This was such a perplexing situation of constant vomiting and I shared Martha’s concern — but Cat Chat’s® own wonderful Dr. Elizabeth Hodgkins gave us some insight into what might be bothering Rocky. (By the way, you HAVE to see how glorious this cat looks — see her on the kitty photos section of the website).
Dear Tracie: I am sure you get plenty of emails regarding vomiting cats. It seems it is something they like to do! I have a cat that is 3 1/2 years old. She started throwing up on a regular basis maybe 9 months ago (just about every day). I feed her twice a day with wet food (Wellness brand). I even feed her with a teaspoon at timed intervals. It had gotten to where she was throwing up sometimes both meals! I took her to the vet and they did an external abdominal exam and they also took stool samples. She came out with a clear bill of health. They thought maybe it was a hair ball, so I give her a natural hair ball remedy every day with dinner. But she is still throwing up. So now the vet has suggested just feeding here one flavor, chicken. Well we still get a few barfs a week. She does this pretty soon after eating. Sometimes it right after her first teaspoon. I am afraid to feed her again and sometimes she has to wait until her next meal time for food. Her weight and coat are very healthy so I know she is getting enough food. Is it possible there could be something seriously wrong with her digestive system? I am really starting to worry. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. I just feel at this point the vet really doesn’t know.
Thanking you in advance for your time.
Martha
I was speculating that it could be something in the Wellness itself – a binder? – that the cat is reacting to? I wondered whether changing cat food brands might not be a bad idea. And it certainly sounded as though the vet wasn’t “getting it.” But then I turned to Dr. H, who replied:
“If the cat seems well other than frequent vomiting, I’d try a more hypoallergenic diet (e.g. some raw or lightly cooked ground turkey or chicken) for a few days. She should also request some metacolpromide tabs from her vet OR she can try a quarter of a regular Pepcid (not the “turbo” new kind, but the old regular stuff) twice daily before each meal. This cat probably has an allergic gastritis going on and if the pepcid/metaclopromide (reglan)/raw meat trial diet doesn’t stop it, then the next step is to use prednisone or dexamethasone tabs to see if more anti-inflammatory effect is needed. If the raw/lightly cooked meat and Pepcid work, she will want to seriously consider a more complete raw diet as a regular diet since this cat is allergic to commercial formulas. I am assuming the kitty doesn’t have loose stool as well?”
