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Vomit. Lots of vomit.

936 views 7 replies 5 participants last post by  spirite 
#1 ·
Hi all,

There may a better word than "vomit", undigested food would be more precise.

My cat is a previous feral, maybe 3 years old so she's fairly young. She has gained some weight since being spayed, a little skittish from being feral but attached to me and somewhat to my husband. She does not go outside.

She hasn't always vomited a lot, but this past year it's a regular occurrence, usually right after eating, the food looks like it went down and came right back up. Once the food is out, she doesn't continue vomiting. She does this once or twice per week, so it's pretty often.

She only eats dry food, will not eat wet, and drinks a lot of water. She usually drinks a lot right after eating, I suspect she fills her tummy, then drinks and perhaps the kibble swells and ?? I do just give her small amounts at a time, less than a 1/4 cup. When we're out of town for a few days I have to just fill the bowls up, but I've never noticed many vomits, maybe one, when we get back.

I had been feeding a low calorie high priced kibble from Petsmart, (lots of vomiting), realized she often swallowed it without chewing since the kibble was small, switched to a lower priced kibble that is large enough that she chews some of it. Hard to say if there's less vomiting, she's still doing it.

She seems pretty happy and healthy, if a bit lazy and sleeps a lot, coat looks good.

Thanks if anyone has any ideas. . .I saw some "gentle" kibble and picked that up, it says it's very digestible but I don't think her food has any chance to digest, it's out of her tummy and on the floor pretty quickly.

Thanks for any ideas! I'd take her to the vet, but getting her in a carrier is hugely traumatic, would rather not attempt that (she draws the line at being picked up)-- I could take some poo to the vet to check for parasites, though she's an indoor kitty and has been wormed a few years ago.

Jan H.

p.s. just realized I should keep a "vomit journal" -- there may be a pattern, like times when she's stressed -- she can be an anxious girl. She very often will vomit when we've been gone, walk in the door, and give her food right away.
 
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#2 ·
If she vomits right after eating, then one or few ingredient in the food is upsetting her stomach, sort like a food allergy. Just change her to a different food (different brand and flavor), and see if it's the same?

My Meetoo does the same thing with every flavor of Temptation cat treat and Meatball is allergic to pork. And they are a perfectly health cats. So if your cat is otherwise normal, it's definitely the food.
 
#5 ·
There were two things I noticed that would usually make my cat vomit. If she ran out of food, then she would gobble it down when she got the next meal and usually get sick. So in those cases I'd let her eat a bit, take it away and wait 5-10 minutes, and then repeat. She was an easily spooked cat, and for about 15 minutes after eating, if she got spooked by something, up would come the food. So I learned to be really careful around her after she ate. Like walking slowly etc. Because if she got startled like you walked down the hall fast and she happened to stroll out of a room she'd get this alarmed look, run away, and then I'd hear that horrible meow and unmistakable sound of a cat upchucking.
 
#6 ·
It could be a food allergy, but from what you describe, it sounds more like what porcupine73 said, since the food's not digested (technically, this means regurgitation, not vomiting). I also had a cat that did this. Whenever she was too hungry overnight, she'd inhale her food and within 20 minutes, up it came, looking exactly like it did when it went down. Someone here mentioned that it's caused by a buildup of excess stomach acid overnight.

I don't know your feeding schedule, but try withholding a bit of the last meal and putting it out right before you go to bed. That way, she'll have something in her tummy and not be ravenous in the morning. Hope it works!
 
#7 ·
thanks all!

She does wolf her food. I was buying an expensive dry food from Petsmart, I think it was grain free, and she was regurgitating that also. She's also regurgitating the sensitive stomach (not expensive) food at this time, I'm inclined to believe it's behavioral and not allergy, since she's very skittish. One common time is when we come in late at night (we're in a band, husband and I) -- bringing in gear, which scares her a bit, usually we're in bed at that time so it's totally off her schedule.
After I greet her, I feed her since she's not had food for quite awhile, and usually up it comes.

I don't like to free feed (full bowls) since she's overweight -- I'll try the tiny amounts when she hasn't eaten in a while, and see how it goes. I wonder if I need to greet her more thoroughly when I get home, as she is very timid and maybe she's feeling unsure of her position in the "colony". She's quite wary of my husband (tho he is gentle and nice to her, she just bonded more to me after being feral), so perhaps his presence has something to do with it. . .

This has me wondering if regurgitation in prior ferals is more common? My girl is very sweet, but the difference between her and a tame cat it's quite pronounced, things like not being able to pick her up, etc.

Thanks again for your info, I'll update if something works!

Jan H.
 
#8 ·
Hi Jan,

It's possible that former ferals would have this tendency more than house kitties. Kudos to you, by the way, for being able to turn her around! If she had to scavenge for her food, she probably ate it fast while it was available, not knowing when she'd eat again.

But there are plenty of domesticated kitties who do this too. Maybe it's instinctive behavior that some cats have lost? As for being picked up, my regurgitator kitty also hated being picked up. She was super friendly with people (didn't like other cats too much though) but just didn't tolerate much touching in general. I think some kitties are just like that. Or maybe some just retain more of the wild cat in them??

You could also try those treat balls, or food mazes, where the cat has to work for the food and can't inhale it. I suppose it's free-feeding, but at least it wouldn't be readily accessible. :) I think I just saw a thread on this either in this forum or in the behavior forum.

I hope you find something that works!
 
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