# Cat vomits every day



## childsandco (Mar 29, 2008)

We have a female cat about seven years old. About three months ago she started to vomit almost daily. Then she wasn't interested in food. We took her to the vet. She had blood tests and x-rays, they put her on a drip as she was a little dehydrated, kept her for three days. She was given a course of antacid tablets. Her appetite returned. She seems healthy, eats her food, but continues to vomit once a day. There's no pattern- sometimes during the day, sometimes during the night. We have tried changing her diet. She does not vomit immediately after eating. There is not much food she vomits- it's brown fluid- sometimes clear. There is nothing in the household that has changed that would make her anxious. Any idea what we can try?


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## doodlebug (May 13, 2006)

There's obviously something wrong. Have you been back to the vet? It's odd that it's not food, but just liquid. 

Wonder if she's got a massive hairball that she can't get up. Have you tried giving hairball remedy or vaseline? That's worth a try...give a daily dose for a week or so. It will also coat her stomach and may help her feel better. Just don't give it near mealtimes as it can prevent the absorption of certain nutrients.

Could also be a food allergy...what was she eating before? What is she eating now? (Please tell us the brand and whether it's wet or dry). 

I'm just speculating above, there are a ton more things it could be. I think another vet visit would be your next step.


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## childsandco (Mar 29, 2008)

Thanks for your reply Doodlebug. We'll try the vaseline. We're feeding wet food, Whiskas and a brand called Excelcat from Migros a large Swiss supermarket chain and Gourmet Gold from Purina (Nestlé). If no change then we'll return to the vet.


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## evelinany (Apr 4, 2008)

Hi. I foudn this information very helpful from fanciers.com:

"Vomiting
Some cats vomit all the time; other cats do so relatively rarely. Vomiting is not a sign of the same sort of distress as it is in humans. Because they are carnivores, they need to be able to vomit quickly and almost at will without feeling sick.

On the other hand, a cat that suddenly starts to vomit, or vomits more than usual or in some way demonstrates a departure from its normal habits should be checked by the vet.
Reasons
Most commonly, a cat vomits because it has hairballs. To check for this, examine the vomit carefully for small grayish pellets or lumps (it doesn't matter what color your cat's hair is). If these are present, then hairballs is the problem. Hairballs occur even with shorthair cats. All cats benefit from regular brushing to help minimize shedding and ingestion of hair. If your cat is vomiting because of hairballs, its normal behavior is not affected. That is, it will be its usual self immediately before and after vomiting.

To help prevent this kind of vomiting, feed your cat on a regular basis some petroleum jelly (aka as Vaseline). If they don't like it, you can try Petromalt, a malt-flavored petroleum jelly. Pats of butter will also work. To give it to them, if they won't eat it of their free will, smear some on top of their paw and they will lick it up as they clean it off. Be careful to rub it in thoroughly, otherwise when they shake their paw, you'll have gobs of vaseline go flying onto the walls or carpet. Give it to them daily for a few days if they've just upchucked or are in the midst of dry heaves; go back down to a weekly dose once they've gotten rid of existing hairballs and this should keep them hairball free. Frequent brushing also helps; every bit of hair on the brush is less hair in your cat's stomach.

Another common reason for vomiting is overeating, particularly dry food. The dry food absorbs water and swells, and then they have to throw it back up. If the vomit looks like a semi-solid tube of partially digested cat food, that's probably what it is.

A cat may vomit when it is allergic to its food. You can check this out by trying another brand of food with substantially different ingredients and no food colorings.

Sometimes cats vomit when they have worms. Consult your vet for a worming appointment.

If the vomit is white or clear, that can be one of the symptoms of panleukopenia, feline distemper. If such vomiting occurs a coule of times over the course of a day or night, a phone call to the vet is in order.

If cats eat something that obstructs their digestive system, they may try to vomit it back up. If you can see some of it in their mouth, DO NOT PULL IT OUT, especially if it is string. You may just cut up their intestines in the attempt. Take the cat to the vet immediately.

If the cat displays other changes of behavior along with the vomiting, you should consult the vet. Eg. listlessness, refusing food along with vomiting may indicate poisoning.

Periodic throwing up can be a sign of an over-active thyroid. This is particularly common in older cats. Your vet can do a blood test and find out the thyroid level. It can also be indicative of a kidney infection: something that your vet can also check out.

In general, as distasteful as it may be, you should examine any vomit for indication of why the cat vomited.
Summary
Dietary problems include:

* sudden change in diet
* ingestion of foreign material (garbage, plants, etc)
* eating too rapidly
* intolerance or allergy to specific foods 

Problems with drugs include:

* specific reactions to certain drugs
* accidental overdosages 

Ingestion of toxins:

* Lead, ethylene glycol, cleaning agents, herbicides, fertilizers, heavy metals all specifically result in vomiting. 

Metabolic disorders:

* diabetes mellitus
* too little or too much of certain hormones, trace elements, etc.
* renal disease
* hepatic disease
* sepsis
* acidosis
* heat stroke 

Disorders of the stomach:

* obstruction (foreign body, disease or trauma)
* parasites
* assorted gastric disorders
* ulcers, polyps 

Disorders of the small intestine:

* parasites
* enteritis
* intraluminal obstruction
* inflammatory bowel disease
* fungal disease
* intestinal volvulus
* paralytic ileus 

Disorders of the large intestine:

* colitis
* constipation
* irritable bowel syndrome 

Abdominal disorders:

* pancreatitis
* gastrinoma of the pancreas
* peritonitus (any cause including FIP)
* inflammatory liver disease
* bile duct obstruction
* steatitis
* prostatitis
* pyelonephritis
* pyometra (infection of the uterus)
* urinary obstruction
* diaphragmatic hernia
* neoplasia 

Nerologic disorders:

* pain, fear, excitement, stress
* motion sickness
* inflammatory lesions
* trauma
* epilepsy
* neoplasia 

Misc:

* hiatal hernia
* heartworm 

Vomit stains
You may now have stains on the carpet that you want to get rid of. Spot Shot, and other stain removers, work well at removing stains. If you're having trouble with bright red or orange stains, you may want to invest in a cat food that doesn't use dyes. That can help considerably in reducing the stain factor."


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## yepp (Mar 28, 2008)

Thank you for all the info! I have light carpets and my cats vomit food or hairball gunk almost weekly.


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## yepp (Mar 28, 2008)

childsandco said:


> Thanks for your reply Doodlebug. We'll try the vaseline. We're feeding wet food, Whiskas and a brand called Excelcat from Migros a large Swiss supermarket chain and Gourmet Gold from Purina (Nestlé). If no change then we'll return to the vet.


Maybe try only one food brand. It may be the mixes of food? I would think the brown liquid is like bile from the stomach. Something is irritating it.


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## Gudewife (Jun 27, 2004)

Daily vomiting is cause for concern, especially in a cat who has a history of a sudden onset of vomiting, followed by anorexia and dehydration. I'd probably return to the vet and have a set of full labs...bloods, urinalysis, and a T4 thyroid test (basically a full "senior" panel). Could be lots of things, but daily vomiting would _definitely_ have me concerned.


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