Puking cat...

Nakatomi2010

So, my wife's cat, an old cat, has just vomitted three times within 5 minutes, the first time the food he'd just eaten came out, the second and third times it was just liquid...

Before you all jump on the "take him to the vet" bandwagon, I have... they want $700 that we cannot afford to run the tests to find out what the problem with him is...

He's been puking a lot lately, garaunteed every week, often times more so than that....

We've tried changing the food he eats, and all kinds other things, but the vomit keeps coming.... I post now because he vomitted three times in a row, and two times were liquid, so I'm fairly positive something has to be wrong with him....

Heir

Do you have any vet schools nearby? They will usually do stuff for much cheaper.

You could also talk to some vets around you about financing.

Finally...the ASPCA may provide services for cheap...I'm not sure on this kind of case. I know they do spaying/neutering for free/next to nothing.

The cat doesn't eat really quickly does he?

Nakatomi2010

Heir wrote: »

Do you have any vet schools nearby? They will usually do stuff for much cheaper.

You could also talk to some vets around you about financing.

Finally...the ASPCA may provide services for cheap...I'm not sure on this kind of case. I know they do spaying/neutering for free/next to nothing.

The cat doesn't eat really quickly does he?

Yeah, he does... Which is why we've ignored it up until now, but this time around it was a significant amount of fluid...

Heir

Try giving him tiny portions so he can only eat a little at a time. My cats used to throw up a lot if they ate their food too quickly.

It may be something else entirely, but it's worth a shot.

If that cat's old though, I would imagine it might be something else.

Esh

Is his food on a plate or a bowl? A plate makes them eat slower. What are you feeding the cat?

Nakatomi2010

Feeding him hard card food, from one of those mass feeder things that you poor an entire bag into and walk away...

he shares the feeder with two other cats... the other two are fine, though they do harass him a bit..

The LandoStander

Just how old is your cat?

Does he still try to eat as regularly as your other cats? Or does he eat sparingly only to puke it up right after?

How has his stool been lately? Understandably if it's a shared litter box it may be hard to determine.

Animals often puke a lot and eat very little leading up to their death from what might be considered "natural causes" or old age. Though they do technically die of kidney failure or the like. Male cats have problems like that especially, so if you can make sure there's no blood in his urine, as this might indicate that he's got any number of problems, from kidney issues to crystals in his bloodstream.

I think that the ASPCA will be happy to help you, at least in finding an affordable way to help your cat. Some vets will let you pay in installments and such. There are also loans that you can get for pet health I think, I came across something like that when my dog had some issues that I was worried I couldn't afford to deal with. It should be noted that such loans and also pet insurance tends to usually be viewed as next to worthless or not worth the interest/hassle.

It really sounds like a testing/vet issue that may ultimately wind up in that 'final visit.' If that's the case I'm really sorry.

World as Myth

he's just eating too much too fast. my cat does this exact same thing (and has ever since I got him four years ago); sometimes he'll vomit just the once, regurgitating his food, and sometimes there's a few little extra upchucks too

try putting a racquetball or something equally annoying in the food dish -- the cats will have to eat around it and negotiating the obstacle will cause them to eat slower

Figgy

This probably isn't related to your cat's current problem, but get rid of that mass feeder.

Chances are it's plastic, and that alone is a good enough reason to ditch it. Your cat could begin developing infections from the plastic material rubbing against their face.

My cat kept getting pimple-like bumps on her chin every so often. They would go away on their own after a few days, but they always looked very inflamed and I imagine quite sore.

I did some research and found some people suggesting that plastic feeding dishes are sometimes a problem because of the bacteria build up, and I switched to regular, porcelain dishes. She hasn't had a problem since, and I am sure she appreciates that the food/water no longer has a funky plastic-y bacteria smell/taste.

Esh

Yeah, get rid of the plastic feeder. It's absolutely horrible for your cats.

Also, what brand of cat food are you feeding? Are all your cats older? Your older one needs a special food related to his age.

Hallucinogen

Not to derail, but also stop feeding them exclusively hard cat food if you are. That stuff it 99% junk and often is a factor in development of diabetes. Feed them as close to human-grade(as in quality, I don't mean start feeding them vegetables and pasta) food as possible, pet food is garbage. Yes it's more expensive, but I can't fathom why people don't take the same care in feeding their pets as they do themselves. Read the ingredients and research them. There some things in there you'd never put in your own body.

Reznik

If your cat has stopped puking now, it may just be a food thing. If not, definitely try to seek out someone with veterinary knowledge.

As far as it being a food problem goes, this is based on experience with my own cat who is 10 and pukes a lot:

-She never pukes when we give her soft food of equivalent quality to her dry food.
-She stopped puking as much when we switched her to a dry food that wasn't made with corn, and had genuine meat in it (Chicken Soup brand).
-She pukes if we feed her too much at one time, so we try to ration her out smaller portions over the course of the day.
-Not 100% but we're pretty sure us getting lazy with cleaning the litter box also causes her to puke (it's hard to judge this vs. her eating too fast).

Check your cat's food and if it's got like... corn and animal parts (but not straight up meat), ditch it and find a better brand. Chicken Soup brand has worked well for my cat.

Caramel Genocide

Nakatomi2010 wrote: »

We've tried changing the food he eats

This could possibly make the situation seem worse than it is - I've seen many occasions where cats will take a few days to get used to new food (especially if it isn't of the highest quality in the first place), and throw it up for a couple of days.

apacke09

Is your cat backed up? I had a cat that would go through vomiting spells somewhat similar to what you're describing. She was only a couple years old at the time. Turns out she was backed up (trying to digest too much cat hair or something) and we had to give her a laxative to help her out. She was throwing up because there was just nowhere for the food to go.

Theungry

If puking without food consitnues, the cat may have something in the stomach that is either blocking the intestines or is irritating the stomache. If that's the case, it can sometimes help to take food away for 24 hours (hard with other cats sharing a feeder...) to let the irritation die down before reintroducing food.

Erandus

If your cat is hiding under and behind things (and if that is unusual behavior for him) that can be a sign of illness. If he's still out in the open and generally acting normal, he may just be doing the "finicky-puke-up-everything" cat thing. If his fur is not laying down in a nice silky smooth coat like normal, and is instead ruffled up and more splayed out, that can be a sign of a fever - he would be fluffing his fur out to increase air flow under it and cool down.

If you're not seeing either of those signs - especially withdrawing and hiding - he may just have an upset stomach. Cats are notorious for having their stomachs easily upset. Changing foods, being given wet instead of dry, being treated with tuna, getting into the household plants, swallowing a bug they were playing with, having their owners break their normal routine... cats can get pissy and pukey over all that kind of stuff. THe reason the 2nd & 3rd pukes were watery would be because there wasn't anything solid left to puke up after the first round.

If you're concerned and he's acting unusual, seperate him from your other cats. Give him a warm blanket to snuggle up to, or an open window/fan on low to sit in front of in case he's hot or cold. Make sure he has lots of water, and somewhere dark to hide if he chooses. Don't feed him for a day or so, and introduce small amounts when you do. The biggest concern with a cat that can't keep anything down is dehydration which can easily lead to kidney problems, especially in older cats. Provide tons of water.

And yeah, once the puking has subsided, swap to a nicer brand of cat food (we just upgraded to Chicken Soup) and stop leaving it out in the auto-feeder. I know I don't like my meals to sit around for 1-3 days before I eat them. Plus cats that are allowed to eat as much as they want can often develop weight problems.

Lindsay Lohan

apacke09 wrote: »

Is your cat backed up? I had a cat that would go through vomiting spells somewhat similar to what you're describing. She was only a couple years old at the time. Turns out she was backed up (trying to digest too much cat hair or something) and we had to give her a laxative to help her out. She was throwing up because there was just nowhere for the food to go.

This happened to our cat too - ours ended up with a trip to the vet and a kitty enema. Not fun stuff.

My cat still throws up after feeding him - I'm thinking the racquetball trick may be tried over the next few days.

Creepy

Vomiting can also be a sign of Diabetes in cats. Prolly going to have to visit the vet.

We had to get rid of one of those cat fountains because one of our cats kept getting an infection/allergic reaction on his chin. Looked like dirt and I assumed he just got into a potted plant or something and tried to rub it off but it wouldn't budge. Turns out it's actually dried blood flakes from the skin irritation.

Nothing like feeling like a complete dick, let me tell you.

phoxphyre

Creepy wrote: »

We had to get rid of one of those cat fountains because one of our cats kept getting an infection/allergic reaction on his chin. Looked like dirt and I assumed he just got into a potted plant or something and tried to rub it off but it wouldn't budge. Turns out it's actually dried blood flakes from the skin irritation.

OMG, you mean that my wee kitten (oh, not so "wee" or "kitten", but still) is having some sort of reaction to her bowls?! Lily has black underneath her chin, which flakes off ... She eats out of porcelain bowls I bought at Briscoes (NZ's version of Target, I guess). The cats have porcelain water bowls, and an icecream container in the bath with water too. Guess I'll throw out the water container, and see if her chin clears up. Poor wee girl!

Thanks Creepy / PA folk.

Now I feel so mean

Creepy

I don't hear about the irritation occurring so often with ceramic or porcelain bowls provided the bowls are washed often.

Our bowls and fountain were plastic and washed fastidiously but I think the plastic was the problem.

There's a ton of info if you Google plastic cat bowls irritation. Here was one example:

http://www.pamperedcatsplayground.com.au/index.html?lang=en-us&target=d252.html

Now back to your regularly scheduled thread....

mts

plastic/porcelin are often tied to allergies. you really should use metal

underdonk

Dude, if you're puking cat, you should really get to the fucking hospital.

Erandus

underdonk wrote: »

Dude, if you're puking cat, you should really get to the fucking hospital.

If I took my cat to the hospital every time it puked, I would take it several times a month and be broke. Puking is not unusual behavior for a cat, and not alarming unless it's accompanied by other troubling symptoms.

A cat throwing up a few times in a few minutes is a mess and a hassle, and something to be concerned over, but it's not a sign of impending death.

AlyceInWonderland

Caramel Genocide wrote: »

Nakatomi2010 wrote: »

We've tried changing the food he eats

This could possibly make the situation seem worse than it is - I've seen many occasions where cats will take a few days to get used to new food (especially if it isn't of the highest quality in the first place), and throw it up for a couple of days.

I was going to say just this. Stop constantly changing the food, cause it messes with their system and can give them diarrhea and pukes.

Forar

Erandus wrote: »

underdonk wrote: »

Dude, if you're puking cat, you should really get to the fucking hospital.

If I took my cat to the hospital every time it puked, I would take it several times a month and be broke. Puking is not unusual behavior for a cat, and not alarming unless it's accompanied by other troubling symptoms.

A cat throwing up a few times in a few minutes is a mess and a hassle, and something to be concerned over, but it's not a sign of impending death.

I'm pretty sure Underdonk is being facetious and intentionally misreading the thread title to imply that the owner himself is puking up cats.

Which I'm pretty sure I saw on a Tales from the Crypt episode.

No, wait, that was a cat crawling down someone's throat.

On topic; my girlfriend has a cat that eats and drinks from metal bowls already, but I'm glad I read here about the dangers of plastic containers for their food.

Erandus

Forar wrote: »

I'm pretty sure Underdonk is being facetious and intentionally misreading the thread title to imply that the owner himself is puking up cats.

I'm pretty sure I totally missed that when I read his post the first time. I feel highly advanced now.

Figgy

Nice work, `Vance!

underdonk

Forar wrote: »

Erandus wrote: »

underdonk wrote: »

Dude, if you're puking cat, you should really get to the fucking hospital.

If I took my cat to the hospital every time it puked, I would take it several times a month and be broke. Puking is not unusual behavior for a cat, and not alarming unless it's accompanied by other troubling symptoms.

A cat throwing up a few times in a few minutes is a mess and a hassle, and something to be concerned over, but it's not a sign of impending death.

I'm pretty sure Underdonk is being facetious and intentionally misreading the thread title to imply that the owner himself is puking up cats.