My cat is throwing up. Could I get some advice?

[Tatum]

I woke up yesterday morning to find a large pile (I know, that’s gross) of half-digested food, and two other spots where one of them had thrown up mostly liquid. I have found out it is Lincoln. He has thrown up about five for six times since yesterday morning (it is 3:15 AM as I write this). He has not used the litter box in all that time. I have seen him drink water once, and eat a small amount once since this all began. He’s a crying kind of noise when the pukes. I called the emergency vet since it was Sunday yesterday and my vet was closed. The guy on the phone said it didn’t sound like an emergency from what I’d described (though at that point he hadn’t thrown up as much), and to monitor him further, make sure he had access to water, and make an appointment with my vet. So here we are. My cat is still throwing up hours after that phone call, my vet won’t be able to get him in for days probably, and I’ve got work at 9:00. I don’t know what to do.
Here’s a video where he kind of makes that noise. He also likes in this so fair warning.

 

[tabbytom]

I woke up yesterday morning to find a large pile (I know, that’s gross) of half-digested food, and two other spots where one of them had thrown up mostly liquid. I have found out it is Lincoln. He has thrown up about five for six times since yesterday morning (it is 3:15 AM as I write this). He has not used the litter box in all that time. I have seen him drink water once, and eat a small amount once since this all began. He’s a crying kind of noise when the pukes. I called the emergency vet since it was Sunday yesterday and my vet was closed. The guy on the phone said it didn’t sound like an emergency from what I’d described (though at that point he hadn’t thrown up as much), and to monitor him further, make sure he had access to water, and make an appointment with my vet. So here we are. My cat is still throwing up hours after that phone call, my vet won’t be able to get him in for days probably, and I’ve got work at 9:00. I don’t know what to do.
Here’s a video where he kind of makes that noise. He also likes in this so fair warning.

From the end of the video, it looks pretty much like hacking hairball. Hairball usually cause them to puke. Also if a cat is hungry, they'll puke bile. He looks like having a little nausea as you can see him licking his lips. He could also be hungry.

It's pretty common that cats throw up bile together with hairball and sometimes with food as cats also can have upset tummy like us. Try brushing him more often and clean up the fur on the floor or bed where he lays as he'll lick up those loose fur including human hair when he grooms himself.

Sometimes if hey eat too fast will cause them ti puke but killed to be the food that just ate. With bile, the yellowish liquid, it's likely from hunger or hairball.

Just monitor him and see if it happens more frequently or not and if it does, have him checked by the vet. If not, it's just a cat thing.


I'm not a vet.

 

[di and bob]

Give him a teaspoon of butter and see if that helps bring up a hairball. It helps my cats. The lactose in butter is almost nothing so is tolerated by cats. Or get a hairball remedy at a store and press some on his front leg so he licks it off if he won't eat it. Did he ever pee/poop? that needs to be monitored. If he hasn't there could be something seriously wrong. I pray this resolves!

 

[Tatum]

From the end of the video, it looks pretty much like hacking hairball. Hairball usually cause them to puke. Also if a cat is hungry, they'll puke bile. He looks like having a little nausea as you can see him licking his lips. He could also be hungry.

It's pretty common that cats throw up bile together with hairball and sometimes with food as cats also can have upset tummy like us. Try brushing him more often and clean up the fur on the floor or bed where he lays as he'll lick up those loose fur including human hair when he grooms himself.

Sometimes if hey eat too fast will cause them ti puke but killed to be the food that just ate. With bile, the yellowish liquid, it's likely from hunger or hairball.

Just monitor him and see if it happens more frequently or not and if it does, have him checked by the vet. If not, it's just a cat thing.


I'm not a vet.

Thank you for your response. The vet I take him to suggested an urgent care since they’re fully booked. I can’t tell if it’s a hairball. I don’t think he’s ever coughed one up as long as I’ve had him

 

[Tatum]

Give him a teaspoon of butter and see if that helps bring up a hairball. It helps my cats. The lactose in butter is almost nothing so is tolerated by cats. Or get a hairball remedy at a store and press some on his front leg so he licks it off if he won't eat it. Did he ever pee/poop? that needs to be monitored. If he hasn't there could be something seriously wrong. I pray this resolves!

I don’t know if it’s a hairball. I don’t remember him ever having one. But my vet recommended an urgent care since they’re booked

 

[tabbytom]

Thank you for your response. The vet I take him to suggested an urgent care since they’re fully booked. I can’t tell if it’s a hairball. I don’t think he’s ever coughed one up as long as I’ve had him

Hairball usually comes with the vomitus and sometimes it’s hard to see them as they are mixed with the food that comes out with it and also it may be of the same color as the food. You have to take a closer look at the vomitus.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I agree with everyone else that this is classic hairball behavior. His issue seems to be that he can't get it out. If he's also not pooping, it may be blocking his digestive tract. That happens sometimes and can be very serious. Not saying that's the problem, but it might be. Definitely try the suggestions above for hairballs to see if that helps, but if he continues with this, I would take him to either Urgent Care if there is one near you, or the ER, expecially if he isn't peeing either. He may be dehydrated from all this vomiting.

 

[daftcat75]

Honestly, if this has been going on for a couple of days now, I would take him to urgent care. I would ask for whatever imaging (X-ray or ultrasound) can check for an obstruction. Also ask for fluids because he's probably dehydrated. My cat, Betty, has the occasional hairball (usually preceded by that yowl.) But she often rights herself within a few hours. I would take him in anyway. But if he is having pink spits (blood from an irritated esophagus from throwing up too much) or yellow spits (bile), definitely take him in without delay as he probably needs some kind of support and investigation.

If he's still looking nauseated (lip licking, crouching, and that sad yowl), I would pick up his food and give him gut rest for 8 to 12 hours. Hunger is actually a good thing here. Hunger will produce the kind of gut contractions that will help move a stuck hairball along. I would also offer him a teaspoon of egg yolk or syringe it into him if you have an oral syringe as the egg yolk has two components that can be helpful with hairballs: choline which will also help with those peristaltic gut contractions to move food or hair along, and lecithin which will help dissolve fat into solution. It's the fat that binds the hair and makes it difficult to pass, one way or the other. Egg yolk will also help produce something in the litterbox if that's a problem he's also having.