Cat not able to keep down usual food

  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #21

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
As far as the baby food, you must be getting Beechnut. Gerber Stage 2 has the three same flavors that Beechnut offers, but they also have ham. Gerber has corn starch in it, but that is what I feed Feeby anyway. And, she likes the ham and chicken of that brand best. But, feed him whatever you can - if tuna 'juice' works, that for now is OK too.

I wouldn't expect there to be a big issue leaving out the baby food for maybe 3 hours. However, if he eats the baby food with tuna "juice" then maybe you don't have to worry about leaving it out of the fridge.
Yes, that's the brand I have.

Yep it works, I'm worried about the salt content, but it doesn't seem to bother him any, and it gets him to lick up most of what I give him. My other two cats finish off whatever happens to be left, if anything. They really aren't happy about all the dry food being picked up, but it's what I have to do as he keeps regurgitating that as he eats it so fast and swallows the pieces without chewing usually. If I give him one at a time, and he chews them then usually they'll stay down.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #22

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
Update: Emyrs just passed a bunch of hair in his stool and had a bit of liquid stool with some undigested food and hair in it as well. He's not in any discomfort as far as I can tell. I'm keeping a close eye on him. He also passed some more solid stool.
 
Last edited:

fionasmom

Moderator
Staff Member
Moderator
Joined
Jun 21, 2014
Messages
13,119
Purraise
17,353
Location
Los Angeles
The fact that something is coming out is probably helping quite a lot. The amount of hair that is appearing is definitely a big part of the problem. Keep him on the wet food if you can.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #24

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
The fact that something is coming out is probably helping quite a lot. The amount of hair that is appearing is definitely a big part of the problem. Keep him on the wet food if you can.
Yes I think it is as well. I'm encuraging him to eat the wet food as much as I can and limiting the dry as he is still regurgitating it. I've also taken some dry and moistened it with some warm water to soften it and he can keep it down that way.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #25

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
Yes I think it is as well. I'm encuraging him to eat the wet food as much as I can and limiting the dry as he is still regurgitating it. I've also taken some dry and moistened it with some warm water to soften it and he can keep it down that way.
I have a fresh jar of chicken baby food he seems to like it. He does ok with beef as well but wont touch the turkey.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #26

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
Update: Emrys is still doing okay, he has a vet appointment in about 3 and a half hours. He's being watched more closely now. About an hour, maybe two ago, he threw up twice. Once was the treat I just gave him(which he swallowed whole) and some more fur. Another time was all liquid with some of the wet food I had given him before, but it looked like there was blood in there as well. He hasn't thrown up since and seems to be feeling just fine.

I'm worried. Also, we think he threw up in the litter box when we saw the undigested food, a bit of hair and such. Which made it way easier to clean up at least but also wasn't ideal. Yesterday there wasn't any blood thankfully.

Noting all this stuff is helping me remember what happened about when, so I have a somewhat accurate timeline for the vet. I'm also slowly putting things together, and I think Em's been unwell for a week or so and we just didn't notice it until it reached the point it did a few days go.

I feel horrible like this is my fault and my anxiety is so high, it's not funny. I can't seem to calm down. Hopefully after his vet appointment we'll have some positive answers and an action plan to get him better.
 
Last edited:
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #27

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
Update after the vet. Em's blood work came back great and everything. The vet said that the blood is most likely from irritation from the hairball of doom. He's on an antibiotic for the next ten days and has a hairball med as well. Also we're to give him wet food, however he doesn't seem to like canned cat food. I can only get him to eat tuna for humans, chicken baby food and stuff like that. I'm concerned he's going to end up deficient in vitamins.

He's also still under observation but I think as long as we hold off on dry food and the hard cat treats for a while everything will heal up just fine.
 

FeebysOwner

TCS Member
Staff Member
Forum Helper
Joined
Jun 13, 2018
Messages
22,435
Purraise
33,197
Location
Central FL (Born in OH)
Good news on the blood work! Did you try adding moisture to the dry - water, tuna juice, bone broth to see if he will eat his dry food that way? Most vets carry A/D Recovery food in cans. A lot of cats will eat that, easier than some other canned foods, and it is a complete cat food meal. You might consider checking to see if your vet has it in stock and pick up a couple of cans to try. You could even try to add some water to it and make a gravy to moisten his dry food.

Make sure he eats with the antibiotics, as they can upset a cat's stomach.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #29

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
Good news on the blood work! Did you try adding moisture to the dry - water, tuna juice, bone broth to see if he will eat his dry food that way? Most vets carry A/D Recovery food in cans. A lot of cats will eat that, easier than some other canned foods, and it is a complete cat food meal. You might consider checking to see if your vet has it in stock and pick up a couple of cans to try. You could even try to add some water to it and make a gravy to moisten his dry food.

Make sure he eats with the antibiotics, as they can upset a cat's stomach.
Yes, I wet the dry food with warm water the other day, and he didn't seem to care for it at all. But he kept it down just fine. I may do that again, just to get some vitamins in him while we figure out what if any kind of canned food he likes. His vet appointment was almost 200 dollars well worth it for the peace of mind, but money will be very tight til the1st of next month and this vet office charges a lot for the food they sell.

I don't want to try too much too fast, but I also know he needs to eat, as he hasn't been eating very well for the last 4 days or so. I'm also not entirely sure if he'll eat if I don't give him any other choices, either. There's a few things I can try to get him eating wet cat food instead of things not so great for him.

Yeah, they gave him his first dose at the vets office and when we came home I gave him a little chicken baby food, and he went right after it and so far so good he doesn't seem nauseous at all and is just relaxing

I also noticed the head tilt and chewing thing he was doing has stopped since he threw up this morning. Hopefully all the hair that was causing a problem is gone.

Honestly, it won't hurt to change him off all dry food for many reasons I'm just not sure how to do it with a very picky eater.
 

fionasmom

Moderator
Staff Member
Moderator
Joined
Jun 21, 2014
Messages
13,119
Purraise
17,353
Location
Los Angeles
I am glad to hear that you got some reassurances and help for him. Hopefully this will put him on the right track. As for food, most pet food companies make stews and bisques which can be used for snacks or toppers, like Hartz and Fancy Feast. Maybe he would eat some wet food with those added.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #31

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
I am glad to hear that you got some reassurances and help for him. Hopefully this will put him on the right track. As for food, most pet food companies make stews and bisques which can be used for snacks or toppers, like Hartz and Fancy Feast. Maybe he would eat some wet food with those added.
Maybe though he seems to have a pretty sensitive stomach, so I don't want to add anything new too fast or change too much, especially not right now. So I'm trying to think of ways to transition him from one thing to another. Lately I've been adding warm water to the dry food he's used and letting it soften then offering that to him, and he's tolerated that the few times I've done it. He doesn't care for that very much.

We're going to start looking for the brand/kind of wet cat food he likes shortly as well. I'm just trying to figure out what to do til we can get to the store for it.

I forgot to add in my first update about the vet, but he wasn't dehydrated either.

Also not entirely happy with the vet she sold us something for his hairballs and the first ingredient is white petroleum, and it also has some kind of oil in it which is a fat which I'm not sure if that would help with the hairballs. I'm concerned that will make them worse. I will be looking for something else/better and only use that short term if at all. Arg. I expect vets of all people to know better.
 

FeebysOwner

TCS Member
Staff Member
Forum Helper
Joined
Jun 13, 2018
Messages
22,435
Purraise
33,197
Location
Central FL (Born in OH)
Also not entirely happy with the vet she sold us something for his hairballs and the first ingredient is white petroleum, and it also has some kind of oil in it which is a fat which I'm not sure if that would help with the hairballs.
Tbh, my first cat, Tawny (RIP), willingly ate Vaseline and it never hurt him. Gracie (RIP) wouldn't eat it but did eat a malt flavored hairball treat, which essentially had a petroleum base. I am not saying that it is OK for Emry given his stomach issues; instead maybe some drops of olive oil or a dab of butter/margarine might be an option. I think he has a digestive issue that is causing the hairball accumulation, so any hairball treats of any sort isn't the end-all answer. The motility in his digestive tract is somehow in play with Em.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #33

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
Tbh, my first cat, Tawny (RIP), willingly ate Vaseline and it never hurt him. Gracie (RIP) wouldn't eat it but did eat a malt flavored hairball treat, which essentially had a petroleum base. I am not saying that it is OK for Emry given his stomach issues; instead maybe some drops of olive oil or a dab of butter/margarine might be an option. I think he has a digestive issue that is causing the hairball accumulation, so any hairball treats of any sort isn't the end-all answer. The motility in his digestive tract is somehow in play with Em.
Perhaps. I'm not sure, as the vet was in a rush, which has me wondering if something wasn't missed. It seems his diet was an issue as when I switched to the wet food when he started regurgitating the dry he passed quite a bit of hair in his stool a day later. I'm not sure if it's the only one of course.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #34

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
Em just gave me a bit of a scare. For some reason he drank quite a bit of water and then threw it up, and it was just water with nothing else in it. Going to keep as good of an eye on him as I can tonight, and hopefully it doesn't happen anymore.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #35

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
Update: Em didn't throw up anymore for the entire night, unless he did it where we can't see the evidence. He seems fine this morning as well and has ate and drank a bit. I'm watching him since his meal and so far no signs of nausea or anything. Still trying to find a wet food he likes.

Also, I posted, its own thread about it, but the vet sold us Laxatone to treat his hairballs. The ingredients are white patrolem and oils. I'm not sure about giving it to him, but I really shouldn't delay hairball treatment. Any suggestions?
 

fionasmom

Moderator
Staff Member
Moderator
Joined
Jun 21, 2014
Messages
13,119
Purraise
17,353
Location
Los Angeles
That is great news. Keep working on the wet food, stews, toppers, or anything that will help him to transition a little bit as I think that the dry diet is part of the problem, along with a predisposition to hairballs.

I have used Laxatone and currently have some in the house. It is meant to be used in small amount over a limited period of time. I know that it opens up that discussion of petroleum products being ingested but I have always found it to work.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #37

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
That is great news. Keep working on the wet food, stews, toppers, or anything that will help him to transition a little bit as I think that the dry diet is part of the problem, along with a predisposition to hairballs.

I have used Laxatone and currently have some in the house. It is meant to be used in small amount over a limited period of time. I know that it opens up that discussion of petroleum products being ingested, but I have always found it to work.
Thank you. So far, I've had very little luck getting him to eat the canned cat food that I have in the house. I even tried grinding up some of his usual dry food and using that as a topper. He sniffed it and that was it. Though, he seems to tolerate a small amount of the ground up dry food by its self just fine. So I've been giving him bits of that along with the chicken baby food he likes to try to keep his nutrition up. Not sure if I'm doing it exactly right. Also trying to figure out how to transition him from his dry food diet to a new food without upsetting his stomach any farther. I feel lost between a rock and a hard place. He also seems to want to impersonate a water fountain now and seems to over drink, so I have to watch him and make sure he drinks enough but also not so much that he throws it back up.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #38

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
Well, Em hasn't thrown up since he went to the vet on Monday. He's also not eating much. He won't eat the baby food unless it's from a just opened jar. He won't eat canned cat food, either. The only thing he seems to eat is the food I've been feeding him all along. I added some water to it and let it soften, then offered it, and he didn't want it that way. He wants it dry. The issue with dry is that it seems to make him throw up. I ground some up and have been giving him very small amounts of that frequently, but I know it's not enough, and he needs more, but I'm nervous about giving him more as I'm scared of triggering vomiting that doesn't stop or triggering him to throw up blood again. (he was seen by a vet after that happened, not sure what all the exam was, but she prescribed him antibiotics and said that sometimes hairballs especially big ones that get stuck can trigger something that would cause that. I don't remember what she said exactly. She was in a bit of a rush.)

I'm scared that no matter what I do I'm going to screw up somehow.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #40

crystal dawn

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Messages
457
Purraise
265
Location
Missouri, USA
Yeah he does. I pour water from a bottle into a bowl and he drinks that way. He pooped today so I feel a bit better now.
 
Top