Sick Cat - advice?

I have a 3 yr old shorthair female, named Kava. Have had her since a kitten. She is indoor-only, and I have no other pets. I usually feed Iams Hairball formula, and she has done well on this. About a month or so ago, I picked up some Iams Multi-cat because it was on sale and started mixing it with her regular food. She started sneezing when she ate, but I didn't think much of it.

She usually didn't vomit, but after the new food was introduced vomiting increased to a couple times a week. Last week (8/30 Weds), she vomited while I was at work, then again about 2am. Big hairball in the night vomit.

I didn't think much of it & fed her as usual Thurs a.m. When I got home from work, she didn't ask to be fed as usual; laid in the tub by herself; not social. When this persisted, I took her to the vet on Sat (9/2). He gave her a laxative gel and Amoxicillin in case she had an infection. Additionally, I switched her back to the Hairball formula, and have also offered tuna to try to interest her in eating more. Unfortunately, she hasn't improved much. Here's current symptoms:

- not very interested in eating; but will eat small amounts when I hand-feed
- has not vomited since Weds (8/30)
- drinks water & pees fine
- small bowel mov'ts every couple days, but none since Weds (9/6)
- licking paws
- wants to lay still by herself in another room (unusual behavior); lethargic
- no playing (usually very playful)
- shaking head and scratching right ear (this has increased since Sat)
- reluctant to move around; when she does, she runs quick w/her back feet like she's trying to get the discomfort over quickly
- she lets me rub her belly (very unusual), and doesn't seem sensitive in any one place, altho she's occasionally complained

I called the vet again on Tuesday (9/5) because she hadn't had a stool since Sunday. He wasn't too concerned, said to continue the meds and call if it persisted. She then had a stool that evening.

I would welcome any suggestions. Is it normal for constipation or a negative reaction to a new food to take this long to pass? Should I suspect some other problem? How long to wait before I go back to the vet? It's expensive, and I don't want to rush back too soon if I just need to wait for the problem to pass ....

Unsure what to do ...
Cresanna

Gosh, it sounds like she's really not feeling very well. If it were me I'd find another vet and get a second opinion. Cats are very good at hiding pain and it sounds like this little one is in pain.

I would question a vet that didn't think a cat not going to the bathroom and not eating without being hand fed is not a big problem.

My suggestion is to look up another vet and get her there - sooner rather than later.

Sounds like your baby is really not well. You're probably dealing with 2 separate issues. The sneezing and ear scratching could be related. If the weather's changed around the time this started, your kitty could have allergies which triggered an ear infection. Any type of illness will cause a cat to withdraw and be lethargic.

The change of food may have triggered an allergy or she may have developed gas. A normal response to this is throwing up. If she's not eating, then she's not going to have normal bowel movements.

I would definitely go back to the vet or get a second opinion. You're her meowmy and you know what's normal and what's not.

Stephanie

Well, we were back to the vet today .... he checked her over thoroughly and couldn't feel anything wrong internally. Took an x-ray and could see her stomach is stuffed full, probably a hairball. Since she passed a stool late last night, he feels that it is just going to take awhile to gradually work it out. So we're continuing the laxative a couple times a day, soft canned food and patience.

Cresanna