Cat overgrooming + vomiting prescription food

[kittylove76]

Hi everyone,

Im new here so please let me know if I broke any posting rules! Here is my issue. I adopted my sweet 5 year old kitty in May of this year. I fed her Rachel Ray dry food and Fancy feast wet, recently (one to two weeks ago) transitioned her to a grain-free dry. I just recently took her to the vet on Tuesday this week(long wait times due to Covid) and the vet told me she was over grooming. I didn't realize it but it is on her arms and her belly. Vet recommended Z/D Royal Canin food and said it was probably food allergy. I bought the food. I also did some research on what the shelter was feeding her, as her overgrooming began after I got her. She is very playful loving cat, so I dont think its stress. Shelter was feeding her grain free, while the Rachel Ray food I was feeding had grains. I am thinking this is what caused her overgroom/allergy but I am unsure. I recently (about a week ago) transitioned her out of the Rachel ray to a brand that is grain free. However, the vet was saying I needed this Z/D food. I just started her on grain free a week or two ago so its too early to tell if the grain free will fix her allergy issue (the wet food I feed is same as one she got in shelter).

I decided the vet knew better though and so the last 3 days I have started moving her to the Z/D food. Here is the timeline:

August 11th: Vet visit and buy special Z/D food. Do not feed it yet, still deciding and thinking.
August 12th: Feed Fancy feast wet in the morning. Mix in some Z/D dry to grain-free dry to start transition for dry food. Feed Z/D wet in the evening. She eats all wet food.
August 13th: Feed Z/D wet in morning, she eats but leaves little bit. Feed Z/D wet in evening and she eats some but not all.
August 14th: Giver her Z/D wet in morning, she does not touch it. Instead, she eats little bit of dry (which is weird, she liked wet more usually) and then throws up the dry food and some white foam shortly after. Does not eat for a few hours except for a small treat (Greenies). In evening I give her the Z/D wet and she won't touch it. I am worried so I mix in a little bit of the wet food she is used to (Fancy feast) to try and convince her. She eats a little bit and pukes. I am worried about her rejecting the Z/D completely. I wait a little and then give her her Fancy feast wet food she usually has. She eats the whole thing and so far has not puked, so I think it will be ok.


My question is:

1. Is it possible that her over grooming/allergy was due to me feeding her a grain food and she wasn't used to eating it? If so, the grain free should fix her allergy (we will see in few weeks) and I dont need Z/D food.

2. Do I continue trying with the Z/D food or is it clear from her puking that she doesn't tolerate it? Am I doing it wrong?

Thank you for reading. I will update in the morning. Please let me know if there is anything you think I am missing or what you think the issue is.

 

[kittylove76]

Oops just realized title should be over grooming not growing! Sorry, autocorrect!

 

[LTS3]

If it's a food allergy / sensitivity, you don't need the Z/D junk despite what the vet says. You can feed a more palatable and lesser expensive limited ingredient diet brand of commercial cat food. Grains aren't the only thing that can use skin and fur issues. Protein and fillers can too. Chicken is a common cause of food issues in cats. Maybe try a novel protein food in rabbit or something. A food trial has to be done for around 13 weeks or so to see if it's helping or not and you can't feed anything else during the trial so no treats or table scraps. If you feed canned, make sure it's the same brand and protein as the dry to avoid introducing variables that affect the food trial.

If your cat continues to throw up even during the food trial, there may be other issues going on. Gastrointestinal issues like IBD can cause vomiting and other symptoms.

 

[kittylove76]

Thanks!! I will check out other limited ingredient diets. For now I think I will keep her on the grain free to see if that's the issue...then move to another brand if the allergy doesn't clear up.