Kitten throwing up after eating

[mariaanddonnie]

My five month old kitten seems in fine Heath....plays, poops, pees, eats and drinks. The concern is her throwing up.she doesn't do it all the time.....seems to eats and eats and then does it. Of course I'm concerned something is wrong with her. Should I be concerned or is this throwing up naturally for cats?

I'm feeding her purina wet canned cat food along with fancy feast kitten cat food and dry purina kitten chow.

 

[revenwyn]

First of all those foods are not good for cats. You want to feed either a completely raw diet or at the very least grain free.
 

 

[ritz]

Try feeding her more, smaller meals at a time.  She may be so hungry, she eats too fast.

If that doesn't cut down/eliminate the puking, it might be an allergic reaction to food.  In which case, like Revenwyn suggested, try raw (you can really control the protein she eats) or grain free wet.   You'll need to experiment. 

 

[finnlacey]

I agree to get her off those foods. Go grain free or raw. Those foods are full of grains which turn into sugar and can affect her system not only now but later on in life with things like diabetes, colitis, IBD, etc. 

 

[mariaanddonnie]

Other than RAW, what else do you recommend? 

 

[finnlacey]

I feed mine completely wet and grain free. I feed several different brands but for you I'd start out slow and just pick one at a time. I feed Nature's Variety, Merrick, Weruva, Soulistic, and Petguard (only the grain free ones). I would start with something like Wellness if I were you, it's gentle and most kitties don't usually have any issues with it. Then after a couple of weeks you can move onto another one and add it slowly. I like to feed several different ones so they don't develop food allergies to one protein source. 

 

[mariaanddonnie]

Do I get them online? We have a Walmart and regular small grocery store. No big chains.

 

[finnlacey]

Yes you can, Amazon.com, onlynaturalpets.com, petco.com, others also. 

 

[catman513]

Assuming your kitten eats and then throws up more or less immediately (within a few minutes), this is not a problem with the content of the food. It would not even be partially digested by the time it is vomited up.

Some cats eat more or faster than their esophagus can transmit to the stomach. The esophagus is long and horizontal. Varying food types may slow down the cat's eating, or go down the esophagus easier, but the content of the food has nothing to with the vomiting.

Advice to feed multiple small meals is the right advice as far as the vomiting goes.

Advice to feed raw or wet or organic is good advice for cat nutrition.

 

[catsallaround]

Try to make sure there are at least a few small meals.  Put the bowl on a phonebook or something elevated and don't let her play to roughly before or after.

 

[mariaanddonnie]

How can I tell if the food has grain in it?

 

[ldg]

Read the label, or check the manufacturer website.

The most common grains you'll see in cat food are rice, corn, wheat, barley, or oats

 

[detmut]

How can I tell if the food has grain in it?

read the label. but if a cat food is grain-free, it will almost surely say so on the label, 

 

[whollycat]

Assuming your kitten eats and then throws up more or less immediately (within a few minutes), this is not a problem with the content of the food. It would not even be partially digested by the time it is vomited up.

Sorry to disagree, but it can be a problem with the content of the food e.g. beef, carrageenan or other known intolerances that some kitties have. Upchucking food right away is a sure sign of an intolerance. Back in the days when I fed canned, one of mine would upchuck any canned food with beef in it immediately--didn't matter what brand of grain free. He has an intolerance to beef. BUT oddly enough, he can eat raw beef just fine.

I'm know that feeding a balanced raw diet isn't for everyone, but sometimes switching to a balanced raw diet can alleviate intolerances. Next to a balanced raw diet, a grain free canned is the best.

I would keep a log of what was fed, when it was fed, how much was fed, and how long after eating the vomiting occurred to see if there is a pattern. As others have said, maybe try smaller meals spaced out during the day. Or smoosh the food onto the plate so kitty can't eat as fast. Or try one of these types of stainless steel "slow eating down"

bowls: Slow-Feed Bowl.

 

[kittylover23]

When I was feeding my cats wet food, I alternated between Weruva, NV Instinct, BFF, Wellness (the grain-free ones), and Natural Balance. But..I'd check the labels to be sure they're carrageenan-free. Carrageenan isn't something you want in your cat's food.

 

[mariaanddonnie]

It seems chicken is causing her to bring her food back up.

I have not had the chance to change over to a better brand. I'm still using canned Purina One pate. 

But I've got some extra money now and will purchase better ones for her.  I'm going with Weruva and Wellness.

 

[kittylover23]

It seems chicken is causing her to bring her food back up.

I have not had the chance to change over to a better brand. I'm still using canned Purina One pate. 

But I've got some extra money now and will purchase better ones for her.  I'm going with Weruva and Wellness.

Good choices!!

 

[mariaanddonnie]

Well, I think my kitten is sick.

This morning my husband fed her and she threw up immediately after.

He gave her something else and it seemed to stay down. He feed her a couple more times, little Meals, and she ate some and it stayed down.

This evening she was fed and within a couple minutes it came back up.

Both times it was real watery. Is that a sign of something? Could she be dronking too much water? My husband had seen her drink a lot of water.
Could a hairball in the making make her throw up?

She is playing, running around etc. And peeing and pooping.

I have not transitioned her yet to better food.

 

[finnlacey]

I think it's time for a vet visit and right away. She could have an obstruction and that's very dangerous! She could also have an infection. Cats are notoriously good at hiding illness and will still play and act normal when they're sick. You have to be the one to read the signs and in this case, throwing up is the sign. Please see a vet. 

 

[mariaanddonnie]

Ok.