

If she were my cat, I would find a feline specialist to have a look at her. She is vomiting way to much and tossing her outside is not going to stop her from vomiting.It will stop you from having to clean it up.

When cats vomit a lot they dehydrated quickly and they also have an electrolyte imbalance. Because she has bad teeth, she may not be chewing her food properly and instead just gulping it down taking in a lot of air at the same time, creating digestive upset. Because she lived in a shelter for four months, she is more than likely really reactive to stress and IBD is common for cats out of crowded shelters. I would be giving this cat pedialyte and gruel instead of dry and canned food. I would also not allow this cat to have anything like crackers or potato chips because of the salt and chemical content.

Is pedialyte the same stuff you give kids for dyhydration? What is gruel? She threw up even when she was eating canned food too. That didn't take nearly as long to eat as chewing up dry food. I don't plan to put her outside or give her away. I am just frustrated because we have done so much and nothing seems to be work.

Originally Posted by nbandsb

Is pedialyte the same stuff you give kids for dyhydration? What is gruel? She threw up even when she was eating canned food too. That didn't take nearly as long to eat as chewing up dry food. I don't plan to put her outside or give her away. I am just frustrated because we have done so much and nothing seems to be work.

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yes that is the kid stuff... what canned food s did you try..?? If the cat is throwing up zd dry have you tried the canned z/d??

They don't make canned Z/D.

Originally Posted by Petnurse2265

They don't make canned Z/D.

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Sorry my bad I must have it confused

I agree with Hissy...I think in part, what must be addressed are the bad teeth. Fwiw, the lip licking is a sign of nausea, something one sees in chronic renal failure kitties (not that this means she has that! just that I have a crf kitty, and they do deal with nausea and so I am familiar with the signs). I may have missed this, but what kind of diagnostic blood work was done? It doesn't cost that much (to me $100 or so is not horrendous for a detailed blood panel that checks kidney and liver values etc., if it gets you an answer).

I really think I'd get the teeth issue addressed, and see a specialist. Also...having had cats with ibd, a sono in my area costs under $300 - and this would give a good idea if there is an ibd issue as they'd take a good look at the intestines. However...my vet was able to tell on palpation if my cats intestines felt thickened and ropey (one potential sign of ibd)...what did your vet say on palpation of your cats intestines?

I am sorry to hear the Z/D was not the answer...for my Joshua (rb) it was (along with an initial course of flagyl and a course of prednisolone).

Best wishes to you, I hope you find out what is wrong, you are certainly doing what you can to give this kitty a good and healthy life,