Cat grass causing vomiting?

meowsersmom

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I bought some cat grass from petsmart a couple days ago and now I'm finding vomit all over my apartment. I've been leaving the grass out for them to nibble on, but the vomiting is getting excessive. Is this normal? I heard cats eat grass to make themselves throw up when they're not feeling well, but my cats aren't sick.
 

hissy

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It's perfectly normal, and your cats are probably not liking their food much. You might consider switching over to another brand of food that might be easier on their stomach.
 

coaster

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If you leave it out, they're probably eating too much. I just let my cats eat a little bit so they don't vomit.
 

horatio

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it is either ur cats r not used with the taste of the grass or the ate too much. stop giving them the grass for a couple of days after they had recuperate from the vomitting n try let them nibble. shud they vomit again, switch to another brand...
 

courtneyaustin3

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my cats love the grass too.. ocasionally there is a little vomit. I think that your baby probably just got excited and ate too much. Should the vomitting continue I would take it away for a while. If the cat wasn't throwing up before- I bet money it's not the food you have him on. It's the grass. I wouldn't worry about switching food if vomitting stops.
 

felicia's mom

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I always thought a reason for cats to eat grass was to cause them to vomit up any hairballs they had.
 

katielv

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I was watching Marc Moron talking about grass for dogs and I'm not sure if it's the same thing but he said a dog will eat the grass to throw up on purpose if the dog's tummy is not feeling well. Maybe the food that they're eating is making their tummies hurt.
 

buzbyjlc10

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Originally Posted by KatieLV

I was watching Marc Moron talking about grass for dogs and I'm not sure if it's the same thing but he said a dog will eat the grass to throw up on purpose if the dog's tummy is not feeling well. Maybe the food that they're eating is making their tummies hurt.
Definitely not truw of all dogs... my lab eats grass several times a day and never throws up - she just thinks she's a cow! She just likes it for some reason - has done it ever since she was a puppy and she's almost 12 now
 

g&g's mom

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My kitties eat grass, it helps keep the hairballs down, I read somewhere it helps break the balls down so they can pass through the digestive systems. My cats rarely if ever vomit, and like the poster above me they eat grass all the time when I let them into the back kennell, I think they think they're helping mow the grass.
 

hissy

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Guys, cats eat grass so they can vomit. The cat could have hairballs, the food may not agree with them, they could have drank some tap water and just be not feeling well. It's a common occurrence for cats after they eat grass to spit up or vomit.
 

coaster

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I'm sure that's correct for cats in general, and hissy knows a whole lot more about that than I do.
However, I'm quite sure that my Rocket eats grass because he likes it. He just had a checkup and he's in perfect health, feels great, never has had a hairball, and hasn't vomitted in over a year (he had worms). He might vomit if he eats too much grass, but I don't let him eat that much, and I'm quite sure that he's not eating it in order to induce vomitting. He just likes it.


I should add that he's a bit of a wierd cat in other ways, too.
 

zazie

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Yes. I "believe" cat grass can be quite dangerous when contaminated. Here is my experience. 

I have 2 cats. One eats the grass the other just nuzzles it. I used to grow my own grass than I started to buy it. The male cat who eats the grass used to vomit a little bit and I believe the grass helped him with hairballs.

Then he started to vomit a lot and eventually lost 2 lbs from his 14 Lbs frame - that is a lot. Meanwhile twice when I was in the process of throwing the grass in the garbage I noticed the most foul smell coming from the bottom of the grass container. I could smell it because I take the grass out of the pot, recycle the pot, and put the grass in the garbage can. 

Visit to the vet showed a high white count cells, signs of an infection or cancer. I do not know which one and will do not more tests. He got two shots two weeks apart of antibiotics and now he seems to be better. No more grass and no more vomiting. 

I have no certainty about the cause of the problem. However, my two cats live in the exact same environment and do not go outside. The only difference is that one use to eat grass and the other did not. This is not to say that grass is bad for cats, indeed, if free of contaminants, grass is good for them. I believe that the grass I purchased had been contaminated either by the potting soil, the water to start the seeds, or in transport. 

If your cat vomits I suggest that you grow your own grass from seeds and see what happens. That is what I will do. Also if growing your own do not use the container from a purchased plants but start with a clean one. A little vomiting once in a while is fine but a lot of food, clear or green liquid is not normal. 
 

zazie

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UPDATE - 

I did some research and one possible cause for the awful smell coming out of the grass container is this: when I water the cat grass I tend to put a enough water so that the container stands in water for a few days. This could cause the roots to rot hence a breeding ground for molds which could be the cause of my cat's sickness. I will do some experiments to verify this hypothesis meanwhile it would be a good idea to water the grass just so and to prevent stagnating water in the saucer.  

Another possible problem is when stores keep the cat grass outside. Birds are full of parasites of all sorts and they may nibble and/or poop in the grass thus contaminating the cat grass. 

Smell the roots of your cat grass and if your cat vomits a lot you may want to review the source of and the care for your cat grass. 
 

wendalore

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Two kinds of grass they are talking about. Grass that grows on the lawn, and grass that is grown in little pots just for cats to nibble on, grown from what, oat, rye, barley seeds. (grains)
 
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