In desperate need for help with vomiting

[Musiaka]

I just don't know what to do anymore and it feels like having my cat is the biggest curse in my life. I dread waking up in the morning to all this vomit.
Tried so much to try and at least minimize the frequency and all it has done is make it worse. Right now he pukes every single day and if it's every second day then it feels like a miracle.
We recently did the whole blood panel and the results were quite ok except his liver enzymes, but that's to be expected on Prednisolone (he's on 2,5 mg daily now but it seems to have stopped working). I have budesonide here at home but haven't started it yet as a lot of people say it does nothing for vomiting and their cats were much worse on it. His last ultrasound was inconclusive and frankly I'm tired of wasting money on ultrasounds as they never really say anything. He has a lot of gasses and his liver is a bit enlarged were the last "results". Two years ago he had gallstones and the vet was like "ohhh that's why he's vomiting, you need to remove his gallbladder". I refused, stack to ursolic acid and the stones were gone a year later. But the vomiting persists as strong as ever.

Now food. That's the most difficult topic. I have finally transitioned him to good quality monoprotein food and his vomiting has never been worse. It was so much better on crappy Purina's food (although at least I used to buy Purina pro plan ones), I swear by my everything. I don't think meaty foods suit him or anything that has texture. Only the softest pate that doesn't have high meat content. And I can't find any soft monoprotein pates that are within my budget also. Internationally shipping his food is just not sustainable for me (I'm in a small European country). What do I feed him? Could he in general have issues digesting protein? Could enzymes help? They're so insanely expensive I'd like to know before I buy.

Other things I've tried:
slippery elm
anti-acid chews
pepsid
metoclopramide
probiotics (not fortiflora, some good expensive ones for cats)
daily b12 oral
s boulardi
a course of antibiotics (vet prescribed)
feeding only a sensitive stomach recovery food

His stools are always well-formed and he never ever has diarrhea. The only thing that stops his vomiting is cerenia (one shot can stop it for several days) and a higher dose of Prednisolone. The problem with cerenia is that it's only available as shots and we can't come in to the vet clinic as often as he would need them, besides the vet doesn't really want to continue with it. My cat has been kibble-free for several years now. What to do?

 

[Kieka]

Is the vomiting immediately after eating or 1+ hour later?

 

[Musiaka]

Is the vomiting immediately after eating or 1+ hour later?

He usually vomits early in the morning (despite having access to food during the night) or after a long nap sometimes. He wakes up and starts smacking his lips and then gets off the bed to go puke. But it feels a bit too serious and too much to just be bilious vomiting or regurgitation...

 

[Kieka]

How often does he eat?

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I am just wondering why you cannot get Cerenia in pill form where you are. It's definitely available as I have it for my boy who often vomits and they can't figure out why. For my guy, it's 1/4 of a pill once a day and is quite easy to dose. I've been able to crush it and mix with his food and he'll actually eat it, and sometimes I have wrapped it in a soft treat and given it to him amongst other soft treats so he isn't aware he's getting one with a pill in it.

Additionally, you can order the prescription for Pepcid A/C in an injectable. It's called famotidine and that might be very helpful because all that vomiting might be hurting his esophagus and causing more issues. You inject it right into the scruff, and once again, it's very easy. We did that with our girl while she was getting her hourly loving and she was totally unaware it even happened . If you have access to an Internet Compounding Pharmacy, you can probably get both the above drugs if your Vet writes a prescription for them. I just googled "compounding pharmacy in Europe" and there are several. Of course, that's assuming you are somewhere in Europe.

Have you tried feeding him smaller meals, but more often? Just wondering if that might help. And if the "better" food is worse, why not go back to the Purina One?

As far as digestive enzymes go, I have used Prozyme in the past when I switched my cats to eating raw, and again, just googled it for sale in europe. It appears to be quite inexpensive there ($12. Euro). What were you looking at that is expensive? Of course, there is no guarantee that it will help with the vomiting, but it certainly might.

 

[GenCat]

I just don't know what to do anymore and it feels like having my cat is the biggest curse in my life. I dread waking up in the morning to all this vomit.
Tried so much to try and at least minimize the frequency and all it has done is make it worse. Right now he pukes every single day and if it's every second day then it feels like a miracle.
We recently did the whole blood panel and the results were quite ok except his liver enzymes, but that's to be expected on Prednisolone (he's on 2,5 mg daily now but it seems to have stopped working). I have budesonide here at home but haven't started it yet as a lot of people say it does nothing for vomiting and their cats were much worse on it. His last ultrasound was inconclusive and frankly I'm tired of wasting money on ultrasounds as they never really say anything. He has a lot of gasses and his liver is a bit enlarged were the last "results". Two years ago he had gallstones and the vet was like "ohhh that's why he's vomiting, you need to remove his gallbladder". I refused, stack to ursolic acid and the stones were gone a year later. But the vomiting persists as strong as ever.

Now food. That's the most difficult topic. I have finally transitioned him to good quality monoprotein food and his vomiting has never been worse. It was so much better on crappy Purina's food (although at least I used to buy Purina pro plan ones), I swear by my everything. I don't think meaty foods suit him or anything that has texture. Only the softest pate that doesn't have high meat content. And I can't find any soft monoprotein pates that are within my budget also. Internationally shipping his food is just not sustainable for me (I'm in a small European country). What do I feed him? Could he in general have issues digesting protein? Could enzymes help? They're so insanely expensive I'd like to know before I buy.

Other things I've tried:
slippery elm
anti-acid chews
pepsid
metoclopramide
probiotics (not fortiflora, some good expensive ones for cats)
daily b12 oral
s boulardi
a course of antibiotics (vet prescribed)
feeding only a sensitive stomach recovery food

His stools are always well-formed and he never ever has diarrhea. The only thing that stops his vomiting is cerenia (one shot can stop it for several days) and a higher dose of Prednisolone. The problem with cerenia is that it's only available as shots and we can't come in to the vet clinic as often as he would need them, besides the vet doesn't really want to continue with it. My cat has been kibble-free for several years now. What to do?

What is the "good quality" food? Will try to spot anything that may be triggering him.

 

[stephanietx]

Has your kitty been tested for pancreatitis or IBD?

 

[Joxer]

I just don't know what to do anymore and it feels like having my cat is the biggest curse in my life. I dread waking up in the morning to all this vomit.
Tried so much to try and at least minimize the frequency and all it has done is make it worse. Right now he pukes every single day and if it's every second day then it feels like a miracle.
We recently did the whole blood panel and the results were quite ok except his liver enzymes, but that's to be expected on Prednisolone (he's on 2,5 mg daily now but it seems to have stopped working). I have budesonide here at home but haven't started it yet as a lot of people say it does nothing for vomiting and their cats were much worse on it. His last ultrasound was inconclusive and frankly I'm tired of wasting money on ultrasounds as they never really say anything. He has a lot of gasses and his liver is a bit enlarged were the last "results". Two years ago he had gallstones and the vet was like "ohhh that's why he's vomiting, you need to remove his gallbladder". I refused, stack to ursolic acid and the stones were gone a year later. But the vomiting persists as strong as ever.

Now food. That's the most difficult topic. I have finally transitioned him to good quality monoprotein food and his vomiting has never been worse. It was so much better on crappy Purina's food (although at least I used to buy Purina pro plan ones), I swear by my everything. I don't think meaty foods suit him or anything that has texture. Only the softest pate that doesn't have high meat content. And I can't find any soft monoprotein pates that are within my budget also. Internationally shipping his food is just not sustainable for me (I'm in a small European country). What do I feed him? Could he in general have issues digesting protein? Could enzymes help? They're so insanely expensive I'd like to know before I buy.

Other things I've tried:
slippery elm
anti-acid chews
pepsid
metoclopramide
probiotics (not fortiflora, some good expensive ones for cats)
daily b12 oral
s boulardi
a course of antibiotics (vet prescribed)
feeding only a sensitive stomach recovery food

His stools are always well-formed and he never ever has diarrhea. The only thing that stops his vomiting is cerenia (one shot can stop it for several days) and a higher dose of Prednisolone. The problem with cerenia is that it's only available as shots and we can't come in to the vet clinic as often as he would need them, besides the vet doesn't really want to continue with it. My cat has been kibble-free for several years now. What to do?

I have a cat, Lindsey, who almost never has intestinal issues except when given canned food containing carrageenan. That is a non-nutritive additive that you can avoid with a number of canned foods, such as those made by Wellness. I would also avoid the obvious garbage that in no way benefits your cat, such as artificial colors and flavors.

For dry food, I have had good results with Purina Beyond Grain-Free Chicken & Egg Recipe. It's basically the best food that Purina makes. In theory, a few more expensive brands of dry food are more nutritious, but in practice, none of my cats will eat them.

You can also try addressing water intake. I run all my cats' water through a Brita Elite pitcher filter to remove lead and various other unhelpful additives. That has a very low cost per day and can only help (you as well as your cats).

 

[Musiaka]

I am just wondering why you cannot get Cerenia in pill form where you are. It's definitely available as I have it for my boy who often vomits and they can't figure out why. For my guy, it's 1/4 of a pill once a day and is quite easy to dose. I've been able to crush it and mix with his food and he'll actually eat it, and sometimes I have wrapped it in a soft treat and given it to him amongst other soft treats so he isn't aware he's getting one with a pill in it.

Additionally, you can order the prescription for Pepcid A/C in an injectable. It's called famotidine and that might be very helpful because all that vomiting might be hurting his esophagus and causing more issues. You inject it right into the scruff, and once again, it's very easy. We did that with our girl while she was getting her hourly loving and she was totally unaware it even happened . If you have access to an Internet Compounding Pharmacy, you can probably get both the above drugs if your Vet writes a prescription for them. I just googled "compounding pharmacy in Europe" and there are several. Of course, that's assuming you are somewhere in Europe.

Have you tried feeding him smaller meals, but more often? Just wondering if that might help. And if the "better" food is worse, why not go back to the Purina One?

As far as digestive enzymes go, I have used Prozyme in the past when I switched my cats to eating raw, and again, just googled it for sale in europe. It appears to be quite inexpensive there ($12. Euro). What were you looking at that is expensive? Of course, there is no guarantee that it will help with the vomiting, but it certainly might.

Cerenia is not available in pill form in my country. Every country in Europe is different and different things are available. I, for once, am located in Eastern Europe. No veterinary clinic has it and nobody knows if it will ever arrive. It makes me so disappointed and sad. Cerenia works really well for him and we got an injection yesterday. But going in to get it often won't work, because it requires a taxi ride and he gets so stressed and doesn't act like himself for several days.
Injecting my cat at home is not easy! As soon as he feels a needle enter his scruff or the fat above his leg, he freaks out. He had so many Cerenia injections (that are extremely painful) that he's very sensitive now.
If Pepsid isn't painful as an injection, it might work, I will check with my vet. Once again, not everything is available here even if google results for the continent makes it seems so. There are 50 countries here with different laws and regulations, import rules etc.
Are the injections more effective than Pepcid pills? The pills didn't do much for him, but maybe because I had to split it into two and the pill is coated.
I ordered some digestive digestive enzymes yesterday and it was pretty much the only thing I could find here and it was 50 euros. I hope they can help some :/

 

[Musiaka]

What is the "good quality" food? Will try to spot anything that may be triggering him.

I've been trying out different monoprotein foods, like Feringa Single Meat Menu Rabbit. This one has triggered his vomiting sooo much it's crazy. And either they don't disclose the whole ingredients list or I'm not sure what's in it could trigger him, looked it had such simple ingredients. I was also using Animonda Carni and Animonda von Feinstein but then heard that they refuse to disclose what thickener they use, so I dropped them (even though Animonda von Feinstein pure turkey was working quite well). Maybe it's the same thing with Feringa, they don't disclose the thickeners. :/

 

[Musiaka]

How often does he eat?

Pretty much as often as he's hungry, I'm free feeding him small meals throughout the day

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

So you cannot even order Cerenia pills via the internet. I understand different countries have different import rules, thus the question. You might check into it with some online compounding pharmacies and if they CAN do it, then ask what they need from your Vet to get things rolling.

If he does well on the Animonda von Feinstein, even though you don't know what thickeners they use, why not keep feeding it?

 

[Musiaka]

So you cannot even order Cerenia pills via the internet. I understand different countries have different import rules, thus the question. You might check into it with some online compounding pharmacies and if they CAN do it, then ask what they need from your Vet to get things rolling.

If he does well on the Animonda von Feinstein, even though you don't know what thickeners they use, why not keep feeding it?

I'm not really sure if I understand that thing about the compounding pharmacies - do you mean I could contact some online pharmacy in another country and try to order Cerenia with the help of my vet? I asked her if there is another way to order Cerenia and she didn't think so, but maybe she just didn't want to bother. Having Cerenia pills at home would be godsent for us... It works really well for my cat. I begged our old vet in another country (me and my cat moved countries some years ago) to prescribe it but he was like nope.

About the food from Animonda - well he was vomiting less, but he was still vomiting... It was never truly gone... I was really hoping to gradually start him on raw and introducing some more meaty foods with bits of organs seemed like the right path. But those messed him up quite a lot. Not sure if it's some thickener in meaty foods or he's unable to process textured food. Or maybe issues with protein...

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Yes that's exactly what I meant about contacting a compounding pharmacy.

Additionally, if you think he is having problems with digesting proteins and the digestive enzymes you ordered don't help, perhaps talk to your Vet about trying hydrolyzed protein food. It's prescription food,so that may also pose an issue, plus it's pricey, AND mostly comes in dry food, although there are a couple of brands that make it in wet food.

And finally, there are more than one anti-emetics available for use in cats. If you cannot get Cerenia in pill form, have you asked your Vet if they can get any other anti-emetic in pill form? How about Zofran? Of course, it may not work as well, but it might.

 

[GenCat]

Sorry to hear that it's so complicated for you over there. I would go crazy if I had to worry about what's in the food plus what is in it that isn't even listed.

In regards to digestive enzymes I would check out the Facebook group "Feline Nutrition Feeding Cats Like Cats" because they have a lot of info about how to safely use regular probiotics and what to look for. Maybe you'll find someone in your country who can help navigate things better than us Americans lol.

What have you tried so far raw/homemade?

 

[Kwik]

Hi,sorry sorry to hear about all your troubles and this poor little kitties issues.I understand completely regarding the import laws as my ex was (is) Australian and we went back n forth from there to here(America) as I really could not with all the cats- even sending candy to Australia was problematic- medicationd would rarely get past customs - I lost a ton of money on many things that never got to him and were never returned- poof,gone.... so it's really not worth trying

A compound pharmacy reformulated drugs .... for example something that is pill " form" is made into a liquid suspension and can even be flavored for easier oral administrations.Or reformulating into something transdermal for topical application etc.. If you can locate a Compound pharmacy in your Country then they can send the drug to you or your Vet once it is ordered by your Vet( hope thst info helps?)

If I were you I would go back to the Purina One that you had success with,I'm sure you are letting your little one eat at will but are you limiting her intake,like with an automatic feeder thst limits precise portions? Does she eat too fast or too much at one time- I know these are the simplest most obvious questions but sometimes they can be the simplest resolutions and I am just asking

This is one of the most frustrating things a pet parent can encounter- I'm sure your anxiety over this is exhausting and I'm so sorry- I would really research a pharmacy that can help with the problem of prescription drugs you are having- what about omeprazole,is that available? The licking the lips can indicate gastroesophageal reflux but besides the vomiting she seems asymptomatic- so you might just do better with a proton-punp inhibitor drug instead ,which is used for the treatment of ulcers in the stomach & the upper part of the small intestine( rather than a H2RA Famitadine type drug)Omeprazole brand names eg: Gastrogard,Prilosec and Losec)...so it is more beneficial if it's gastro intestinal ulceration causing the acid reflux etc and would address either,the H2RAs would be inferior

Perhaps you might want to ask your Vet about this

 

[fionasmom]

Antacids – IBDKitties
This is a useful discussion from the IBD Kitties site about antacids and cats. Have you been able to discuss a prescription for injectable Pepcid with your vet? I would urge caution with the over the counter use of antacids, especially omeprazole.

 

[Kwik]

I do agree with fionasmom about anything OTC-I do not use otc myself,everything I give my cats are specific feline prescription drugs ..... again,I encourage you to have a discussion with your Vet or another Vet for alternatives

 

[Musiaka]

Antacids – IBDKitties
This is a useful discussion from the IBD Kitties site about antacids and cats. Have you been able to discuss a prescription for injectable Pepcid with your vet? I would urge caution with the over the counter use of antacids, especially omeprazole.

He’s got and OTC Omeprazole from his vet. It’s really difficult to divide. She said cat specific Omeprazole or Pepcid aren’t available unfortunately. We will soon change countries and hopefully they can offer something new. I know that Cerenia will be available in pill form.
The struggle continues. It’s actually way worse than when I wrote this thread. I even considered putting him down at one point. He started having diarrhoea more often, pee on furniture and lose weight. He’s on an appetite stimulant right now. It’s a rollercoaster. Too bad we will have to add the travelling stress on top of that. But the flight is only 50 min long luckily.

 

[Kwik]

He’s got and OTC Omeprazole from his vet. It’s really difficult to divide. She said cat specific Omeprazole or Pepcid aren’t available unfortunately. We will soon change countries and hopefully they can offer something new. I know that Cerenia will be available in pill form.
The struggle continues. It’s actually way worse than when I wrote this thread. I even considered putting him down at one point. He started having diarrhoea more often, pee on furniture and lose weight. He’s on an appetite stimulant right now. It’s a rollercoaster. Too bad we will have to add the travelling stress on top of that. But the flight is only 50 min long luckily.

I'm so sorry for your poor boy and all you are going through-It must be just awful not being able to get meds ,I do hope where you are going is much much better and that you will get a good Vet there so that he can be treated .....how old is your boy?

May you all have a safe trip and you're in my prayers- keep us posted and I really hope to hear a good report ,be Blessed