How to make a sick kitty feel better?

[maverick899]

I'm really worried about my cat, Benson. Ben's been sick for a few days now and I'm not sure what to do. He's not eating or drinking much, he's lethargic, and he's been vomiting. I think he might have eaten something he shouldn't have, but I'm not sure.

I've already made an appointment with the vet, but it's not until next week. In the meantime, I was hoping to get some advice from other cat owners who may have gone through something similar.

What are some good ways to help my little Benson feel better? Are there any home remedies or over-the-counter medications that might help? Should I be worried about dehydration? Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[gilmargl]

Hydration is the most important issue. Make sure he has water and try to encourage him to drink. Some cats can be tempted to drink from a running tap. If you are worried that he is not drinking at all, squirt water into his mouth from a syringe - as often as he will allow you to do so.

Even before your appointment, a vet will sell you a tin or bottle of a special, easily-digestible cat food which is given to cats recovering from illnesses or operations. Here in Germany it is called "Recovery" or "ReConvales Tonicum". It is more expensive than normal cat food but my sick cat was willing to eat some from my fingers. Keep it in the fridge and give some as often as possible (if necessary with a syringe). I always keep some in the house when I am fostering stray mama cats and their kittens.

To reduce nauseousness, we give Nux Vomica (homeopathic globules or solution) to both cats and kittens. In fact, a few weeks ago, my senior cat had similar symptoms to Benson - plus coughing as though something was stuck in her throat. I thought it may be a piece of cat grass bought from a garden centre or some poisoning if the grass had been sprayed with insecticide. The vet gave her an infusion (dehydration) and an injection of Nux Vomica, which was repeated the next day. She could see nothing stuck in the cat's throat and advised me not to have her investigated further, as she was not fit enough to survive sedation.
Well, my elderly cat is now back under my feet - complaining about life in general. I hope Benson gets better soon. Good luck.

 

[cmshap]

Hi, I'm sorry you are going through this. All I can offer to this discussion is what my cat has gone through a few times.

My cat has always had a sensitive stomach, and has been a frequent vomiter. Usually, it was from eating his food too fast (he was a rescue who almost starved to death, so he scarfs food). But he also just hasn't been able to tolerate many foods. There were a few times in the past 8 years where he spent an entire 1-2 days vomiting.

I am not an expert, and my cat is not the same as your cat, so I can't say for sure if this is good advice. But I was in a similar situation before, where my cat was vomiting a lot, but I couldn't get him into the vet for a few days. But my vet told me over the phone that I could try feeding him pieces of a plain boiled chicken breast (boiled in plain water).

The boiled chicken is easily digestible, from what I understand, so I fed him pieces of it and he was eating. I also provided him with PLENTY of water, and he was drinking a lot, so I was constantly filling his water dish.

He always got better after a day or two, and I never knew the exact cause. My vet said it can sometimes be impossible to know. He was tested for parasites, fecal exam, etc. and nothing was found wrong. So the best answer I ever got was "sensitive stomach" which my vet acknowledged is not a good answer.

We changed his food after those incidents. I've changed his food many times over the past 8 years. Sometimes it just seems like he can no longer tolerate the food he's been eating for a long time, and then changing it fixes the problem. I never got an answer about why that is.

I should add that his vomiting definitely decreased after switching him to mostly wet food. He was raised on dry so that's what he was getting for a long time, and it was a process switching him to wet, but he's doing better on mostly wet (I give him a ratio of 3:1 wet:dry).

 

[lisahe]

I'm really worried about my cat, Benson. Ben's been sick for a few days now and I'm not sure what to do. He's not eating or drinking much, he's lethargic, and he's been vomiting. I think he might have eaten something he shouldn't have, but I'm not sure.

I've already made an appointment with the vet, but it's not until next week. In the meantime, I was hoping to get some advice from other cat owners who may have gone through something similar.

What are some good ways to help my little Benson feel better? Are there any home remedies or over-the-counter medications that might help? Should I be worried about dehydration? Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance for your help.

I'm sorry to hear about Benson's vomiting, M maverick899 . How is he doing today? If he's still vomiting a lot and doesn't seem better, maybe the vet would give you a medication (something like Cerenia?) to stop the vomiting so you can reduce the symptoms before they see him. A week is a long time to wait for a cat who's vomiting and not eating. Maybe they could find time for him to at least come in for a quick exam and some fluids?

In any case, the previous posts have good, helpful ideas for you -- hydration and plain food are important. Beechnut stage one chicken or turkey baby food are favorites for our cat who has a tendency to vomit. She loves them and they're just chicken and broth.

All that said, this question may sound strange but what kind of vomiting is Benson having? Is he regurgitating his whole meals very soon after eating it? Or is what comes up clear and frothy? Or yellowish-brownish? Is there a mix of liquid and food that's completely or partially digested? How long after eating does he tend to vomit? Some cats with stomach issues might do all of these. We have a cat like that. What cmshap writes here applies to her, too:

My cat has always had a sensitive stomach, and has been a frequent vomiter. Usually, it was from eating his food too fast (he was a rescue who almost starved to death, so he scarfs food). But he also just hasn't been able to tolerate many foods.

I ask those questions because there are lots of ways that cats vomit... and since it can be hard to sort out causes, knowing what's coming up might help us to give you ideas. I don't know where you live but this is shedding season in North America, where I live, and that's big, big trouble. Hair doesn't have to be a formed hairball (or come out in a big clump) to cause a cat to vomit. We brush our fluffy cat a lot at this time of year, with all kinds of brushes. I also give her extra egg yolk in her food plus a small dose of daily Vaseline to keep the fur she ingests moving out of her stomach. All these things help.

Slippery elm bark syrup is something that helps a lot of cats who are vomiting and have stomach issues. I'd read about it for a long time before finally trying it for Edwina last year, when the vet couldn't take us. I still use it: she loves it with some crumbled freeze-dried chicken sprinkled on it and it's a good, small appetizer that helps prevent her from eating her meal too fast and regurgitating. Here's a page about it: Slippery elm - Holistic Actions!
I use half the amount of powder when I make syrup but I feed 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of it (with chicken) four times a day before meals. Do note what Dr. Hofve says about absorption of medications. Our vet is all for slippery elm bark, too, but of course it's best to check with your vet before trying it for Benson just in case there's something in his history that might make it inappropriate.

Fingers crossed that he starts to feel better soon.