My cat keeps throwing up.

[nabell1]

I hope "feeding frenzy" is the appropriate place for this thread. I was just wondering if anyone else has this problem - My eleven year old kitty, Tuli, throws up a lot. I've had her to the vet numerous times. She has been on steroids, still nothing seems to help. We have resorted to feeding her MANY times a day - just a tiny spoonful at a time. If we give her a bigger helping, or a second helping too soon, it all comes up again. Sometimes there is a hair ball, but not always. Consequently she is constantly begging for food. She also has a continual sinus infection. The vet recommended surgery on her teeth, but frankly I'm not sure that would solve the problem. As a kitten she had some kind of injury that left her with only one eye. When I adopted her, they did not tell me what had happened to her. I suspect that the injury may have damaged more than just her eye. She's such a sweet kitty and I want very much to do the right things for her. Any suggestions?

[emroul]

What kind of food do you feed her? I'm not an expert on cats, but my parents' calico used to throw up if she had "pork" in her food mix. She must have been alergic or something. Anyway, if it is a continuous problem, I could say there is probably a stomache infection in there somewhere, that is recognizing the food as a foriegn object, so to speak. Is she losing alot of weight because of this? Let me know..

[MrPetLover]

We had a cat who was constantly throwing up all the time after eating. We tried everything, from changing foods, to limiting her activity after eating, to keeping her from the other cats when eating (maybe she was eating too fast), to dozens of vet visitings and x-rays. We couldn't figure anything out. She was ALWAYS (from 1 year oldish and onward) a very very thin and petite cat.

After a few years of this, we moved to a new home and before moving in, we decided it was best for her to go and live with my fiance's parent's whos cats lived indoors/outdoors... (in other words, throwing up in the grass, rather than on new carpets).

They continued with vet visits to their vet and still nothing showed up. Finally, it was too the point the little girl was not going to make it if they couldn't figure out what was going on so the vet did surgery to investigate. What he found was that the hole for food to get into her stomach was no thicker than a pencil, when apparently, it was supposed to be a good bit bigger. While she was under, he made some attempts to fix the problem.

It all started to make sense when we heard this... she would eat and eat, but it couldn't get to her stomach. She's throw it all back up and, of course, still be hungry. And she was always so thin!

Well, the surgery was a success and now, some 3 years later, she's put on a lot of weight and actually looks healthy. She doesn't throw up nearly as often, but still does every now and then (but still more than a normal cat). She's still on some meds and the like, but she's much much better than she was (and still alive).

I obviously have no idea if this is the type of problem your cat is experiencing, but I wanted to relay the story of our cat.

If the food she's throwing up has been digested, then this is probably not the same thing. Also, our cat had been thin from the time she got out of kitten stage. If your cat is older and is now getting thinner, then it's probably now the same thing either.


As for teeth surgery, if getting the food down is not the problem, then my humble opinion would be the teeth are not the problem.

BUT, I'll add that I have a 4 year old cat who REFUSES to eat any type of tartar/plaque control treats or cat food. As a result, he is the only 1 of 7 that had cavities. He went under to have 2 teeth pulled and they ended up pulling 5 because they were so bad. He is now much better with eating and, in general, a much "happier" cat.



Just bear in mind, I'm just a pet owner and certainly NOT an expert! :-)


(this isn't the right forum for this post, but that's ok because noone has posted in her yet to begin with. *chuckle*)

[nabell1]

Thanks for your replies. Tuli has always been a small, relatively thin cat. I don't think her weight has changed too much. She only eats wet food. If we give her the dry she swallows it whole and then up it comes. The vet did say to only give her chicken and turkey, but frankly I don't see a big difference in the results. She used to dearly love salmon (catfood salmon that is), but I've stopped the seafood thing altogether. Ironically, she won't even touch people food!

[nabell1]

By the way, I feel kinda stupid about posting this in the wrong place - sorry!

[an98f]

I had a persian cat (long hair) and I gave her a special hairball remedy. However, I noticed that whenever we let her eat some grass, she threw up a milky colored liquid. Our vet told us this is normal. There was no food chunks in there. So maybe yor cat's been nipping on some plants???

[kiwizepp]

Here is another thread that I started because my cat had the same problem..there might be some information in here that could help you too...although my cat is overweight and eats too fast, it turned out that his only problem was having furballs that he wasn't coughing up..therefore he wasn't able to keep his food down. I tried the furball remedy and also a furball food from iams and he hasn't thrown up since! Also mine throws up w/ certain kinds of seafood..it could be an allergy. But always best to check w/ your vet:

http://forums.petlovers.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=707

[nabell1]

No, it's definitely food - Undigested at that. Thanks for the suggestion, however. She doesn't usually touch my plants. She does do something really strange though. After she throws up she likes to lick plastic! I haven't heard of any other cats that do this. In fact if I see her licking plastic, I know to look for a "suprise" somewhere!

[nabell1]

kiwizepp- We must have been typing at the same time! Your post wasn't even there when I posted my last one. - You might be right about the hair balls. There often is a hair ball, but not always. (Maybe she's still trying!) I've seen dry hairball remedy foods. Do you know if they make wet food for hairballs? Tuli can only eat wet food. (She doesn't have many teeth.) By the way, does your cat lick plastic or is my cat just strange?

[Squawksx3]

nabell... try Petromol(spelling?) for hairballs. It comes in a tube and you can get it at most pet stores. I get mine at Petsmart, but Im currently out.. otherwise I could give you the correct spelling. My cats LOVE it, you just squeeze it from the tube into their mouth. I give it to them every once in a while and they think its a wonderful treat ;). I've never had problems with hairballs. :)

[kiwizepp]

nabell1 - My cats eat the dry iams hairball food...and if your cat can't eat that then try one of the hairball remedy's like listed above..I got mine Laxotone, it comes in a tube as well..you just let them eat it out of the tube or off of your finger every couple of days until the problem subsides..and they do think it is a treat! I haven't had any problems since I started using it....then after a week or two you don't have to give it to them as often! I would suppose any hairball remedy in a tube would work fine, as long as your cat likes the taste! :) Hope it works out..and from what I've discovered.....the cats can have a hairball in their tummy that needs to come out..so they eat and can't fit all that food in there so they throw it up undigested. That is EXACTLY what my cat was doing for months..and I couldn't figure it out! Well problem solved! Let me know if it works! :)

[an98f]

The hairball remedy Petromol, is a great idea, I've given that to my cat and saw some instant results. She didn't like it at first, but what you can do is put some of it on the cat's paw where it can lick it off.

P.S. I know hairballs are really bad, but it actually saved my cat's life once. My mom was sewing something and when I called her, she left the needle with the thread out on the table. When she hung up the phone, she noticed my cat chew on something and she noticed it was sparkling in her mouth. When she realized what happened, she called me. I was like 10 minutes away and I ran with my cat to the vet. When the x-ray was taken, the vet saw that my cat has swallowed the needle and she was in need of an emergency surgery. Luckily, when my cat swallowed the needle, it was stopped by a big hairball from going further into her system and making more damage. So that's how my cat was saved by a nasty hair ball.

[nabell1]

Thanks for all your advice. I'll give the tube treatments a try. Now that I think back, I think I tried it when she was younger. I don't think she liked the taste. I think I even tried putting it on her paw (I felt very mean doing it) She's older, now, however. Maybe she'll be more cooperative. I sure hope so! It's funny, I had forgotten all about that.

an98f - I guess that hairball acted as an internal pin cushion! Thank God!

[DrJenAW]

I :( One of our cats throws up a lot too. She started right around 8 months of age. She is nearly two years old now and has lot some weight. Her parents were small, but I am very concerned about her small size. We've tried so many foods. I have not tried wet food, but I just ground up some of the dry food with water and we will see how that works. Don't be fooled by the id name. I am not a vet, but a soon to be dentist. I have thought about it for a long time and since the food is not "digested," it is probably not making it to the stomach - therefore the hypothesis that the cardiac sphincter is too small to let food in to the stomach is a good one. As far as the plastic goes, our cat loves to lick the inside of plastic Walmart bags, so your baby is not that far off :)

[Myrage]

I have a domestic short hair that has always thrown up--all her life! But only recently has she been throwing up with relative frequency. Thanks everyone for your comments and advice to nabell 1 because they addressed a lot of my concerns too! As for the plastic chewing--I don't think it's related. I've seen it often in vomiters and non-vomiters. I'm not sure the reason for this habit but it's relatively benign--as long as they don't swallow the plastic! Thanks again I'm going to try hairball remedy and check for food allergies.

[KatMom]

You can get this tube of stuff just packed with vitamins and fish oil.... It's called Nutri-cal. If your cat is constantly puking......it helps with electrolytes.....Vitamins ( GOOD STUFF ) . I get it from my vet. It comes in a fat tube like Toothpaste. We give it to the cats that has digestive problems at the humane society. My 15 yr. old LOVES the stuff ; he's like a kid with candy. :D

KatMom

[Magnum]

I have no idea how I missed this thread. I've posted on everything else...lol

Good suggestion KatMom!! My Kitty Kelly uses Nutri-Cal. She's been an up-chucker ever since she was 6 months and she is now 15 years old. I tried the hairball stuff, hairball food, you name it...didn't work. So, I just started giving her Nutri-Cal. It works, it's healthy, she gets her nutrients, and maintains her weight. I came across this stuff when my shepherd had cancer. If it maintained a 130 lb dog, a 10 lb. cat was a cinch. :)

[KCCaneCorsos]

both of my cats have always thrown up, but 1 more than the other. I mean ALWAYS. I have taken them to the vet, nothing was found, etc. Does this Nutri-Cal stuff help stop the vomitting, or just help them get the nutrition they need?

[KatMom]

It helps settle Jellybeans stomach......and it is a Vitamin /mineral supplement.
Nutri - Cal is a high Calorie Palatable dietary supplement for dogs & cats
made by....EVSCO Pharmaceuticals in Buena Vista New Jersey 1-800-267-5707

I hope this helps !! :D
KatMom

[Magnum]

Kelly used to Ralph several times a day before Nutri-Cal. Now she does a few time a week, maybe less. I think her tummy gets upset when she has ingested a certain amount of hair more than anything.

[ZippersMom]

We have a little short haired Japanese Bobtail that only weighs about 5 pounds on her good days. She's a house cat. She has thrown up off and on her whole life. She's 5 now and this last week has been a nightmare. everytime she eats her wet food she throws it up. Our vet said don't feed her any wet food to keep her teeth clean. That seemed really cruel. She gets about a tablespoon of wet food 2 times a day. Otherwise she eats crunchies (dry food). She just had her 6 month well cat check and the vet said she was in perfect health. Do you all feed your cats wet food?

[KatMom]

My Crew gets strictly Dry Food. Alot of canned food has Ash , Charcoal and various other fillers in them. So I stay strictly to DRY. Mine gets Tuna fish during the week too. Not all the time , but as a treat. The oils in it is Great for their digestion & coat. If I am making tuna sandwiches for myself ...I save the juice for the cats ... (( JUST ME )) rather than pouring it down the drain. :D ;)

KatMom

[ZippersMom]

:( We took Zipper to her doctor this morning. She got really bad. When she started to make a little crys before she threw up I paniced. So far she has had blood work and x rays. Nothing has been found. Her vet said she's dehydrated, so he's kept her to give her fluids. I will pick her up later and return her tomorrow for a barium (sp?) x ray, to rule out a foreign body blockage. Poor baby. I feel so bad. She hates to go to the vet. It takes her days to recover.

[KatMom]

I am So Sorry to hear that !! Poor Baby .... I hope they find out whats wrong & wishes for a Very Speedy Recovery !!! Hugs & Kisses to Zipper.... Keep us updated Please !!

KatMom

[ZippersMom]

Thank you so much for your concern. Zipper got home about 4:00 yesterday afternoon. Her Doc couldn't find anything. She seemed to have an unusual amount of gas in her intestine, but he found no metal. The next step was the barium today at 10:00...if she wasn't feeling better. He recommended only tuna and water for the evening. Well, here we are, the next day and except for not having enough energy to play "lite" (light chasing), she is helping me decorate the Christmas tree. Her Doc said 50% of the time he never sees his kitties back the next day. So, $320 later, she seems to be O.K. Maybe it was a 3day kitty flue.
P.S. We did find out one evening of tuna was enough....she won't eat anymore..she just looks at me as if to say "And you want who to eat that?" and walks away.

[catwoman]

To Zippersmom: I swear it could have been me writing your post. I am having the same problems with my 6 mon old kittie Josie. The screaming when she throws up is excruciating. Please keep me informed if you find out what could be the cause. Thanks.

[chrisvirgo]

hello. my cat molly has been throwing up for a while now. 3 years at least. Sometime it is just hairball but other times it is just food. And it is always if she hasent eaten in a while and them scarfs some food down. two minutes later and boom. She is an indoor outdoor cat and kind of large (12 pounds). since she is large, i try to keep her feeding regulated by letting her run out of food for a couple hours. I know cats are always supposed to have a constant bowl of food to much on but then she just eats and eats and eats. So i let it run out and then feed her but when i do she scarfs it down and pukes. or if shes outside for the night or afternoon then comes in and eats, same thing. Sometimes its a straight up hairball, but 75% of the time its the food that she just ate, completely undigested. Only 2 minutes after she ate. She is a very long haired cat so i understand that shell have hairballs but why does she puke up the undigested food? Im going to check out that toothpaste tube stuff that somebody suggested earlier. BTY, I brush her regularly and feed her Purina One advanced hairball and weight managment food, which costs alot and doesnt seem to help. Thanks guys, BTY again, I freaking love my cat and hate to see her suffering, even if it is only for 20 seconds. Poor thing. Thanks guys

[Zoebiwan]

When there is completely undigested food in the throw up, it is regurgitation. It does happen when they eat too fast. You may want to try and keep a bowl down filled with food constantly and see if that curbs the problem.

[RoxyGirl]

I have a 3 year old cat and if his bowl is constantly filled he'll eat it all in one shot, and i noticed he had diarreah and blood in his stools i took him to the vet, and she told me that because he ate to much his intestines were irritated and never got a chance to "rest" i started measuring his food ( they say he should eat about 1 cup a day) but he is ok just eating 1/2 cup each day, he couldnt possibly eat more and he is a big cat he weighs abhout 15 pounds! i give him 1/4 cup in the morning and 1/4 cup in the evening, it helped alot now his stools are normal. He also had the throwing up problem, a friend suggested me to grow some "cat grass" ( not catnip, special grass) for him to munch on as a snack, ever since then he rarely throws up except for the occasional hairbal...( the grass is packed with vitamins and other good stuff) i dont leave the grass down all day because if he eats too much of it, he will barf that up too, let him eat it a couple minutes a few times a day, if you see that he eats too much of it at a time he should not eat it for more than approximately 10 minutes a day if you see that he will go once in a while and take a couple bites and leave you can leave it for him all day but mine will eat it until it is all gone! ADDED BONUS TO CAT GRASS, it is extreemely cheap ( with one package i made so far 3 "batches" and still have enought left for a couple more ) i gave some to my mother and a friend and they also say it helped their cats out alots, it grows really quickly so once you grow it, water it everyother day or so and it will keep growing, like regular grass, and with cat grass your cat will stop eating your house plants! Hope it helps!

[tsemper]

Thank you so much for your concern. Zipper got home about 4:00 yesterday afternoon. Her Doc couldn't find anything. She seemed to have an unusual amount of gas in her intestine, but he found no metal. The next step was the barium today at 10:00...if she wasn't feeling better. He recommended only tuna and water for the evening. Well, here we are, the next day and except for not having enough energy to play "lite" (light chasing), she is helping me decorate the Christmas tree. Her Doc said 50% of the time he never sees his kitties back the next day. So, $320 later, she seems to be O.K. Maybe it was a 3day kitty flue.
P.S. We did find out one evening of tuna was enough....she won't eat anymore..she just looks at me as if to say "And you want who to eat that?" and walks away.
Hi Zippers mom! I have the same problem with my 1 year old kitty. I brought him to the vet several times and no one knows what the issue is. He throws up digested food so perhaps we aren't sharing the same problem. Can you please tell me what the outcome for zipper was.

please help, its urgent!

[Massimo]

Mo used to throw up because he wouldn't chew and chew. He would scarf down all the food whole and then it would expand in his stomach and he would throw up. The only other times he throws up is when he is in his kennel in the car or eats pine needles.

tsemper... sorry to hear that your kitty is having problems.

[BillyDee03]

Have you ever tried "LIFE"S ABUNDANCE? It is a wholistic Pet Food that contains no corn, wheat, gluten or soy which are hard to digest and is known to give allergies. Also doesn't have by-products (beaks, feet, heads, hooves, euthanized companion animals, ect) No chemical presevatives like BHA & BHT which promote liver cancer. No artificial flavors, colors, and preservatives.

They only use the freshest, human quality meat proteins. It is veterinarian formulated for optimum health.

The pet food manufacturers do not have your pets' best interest in mind. Current pet food regulations allow manufactures to use ingredients that you would never knowingly feed your pet.

My 3 cats' love it and the litter box doesn't have as much fecal matter after just a week of eating this food. It is really holistic!

Check them out at www.HolisticPetNutrition.Info
__________________
Dee Harsh
DeesPetService.com

[longgleggz]

Thank you so much for your concern. Zipper got home about 4:00 yesterday afternoon. Her Doc couldn't find anything. She seemed to have an unusual amount of gas in her intestine, but he found no metal. The next step was the barium today at 10:00...if she wasn't feeling better. He recommended only tuna and water for the evening. Well, here we are, the next day and except for not having enough energy to play "lite" (light chasing), she is helping me decorate the Christmas tree. Her Doc said 50% of the time he never sees his kitties back the next day. So, $320 later, she seems to be O.K. Maybe it was a 3day kitty flue.
P.S. We did find out one evening of tuna was enough....she won't eat anymore..she just looks at me as if to say "And you want who to eat that?" and walks away.
ZippersMom, Did you ever find out what was wrong with Zipper??? I just had the same thing happen to my Bera. She is 7 months old. I came home to find her food thrown up and then later she threw up again and then she started to doing the heart-wrenching crying before she threw up. She had a little bout of diarrea too. I took away all food and water since she wasn't keeping anything down and took her to the vet the next morning. She was dehydrated and the vet thought she had a blockage. He took x-rays and didn't find anything then did bloodwork and everything checked out and then she did exploratory surgery to make sure there wasn't a problem with her intestines. Her intestines looked fine but were filled with a lot of gas, her stomach looked good but her lymph nodes were swollen. They put her on antiobiotics and some medicine to help her keep down food. She is eating and is about back to normal but I'm afraid it will happen again and I would be devastated if anything happened to her. And I also wouldn't be able to stand seeing her like that again!!!! I was wondering if Zipper was tested for Feline Leukemia?? How is Zipper doing?? Anymore episodes???

Please please please write back...

[jblilbear]

Somewhere there's a topic about my torti Jasmine. I should update that. She loves to chew on plastic too. She used to share our master bathroom with the other two cats, but now she doesn't. She hasn't for a week and hasn't thrown up once. i've seperated her from them and she's had hairball remedy a couple of times this week and wet hairball remedy wet food a couple of times. She's an excesive licker too so hairballs can be a problem. Does your cat lick alot?

[ihasakitteh]

maybe zipper has stomach ulcers, or reflux

[sotagirl17]

I have two cats, one is long haired and never throws up. My small 8lb short haired cat is about 2 years old now and she started throwing up at about 8 months old. I know she's been through some stresses of moving and having another cat introduced to our family but now it's been a year of routine and she still throws up just as regular as before.
Sometimes it looks like a pile of undigested food, or liquid only, and sometimes it looks like poop and then I realize is throw up. I'm starting to wonder if there is something else really wrong but the last time we were at the vet, they found nothing. I also changed her food (dry food) about a year ago in case of allergy. I feed her separate from the other cat and she actually has a special privledge and gets her bowl of food on the counter because the other cat won't jump up on the counter (he's too fat, lol). I've tried extra attention, vaseline and hair ball treatments. I just don't know what to do. Almost everyday I clean up throw up. I'm almost hoping she does have a small stomach and just can't handle what she eats. I feel so bad for her but it doesn't seem to bother her too much.
Any other suggestions are welcome. I'm so glad I'm not alone.

[scollins]

I just came upon a brand called Harmony Farms. It is gluten free, no soy, no corn no wheat. No by-products. Only natural stuff. And I guess it can be bought at Target.

[lmac]

My kitty was throwing up almost every night and it wasn't hairballs - it was partially digested food. So I started searching different websites to see if other people had this problem and saw alot of people did and they had all kinds of suggestions as to why this was happening and what to do about it. Some of them were expensive remedies such as herbal supplements at $75 a bottle and others were "rush to the vet it could be a twisted stomach" and I just didn't want to rush to these conclusions because my kitty is very healthy and I don't have much money. Plus all the suggestions seemed to say "but my cat still throws up and/or my vet didn't really know" so I kept looking. Finally I found an entry that said "my vet told me that I need to wash the cat bowl and water bowl every night and dump out the old food and put in brand new food because the saliva dried on the bowl and old food causes bacteria that upsets the cats stomach" She went on to say "My cat hasn't thrown up since". So I tried this and I am on day four now and my kitty has not thrown up once, plus she sleeps much more peacefully through the night, so I know this was it! I wanted to put this out there so more people can benefit from this simple and cheap remedy to the cat throw up problem.

[special]

My kitty was throwing up almost every night and it wasn't hairballs - it was partially digested food. So I started searching different websites to see if other people had this problem and saw alot of people did and they had all kinds of suggestions as to why this was happening and what to do about it. Some of them were expensive remedies such as herbal supplements at $75 a bottle and others were "rush to the vet it could be a twisted stomach" and I just didn't want to rush to these conclusions because my kitty is very healthy and I don't have much money. Plus all the suggestions seemed to say "but my cat still throws up and/or my vet didn't really know" so I kept looking. Finally I found an entry that said "my vet told me that I need to wash the cat bowl and water bowl every night and dump out the old food and put in brand new food because the saliva dried on the bowl and old food causes bacteria that upsets the cats stomach" She went on to say "My cat hasn't thrown up since". So I tried this and I am on day four now and my kitty has not thrown up once, plus she sleeps much more peacefully through the night, so I know this was it! I wanted to put this out there so more people can benefit from this simple and cheap remedy to the cat throw up problem.

That is very good information, thanks for sharing it.

many people don't realize that dry food dishes need to be cleaned every day too. Not just bacteria from saliva, but the food itself will go rancid if it sits for more than a day or two.

I wash my cat dises between every meal, simply running scalding hot water over them and scrubbing with the cat dish brush. Soap really isn't needed if the water is hot enough, and you don't have to worry about not getting all the soap rinsed off.

However if you do use soap, after washing and rinsing in hot water, rinse in cold water to remove any left over soap residue (cold water will remove soap residue)

Welcome to Pet Lovers. Feel free to start your own threads and tell us about your kitty. This thread goes back to September 2003! Just goes to show how often frequent vomiting is a problem, since it keeps getting revived!

[Aatmmmjtr]

I was just reading the post about the cat being sick, and the vet said to clean out the food bowls. I was just wondering if that had worked with anyone else? I've only noticed her being sick for a couple of days, so i'm a little hasty to take her to the vet right away and over reacting. When she gets sick though, it's almost like she's dry heaving. Has anyone experianced this before?
Thanks, Mel:)

[special]

Hello and welcome to pet lovers. You might get more repsonses if you open your own thread on your kitty .

If your cat has been sick for more than 2 days, especially dry heaving, she needs to see the vet. This is not over reacting it is good pet care.

[trip]

have you tried changing her from dry to wet food or vice-versa?

Last year my then 5 year old cat begin throwing up right after he ate wet food (his brand was not on any recall list). I spoke to the vet about it, and he said it wasn't uncommon for cats to have a problem with eating either wet or dry food as they became older because of changes in their throat. Its more common for the problem to be with dry food though.

He also throws up if he drinks water right before he eats his food. it doesn't seem to affect him if he drinks water afterward though

[karla62]

Hi my name is Karla, im from Philadelphia, I did a google search because im having problem with my older cat Janey. She is 12 years old and Sunday my boyfriend and I noticed she was trying to throw up something, but nothing came out. She was eating, but throwing up everytime. So Monday she went to the vet. The vet took some bloodwork and xrays and found out she had a huge gas bubble in her stomach. They don't know what caused it. We were told the xrays wont show if there is a hairball or not. So he gave her laxtine(spelling might not be right) and to give her that every 12 hours. She only had it before she came home from the vet and this morning, then went I got home we gave it to her again. She did eat today without throwing up. But then I noticed about 10 minutes ago she threw up her food alittle. She is acting not like herself. If the meds dont work, then they want to do explortory surgery, which neither one of us can afford. I am praying the treatment works. I pray every minute. I feel so helpless right now.

[karla62]

I like to say also my cat Janey will not eat can food. She only eats dry and is eating Wellness Indoor cat food.

[special]

Hi my name is Karla, im from Philadelphia, I did a google search because im having problem with my older cat Janey. She is 12 years old and Sunday my boyfriend and I noticed she was trying to throw up something, but nothing came out. She was eating, but throwing up everytime. So Monday she went to the vet. The vet took some bloodwork and xrays and found out she had a huge gas bubble in her stomach. They don't know what caused it. We were told the xrays wont show if there is a hairball or not. So he gave her laxtine(spelling might not be right) and to give her that every 12 hours. She only had it before she came home from the vet and this morning, then went I got home we gave it to her again. She did eat today without throwing up. But then I noticed about 10 minutes ago she threw up her food alittle. She is acting not like herself. If the meds dont work, then they want to do explortory surgery, which neither one of us can afford. I am praying the treatment works. I pray every minute. I feel so helpless right now.

Karla, welcome to pet lovers! I have some reassuring news for you, I have dealt with this hairball/gas bubble issue in two of my cats and the heavy doses of laxatone did the trick, but it did take a couple of days.

The hair balls did actually show up in the x rays of each of my cats who went through this. Both times there was tons of gas, and showed the mass of hair working it's way into the intestine. (there was no way to know for sure if it was a hair ball of course, just showed a mass, we were assuming)

In the first instance, my female, she could not keep a thing down. Projectile vomiting every time she ate, then she would look at me pleadingly asking me to make it better. A trip to the oncall vet on the weekend. It took a couple of days with large doses of laxatone before she finally passed the mass of fur and the gas with it.

My boy cat's was a little different. he stopped eating all together and was crying, almost screaming in pain. I was of course terrified and rushed him to the vet on call (both emergencies were on a weekend of course) I was thinking broken rib at the least.

An x ray showed nothing but all the gas, and that mass making it's way to the intestine. It took three more days of laxatone four times a day before he finally passed the fur. (I actually got up at 4 a m when I heard him in the litter box, put on a pair of gloves and pulled his poop apaert, and it was all fur!)

I was sryinge feeding him, and at one point gave him sub q fluids (approved by my own vet who I brought him to see on Monday) I have the supplies for that because I give my CRF kitty sub q at home.

Anyway both had happy endings. You can't be too careful with a cat 12 years old, and you were right to bring her to the vet.

Do come back and let us know how it works out for your Janey.

(ps a good thing, now you have a blood profile on her to use as comparison as she gets older)

[special]

Does Janey permit you to rub her tummy? Rubbing and gentle massage can help with the gas, if she will allow it.

Start by just a normal rub, then start putting a tiny bit of pressure with your fingers. You might be able to feel the gas bubble, and if you can, you might also be able to feel the gurgles as your massage helps to break the bubble up.

Also, as you are rubbing, kind of rub all over, up under her arms and down her legs, this will encourage her to stre-e-e-tch, which will also help dispel the gas.

[karla62]

Just today Janey just started to come up to my boyfriend on the bed like she generally does and he said she started to purr. He was almost in tears, cause she hasn't done that in days. Maybe next will be the belly rub. She isnt eating well, and hasnt had a bowel movement which is concerning me. Although today my boyfriend called the vet and they told him this is normal and to continue to give the laxotine.

[karla62]

Karla, welcome to pet lovers! I have some reassuring news for you, I have dealt with this hairball/gas bubble issue in two of my cats and the heavy doses of laxatone did the trick, but it did take a couple of days.

The hair balls did actually show up in the x rays of each of my cats who went through this. Both times there was tons of gas, and showed the mass of hair working it's way into the intestine. (there was no way to know for sure if it was a hair ball of course, just showed a mass, we were assuming)

In the first instance, my female, she could not keep a thing down. Projectile vomiting every time she ate, then she would look at me pleadingly asking me to make it better. A trip to the oncall vet on the weekend. It took a couple of days with large doses of laxatone before she finally passed the mass of fur and the gas with it.

My boy cat's was a little different. he stopped eating all together and was crying, almost screaming in pain. I was of course terrified and rushed him to the vet on call (both emergencies were on a weekend of course) I was thinking broken rib at the least.

An x ray showed nothing but all the gas, and that mass making it's way to the intestine. It took three more days of laxatone four times a day before he finally passed the fur. (I actually got up at 4 a m when I heard him in the litter box, put on a pair of gloves and pulled his poop apaert, and it was all fur!)

I was sryinge feeding him, and at one point gave him sub q fluids (approved by my own vet who I brought him to see on Monday) I have the supplies for that because I give my CRF kitty sub q at home.

Anyway both had happy endings. You can't be too careful with a cat 12 years old, and you were right to bring her to the vet.

Do come back and let us know how it works out for your Janey.

(ps a good thing, now you have a blood profile on her to use as comparison as she gets older)


well we started her on the Laxotine(sp) they told us to give us 1/4 twice a day. I dont know what a quarter is with this stuff. So I just judged. I dont think I gave her enough, so now im giving more. Hoping for a break threw.So far she is eating little and she is urninating but no pooping yet. We thought she did a little poop the other day. I hope it was her for I know she is in the bedroom with me with the other 3 cats away from her. She is drinking water. We also think this could of started with stress from the new 2 kittens we have. One is a complete terror So that is why we keep them separate. I put them in the back room at somepoint of the day and let Janey out of the bedroom.

This time of year isn't good for me. last year my older cat fuzzy got sick around the holidays, and passed away 5 days after the new years. The year before my cat Whiskers passed away 10 days after new years. She all of a sudden had animea (sp) and passed away. Im starting to think of cursed. I pray every night that janey gets better. I told her tonight she is not ready to anywhere from me.

[karla62]

thank you everyone for your help. Like I said im praying every night that my kitty gets better.

[special]

No bowel movement since when? at least four days? Janey needs to get to the vet right away. No bowel movement in 4 days can be very serious. I advise you to call your vet and let him know Janey has not defecated since.....when? Wednesday, or Tuesday? She may need an enema at this point.

I'm sorry for your loss. I lost two kitties within 3 weeks of eachother at this time of year 11 years ago. One in December and the other on the day after new years day. It was very traumatizing.

I hope you have better news about Janey soon. I'm praying for her too.

[karla62]

Just to announce Janey this morning, threw up a hairball and went poop. And me as mommy started to cry. She still has a long way to go. But we are trying. We did call the vet yesterday and they said that is normal since the gas bubble was so huge that she might not beable to have a bowel movement. We will still continue to give her the hairball treatment. Shes near her daddy now laying next to him and she was even purring a little. And growing when her brother Tarzan came up to sit on his lap. We are keeping the kittens in the backroom until she goes up in one of the bedrooms, then we will close the door and let the kittens go crazy. We do think one of the kittens stressed her out. My kitten Merlin, is a terror. But i do think he means no harm, hes just very playful and doesnt understand when to stay away. The other kitten she don't bother any of the cats, she plays on her own.

Thanks again to all who responded. Its really good to know im not alone. This is really the first time I had this problem.

peace and I will continue to come here to check things out.
karla

Special I am so sorry about your loss. I still have not gotten over the fact Fuzzy isnt here.

[special]

Just to announce Janey this morning, threw up a hairball and went poop. And me as mommy started to cry. She still has a long way to go. But we are trying. We did call the vet yesterday and they said that is normal since the gas bubble was so huge that she might not beable to have a bowel movement. We will still continue to give her the hairball treatment. Shes near her daddy now laying next to him and she was even purring a little. And growing when her brother Tarzan came up to sit on his lap. We are keeping the kittens in the backroom until she goes up in one of the bedrooms, then we will close the door and let the kittens go crazy. We do think one of the kittens stressed her out. My kitten Merlin, is a terror. But i do think he means no harm, hes just very playful and doesnt understand when to stay away. The other kitten she don't bother any of the cats, she plays on her own.

Thanks again to all who responded. Its really good to know im not alone. This is really the first time I had this problem.

peace and I will continue to come here to check things out.
karla

Special I am so sorry about your loss. I still have not gotten over the fact Fuzzy isnt here.

YAY! A good poop and a vomited hairball are always cause for celebrations! thanks for the happy up date.

[karla62]

ok im back, Janey is fighting us with giving her the hairball stuff. I try squirting it in from the tube, I get alot on me rather then her, then we have to keep doing it until enough is in her mouth. We tried this itty bit spoon porcelain spoon that comes with some teacup I bought. Not good, didnt slide off fast enough. Any suggestions? When im threw giving her the meds I feel like a pancake with lots of maple syrup on it.

thanks again
karla

[special]

wipe the hair ball remedy on her forearm in a thin coat. Paint it on, actually. Spread it out thin so she can't flick it off. she will lick it off.

[karla62]

wouldn't she lick more fur off of her? I will try something like that on the next round of that stuff. She fought us terribly which she didnt do before. I guess she got hip on what we are doing. So far I havent seen her eat. She might of did it before we got up though. She does go up and down the steps and drinks water from the downstairs water bowl. Whats funny is there are like 2 water bowls upstairs also.

[karla62]

ok tonight she still fought us with the meds. But she did go into the litter box and did #2. She still not acting like herself, but she went threw a lot of trama this past week. Im confused now cause shes been sneezing. I think its because we tried putting the meds on her lips and it got on her nose. geeeeesh. if its not one thing its another. My prayers are still with her every night. Thanks for all the advice. I cant thank everyone enough

[special]

wouldn't she lick more fur off of her? I will try something like that on the next round of that stuff. She fought us terribly which she didnt do before. I guess she got hip on what we are doing. So far I havent seen her eat. She might of did it before we got up though. She does go up and down the steps and drinks water from the downstairs water bowl. Whats funny is there are like 2 water bowls upstairs also.

The fur she will lick up with the laxatone from her paw will be minimal, the important thing is to get the medicine into her. Cats are funny about which water bowls they will use, aren't they?
.
ok tonight she still fought us with the meds. But she did go into the litter box and did #2. She still not acting like herself, but she went threw a lot of trama this past week. Im confused now cause shes been sneezing. I think its because we tried putting the meds on her lips and it got on her nose. geeeeesh. if its not one thing its another. My prayers are still with her every night. Thanks for all the advice. I cant thank everyone enough

I am glad she is pooping again, if she's pooping, then she's eating. You should be cutting back on the laxatone now...has the vet mentioned anything about that?

Check with vet first of course, but I would think you should be dropping to once a day, then every other day, then ultimately once or twice a week. don't just suddenly stop as the body can become dependent on the hairball remedy (it can have a laxative affect)and will need a gradual reduction. I dose my cats twice a week in the non shedding months, and more often from April through October.

by the way, there are many different choices AND flavors of hairball remedy, you can shop around and see if you can find something more palatable to her.

Some people like petromalt. My cats prefer the stuff that www.petmeds.com sells over the brand my vet sells.

Keep an eye on the sneezing, I know you will, it could be you got some HB remedy up her nose, but stress can bring on illness such as an URI. I suggest you call the vet and mention the sneezing so it's in her record.

Be sure to keep us posted on Janey.

[karla62]

Thank you, we were going to cut her meds down to once a day anyway. And just keep a eye on her. I think what is helping that she has no stress from the kittens. As we keep them away from eachother. Although we will have to let them out soon around her. I dont want my cats locked up at any point. The kittens are getting older and need their room to. I am keeping a eye on the sneezing. She doesnt have any liquid coming out of her nose. And this just started with the Laxotine we are giving her. I know some has gotten on her nose. Thanks for all the help will keep everyone posted if there is a change. Today she lifted the shade and looked out the window. She hasnt done that either in awhile.

[karla62]

Just to report Jane is back to her old self, but we still giving her the stuff to every other day. And today Tarzan had a hairball problem so we gave him some. I will tell you each puts up a fight. lol. but hey I got to do what I have to do.

[special]

Just to report Jane is back to her old self, but we still giving her the stuff to every other day. And today Tarzan had a hairball problem so we gave him some. I will tell you each puts up a fight. lol. but hey I got to do what I have to do.

Thanks for the happy update!

[cat001]

My cat very recently had the same problem, when I checked his teeth I noticed he had a lot of tartar build up so we took him to vets for them to look at his teeth...a little story here...at first the the vets said they couldn't put him under anesthetic because they were concerned about his heart (he's 13 btw) and suspected he had a slightly enlarge thyroid gland...so he had his blood tested.

A week later when the results were in they gave him a clean bill of health and said that they would clean his teeth after all!

He had 2 extractions and the rest cleaned, since then (which was about 3 days ago) we've not had a single problem with him being sick, before it was nearly everyday, but he still likes to beg and beg for food lol!

Hope all works out well for you and your cat! :D

[catlady2006]

I'm glad your kitty is getting better. I've had my kitties for five years & I'm thankful they don't have problems with throwing up & hairballs. I geuss they're just lucky. My cousins cat had this problem, but he had hyperthyroidism & this is a common side effect from the medicine that he took. He died a year and a half ago at the age of 18. May he rest in peace.

[Georgette]

I have two cats - brother and sister - short-haired male and long-haired female, and both of them throw up pretty regularly. The female has only recently started throwing up, the male is a regular puker :( and I don't know what to do. I believe it's because they eat too fast, because the vomit is completely undigested and if it happens, it's usually within a half hour of the feeding. Everyday I come home from work with a surprise on the carpet from one or the other, but since I'm usually not home when it happens, I'm unable to tell if one of them has more of a problem than the other. I've changed food once now, and that hasn't helped, nor do I think it's much of a hair-ball problem because I've only seen a little bit of hair in the mess one time out of very, very many. We also recently purchased a Furminator, which has reduced shedding to a bare minimum, so they couldn't be ingesting that much hair. The female has started to lose a little bit of weight, and I can't stand to see such sweet and loving cats go through this. Other than this, they are completely healthy, with shiny fur, and happy in their home. If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know - home remedies would be preferable, because vet expenses would be much too much for us right now.

[Akadma]

First off, your cats shouldn't be eating when your not home. You should feed them a bowl of food watch them eat it and then take the bowl away. If they still vomit. Try feeding them smaller amounts more times through out the day.

Your probably right about them eating too fast, cats do this a lot and it causes them to vomit. What are you feeding them?

[catlady2006]

Can you work out a payment plan with your vet? You should consult your vet over the phone before using any home remedies just to be on the safe side. I hope the puking is just a sign of eating too fast & not a more serious problem. Good luck with your kitties & keep us posted.

[hahumiaomiao]

Hi,

My 7 yr. old indoor female kitty has been throwing up every night for the past four days. The puke has little hairball or undigested food. It's mostly foamy white or yellow liquid. She does heave and make the gagging sound before vomiting. She looks healthy otherwise and eats fine. She has been eating the same kind of dry food mixed with wet food. I've been giving, as usual, small amount of shrimp, fish, yogurt and eggs -- which she love.

Could someone help me figure out what's wrong and how I can help my kitty.

Thank you very much!

[Aclover]

Yall are gonna love this solution to the cat throwing up problems. This works. Use paper plates to feed them on and change the plate at least twice a week. Wash the water bowl twice a week with hot soapy water or either use some kind of bowl that you can throw away twice a week. Cat's saliva dries on their feeding dishes and creates bacteria that they reingest and it makes them sick. Give this a few days to work. You'll be amazed. Mostly that you'll be able to quit spending money at the vet's office. They're sure not gonna tell you such a simple solution. They want you to keep coming back to fund their pockets.
I have two cats that threw up every day and now unless it's a hairball then they never throw up. I started doing this about two months ago and all is well now. Good luck everybody.

[special]

Yall are gonna love this solution to the cat throwing up problems. This works. Use paper plates to feed them on and change the plate at least twice a week. Wash the water bowl twice a week with hot soapy water or either use some kind of bowl that you can throw away twice a week. Cat's saliva dries on their feeding dishes and creates bacteria that they reingest and it makes them sick. Give this a few days to work. You'll be amazed. Mostly that you'll be able to quit spending money at the vet's office. They're sure not gonna tell you such a simple solution. They want you to keep coming back to fund their pockets.
I have two cats that threw up every day and now unless it's a hairball then they never throw up. I started doing this about two months ago and all is well now. Good luck everybody.

It's nice of you to contribute but....change the plates only twice a week? I wash my cats' dishes between every meal (with scalding water, no soap) and change the water bowl several times a day. Again, scalding water, no soap.

Dishes should never be reused without washing (or changing) in between, for the reasons you state, bacteria builds up, not just from saliva, but from food residue (dry food leaves a residue on dishes which gets rancid)

Especially if you free feed, fresh food should never be put over old, as any old food left is covered in bacteria by the end of the day. Uneaten food should be thrown away at the end of the day, and a clean dish and fresh food be put down.

I'm pretty sure I may have already suggested these directions in this thread, it's so old and long, who knows?

Welcome to Pet Lovers! :)

[Mairn]

Hi, My cat is almost 5 years old and recently just started throwing up and has lost ALOT of weight and yesterday i relized under his chest he has really big globs of hair falling out and his stomach keeps making weird gurgiling noises anyone know what this may be?

[special]

Hi, My cat is almost 5 years old and recently just started throwing up and has lost ALOT of weight and yesterday i relized under his chest he has really big globs of hair falling out and his stomach keeps making weird gurgiling noises anyone know what this may be?
P.S sorry for the bad spelling

Your cat need to see a vet right away. Sudden weight loss is very dangerous in cats and can cause organ failure, especially the liver.

Vomiting, weightloss and hair loss in the manner you describe is an indication of serious illness. Please take your beloved kitty to the vet for proper diagnosis and treatment before it's too late.

[Mairn]

Do you have any idea of what kind of illniess it may be?

[special]

We cannot diagnose over the internet. There are many things that could be wrong, from poisoning, diabetes, obstruction (blockage), cancer, to kidney failure. Even hyperthyroid, though your cat is young for that.

Your kitty needs a vet. The sooner he is seen and diagnosed and treated, the better her chances are at recovery, and the less it is likely to cost.

Illness that is left too long gets very expensive very quickly. Not to mention your kitty is probably not feeling so great, and that's not a very nice way for him to be living.

[Mairn]

Ok thank you for your help

[medotterer]

Hey our cat throws up all the time. Vet says he eats too much and too fast. It's pretty common in cats. Mostly, if it happens at mealtime, then the dry food expands when it hits the stomach...basically, too much food, too small a tummy. We tried everything. We have two cats. Our male would basically race to finish his and hers! So we got a bat-a-rat. Works like a charm. It's a feeder that the cat has to play with in order to get fed so not only does he get excercise, but it makes him slow way down to eat. No more throwing up. I do agree with others that have said you need to rule out any medical problems.

[TILLYT]

any sudden weightr loss should be checked out by a vet.

[Hathery]

Sorry if this has already been mentioned, but frequent vomiting can also be a sign of renal failure. You should have your vet do a blood test to check kidney function just to be safe.

[tchastain]

I just wanted to tell everyone my experince with my cat throwing up. My 8 year old cat was throwing up on and off for months. A lot of the time it would be hours after she ate and the food woul be undigested. It didn't matter if it was can or dry food. I figured she was just eating too fast because she is a little chunky. But didn't understand why the food was undigested. I finally took her to the vet. He explained to me that cats have a hole between their stomach and their intestines that people don't have. If that hole gets inflamed, the food can't pass, and the cat throws up. He said if cats get heartburn or an upset stomache, they immediately throw up. That's why the food is indigested. He prescribed her medicine called Reglan. She was on it for a week but them threw up again. So I kept her on the medicine for three weeks, and she has not thrown up in about a month now. She seems completely back to normal. I just wanted to let you guys know in case your cat needs the medicine Reglan too.