Food Change Causing Intestinal Problems?

[Kaj5275]

Hi! I'm new here. I adopted my Victoria this January (2017) and the shelter informed me that she has a very sensitive stomach because she's allergic to a lot of foods(she's an all white blue-eyed cat). They recommended that I feed her either Purina Cat Chow or Royal Canin for Sensitive Stomachs. She wouldn't eat the first week that she lived with me so I bought both and she ended up choosing the Purina Indoor Cat Chow and has been eating it since.
A few weeks ago I noticed that Victoria had started burping a lot, and after doing some research I found that it could be digestive problems. I gradually started to change her food from the Purina to the Royal Canin last week and two days ago I gave her a full bowl of just the Royal Canin. Yesterday she threw up once, and it was mostly food. Today, she threw up only liquid twice and then she had really messy diarrhea. She hasn't really touched her bowl today or yesterday. She also keeps smacking her lips, which is apparently sign of nausea. I'm worried that it's the food change so I'm going to get the Purina Indoor food again and see if she'll be okay after going back to that because the Royal Canin could be bad or something. However, she also tore her favorite stuffed bird to shreds on Tuesday so I'm also worried that she could have ingested some stuffing. Other than that, she's acting like her normal, active, playful self. If she continues to be sick through the weekend I'm going to take her to the vet on Monday. What do you guys think?

 

[denice]

It definitely does sound like a food issue. The Royal Canin is the better of the two foods but what a kitty does well on is very individual. Grain free is supposed to be the best but one of my cats will start vomiting and quit eating with just a little of the high end grain free food. A vet visit would probably be a good idea. Cats in shelters often don't get the complete blood work because of the expense. They often only get the bare bones basics.

Will she eat wet food? Often cats with digestive issues will do better on a diet that is at least partially wet food. I have an IBD kitty and both of my cats eat a diet that is about half wet food and half dry food.

If nothing shows up on blood work then it will be trial and error to find what works well for her. She does need to start eating though. It is dangerous for a cat to go more than two days without eating because of a condition called hepatic lipidosis which is also called fatty liver. You could try plain meat baby food, the kind that is just meat and broth no garlic or onion. It isn't a complete food so it is a short term thing but it would get calories in.

 

[IndyJones]

Both those foods are pretty crappy I would try a grain free food.

 

[kashmir64]

Purina Beyond is a very good grain free, gluten free dry food. My kittens will be on this as soon as they turn 1 year.
Although, it could be an allergy to chicken. Try something without and see if it helps.

 

[Kaj5275]

Her foster mom said she couldn't handle the wet food. I did get her to eat with baby food when she wouldn't eat that first week but she threw it right up. I might try it again because she doesn't seem interested in eating. She also doesn't want to drink water because she can't even keep that down. She threw up two more times last night while I was at work and this morning, all 4 times it was just a tiny bit of liquid. I requested a vet appointment for her tomorrow because they aren't today but if she gets worse I'll take her to the emergency vet.

 

[IndyJones]

Please keep an eye on her. If she goes too long on an empty stomach her liver will be damaged.

 

[Kaj5275]

I'm staying home with her and keeping her in my room with me. I did buy some unflavored Pedialyte and some turkey baby food but she didn't seem crazy about either of them. She's definitely going to the vet tomorrow morning though.

 

[kashmir64]

Keep us updated. All that vomiting sounds like there's something else going on besides food allergies. That's an awful lot of vomiting.

 

[Kaj5275]

Oh, I forgot to mention that her ears are also cooler than usual. I noticed that shortly before I went to work yesterday evening. She can keep down water with a little bit of Pedialyte in it if she relaxes and sleeps, but anytime she starts running around or being physically active she throws up more liquid. She isn't actually vomiting a great amount because her stomach is empty, but she has been throwing up nearly every time she drinks and she doesn't want to eat. She's still alert and wanting to play or be petted or looks out the window at birds most of the time. I'm counting the hours until her vet visit tomorrow morning though.

 

[stephanietx]

Personally, I would switch her back to the Purina food. It's not great, but if she likes it and it's not causing adverse reactions, then stick with that. I have one kitty who has a sensitive tummy and we have to feed him prescription food. I would LOVE to feed him an exclusively all grain-free diet like my other 3 kitties, but it tears up his tummy and creates severe poop problems, so I understand your struggle. It's real. You might work with your vet to see if one of the prescription foods would work.

Regarding the vomiting, nausea, and not eating, that is directly related to the food change. She cannot tolerate it and she's probably developed some gas in her tummy and intestinal tract. (I've also gone through this with my guy when trying to change foods.) Get her to the vet for something to calm her tummy and go back to the Purina food for now. Once she gets over this, then see if one of the Rx foods would work for her.

 

[Kaj5275]

I did buy her Purina food again yesterday. When I poured it into her bowl and showed it to her, she licked it, but didn't eat any of it. She hasn't shown any interest in eating at all. I've tried that, wetting her food, and the turkey baby food but she turns away. We'll just have to see what the vet says tomorrow I guess. Thank you everyone for all of your advice and help by the way!

 

[maggie101]

My cat Peaches has the same problem as yours. She mostly throws up her food in the morning when her tummy is the most sensitive and she eats fast because she is so hungry. I do not give her dry food because she will gobble that up fast. Be careful how much you feed her. Take the bowl away when she slows down or starts pausing. Some mornings Peaches does not want to eat much. Maybe this is coincidence but I went on a vacation and left dry food out. A couple weeks later she had a stool stuck in her, high white blood count, fever, dehydrated, and was on meds for 2 weeks

 

[Kaj5275]

Victoria is on a strict diet (ever since she's been in foster care) where she only gets 1/4 cup of food twice a day. She's a very small, petite cat and doesn't have a big appetite. Some days she doesn't even eat every bite and even if I give her a little more than intended she won't overeat.

 

[stephanietx]

She's probably hungry, but the nausea is probably making her too sick to her stomach to eat. Poor girl. She probably will need more Cerenia to settle her tummy. If she's got tummy issues, you might ask the vet for some Science Diet i/d. We feed the wet to our kitty (mixed with some grain-free food), or Royal Canin Gastrointestinal HE (dry). Both are Rx foods.

 

[Kaj5275]

Update: she has been drinking the water with Pedialyte and has been able to keep it down the last few hours. She's been mostly resting and sleeping. She was smacking her lips a little after drinking a little bit ago but no vomiting since about 7. I'm hoping this is a good sign!

 

[Kaj5275]

Sorry for the update delay! It's been a long day. Victoria actually seemed to be feeling better as the night progressed and even resumed her normal bedtime cuddles and demanded to sleep on my stomach as usual. She had been just sleeping near the end of the bed. Her ears got warm again at night, but they've still been a little cool today. Anyway! After still drinking and using the litter box normally, we went to the vet at 10. They examined her, did an x-ray, and they said she's fine. They gave her an anti-inflammatory to ward off any potential illnesses and a dose of Cerenia for the nausea and vomiting. They gave me 2 cans of Purina Pro Plan Vet Prescription food and she ate some as soon as I opened when we got back! The vet said she's just got an upset tummy from either the food change or from eating something she wasn't supposed to. She hasn't really seemed interested in eating much since this afternoon, but she's relatively back to normal. Still not lip smacking or vomiting since last night so I'm hoping she'll want to eat more tomorrow. I've been offering her the dry food and canned food ever 1-2 hours but she's tired from all the stress today so she's been sleeping a lot. I'm just relieved she's okay and doesn't have a blockage or a serious illness!

 

[kashmir64]

I am so glad to hear she is doing better and that it was just an upset tummy. Pro Plan is awesome. The amount of vomiting scared me.

 

[Kaj5275]

Me too! Here's a picture of her and her gorgeous blue eyes

 

[stephanietx]

I'm so glad she seems to be on the mend! This is pretty much how it went down with my kitty who had gastroenteritis last fall. It took him about a day or so to recover from the stress, then he started eating more normally.

 

[kashmir64]

What a beautiful cat.