Help! My Kitten is throwing Up!

[eli1126]

Yesterday when DH and I got home we noticed a large pile of vommit on the floor. It looked as though the kitten food hadn't been digested because it was intact. Belle our female kitten does seem to have a picky digestive system which we have spoken to our Vet about, so I thought the vommit was most likely her. Today both kittens were playing, sleeping, and eating normally (we began introducing Science Diet food today). Then a little while ago Belle threw up right in front of me. She's playing now with her brother and I haven't noticed any loose stool or different potty behaviors, just the vommit 2 times in 2 days :confused: Advice?

Beth

[Delaney21]

Our two cats did the same thing when we tried to switch their food. It took about 2 weeks for their stomachs to get used to the new food. Make sure you are slowly introducing the new food by mixing it with the old food for a week or two.

[sublime311]

The kitten could have a hair (or other substance) ball.. There are some OTC hairball remedies (you can even find it at the grocery store) that you can try. They have a malt flavor/smell and it's basically petroleum (sp?) jelly. You can even use this as a preventative measure. I had a cat who liked to eat pieces of carpet from a remnant left over in the closet, it wasn't until a trip to the vet that we discovered what was causing her problem.

Good luck! Keep us posted!

[eli1126]

Thanks! Belle is eating normally and acting like her regular self, pouncing on her brother, mommy, and a moth that seems to have gotten in :D We are going to the Vet next Wednesday and I will keep a close eye on her.

Beth

[tlew12778]

When you switch a food, you should do it over 4 days:
Day 1 = 3/4 old food, 1/4 new food
Day 2 = 1/2 old food, 1/4 new food
Day 3 = 1/4 old food, 3/4 new food
Day 4 = all new food

Do you have cat grass for your cats? I also notice that if we give our cats hairball food they throw up all the time so I stopped.

[Happy1]

Our middle kitty (out of 3) throws up once in a while when she's done eating and we've never switched her food. In her case, it's hair balls that cause the issue and the problem goes in streaks. The vet suggested giving her a little vaseline when we notice the problem. It's cheap and it's a great first step to trying to solve the problem. If that doesn't work, you can work your way up to the more expensive stuff.

Nikki :D

[eli1126]

Thank You All So Much!! Nikki, I love your quote in your sig :) DH and I are definitely pessimists when it comes to SIL then :D She is fine today, we did switch the food way too quick this time so I am hoping that as she gets used to it, she will be ok. It also could be a hairball thing because I noticed a few days ago she was like doing the wheezing/gagging thing that cats do when trying to get hairballs out :confused: I am writing this all down to bring to the Vet.

Beth

Just to add: As I am typing this she is trying to eat paper :rolleyes:

[greenbunny]

Another poster, I forget who, said that her cat gulps her food down too quickly and then throws up. She's forced her to eat more slowly by buying some medium-sized landscaping rocks and washing them thoroughly, then putting them in the food dish. Apparently the cat has to slow down because she needs to pick around the rocks to get to the food, and it stopped the vomiting.

Also, I completely agree about changing food slowly. We put our cat on prescription food for her tartar, and the vet told us to slowly change it over two weeks.


ETA:
If she's having a lot of hairballs, you should brush her. Everything you can get out with the brush is hair that she won't swallow when she grooms herself. I believe you have long haired cats, birmans or himalayans like mine? I brush Bella every day at least once. When it's really hot and she's shedding a lot I brush her twice daily. I get big clumps every time, fistfulls when it's hot.

I use a slicker brush and also a flea comb. Ask at the pet store, they will show you the options. The slicker brush has tiny wire bristles and the flea comb is very fine, it helps with the clumps.

Also, if your kittens groom each other, you should brush the male also. She could be swallowing his hair when she grooms him.

[fuzzy]

Another poster, I forget who

greenbunny, I thought we had this worked out? Every piece of advice I give is to be noted in your I Love Fuzzy notebook so it can be properly credited when given out to other folks. Tisk, tisk.

:p

eli as gb noted, one of my cats eats too quickly (he's afriad others will eat his food, so he gulps it down and then makes himself sick).

It has also helped to put his food up on something (in our case, the dryer). He feels more secure up there and gulps less.

I wouldn't be too, too, too concerned. Keep an eye on the kitten, but some cats do throw up regularly. One of mine throws up just about every other day. He's been totally check out by the vet and is fine. Its just his way.

Good luck!

[kam]

Shame, greenbunny. For shame. I agree with the others. Don't be TOO alarmed. If the cat acts normally otherwise, it might be a binge/purge thing. Sommer's been doing it for 5 years, but thankfully a lot less than she used to!