My cat's stomach is super sensitive to raw food...is this normal?

[everariana]

Hi everyone,

I've posted several times in this forum, and a few times have been about my baby boy, Hugo (I didn't add this to my previous threads since they were about specific instances, but please let me know if this post needs to be deleted). If you've read a couple of the others, you may know by now that I've had a couple obstacles with him and his raw food journey. He and his sister (both turned 1 in April) have been eating raw food since December. He first threw up from raw food after I switched from raw chicken grinds to raw turkey. He's also thrown up from rabbit once and now last night and this morning he vomited from raw chicken grind. Now, I realize the likely problem...his stomach is super sensitive and needs more easing into raw food/new meat way slower than his sister. But if this is still the case after 5 months of eating raw, is that normal? Another concern of mine is that he vomits anywhere from 90 minutes to 6 hours after eating. Last night he vomited 4 hours after eating, today it was 6 hours after eating. That timing is pretty far into his digestion...it's not like his body is rejecting the food right away after consumption.

Last night and this morning he was fed raw chicken grind from Hare Today. This is the meat they've been eating the most since starting raw, and was the first meat they transitioned with. I will admit that prior to last night, they went a week without eating raw and were only eating their canned since I had issues with my freezer. And before that, they were eating a boneless turkey mix, so it's been a month or so since he last ate chicken. But I assumed I didn't need to ease the raw chicken back into his diet with a normal transition since he's had it so much before. Most of the time he eats raw with no problems at all. But I do notice that he has issues when he eats new food without a slow transition. But does this now mean I need to transition him when switching meats every time, regardless of if he's previously eaten it without a problem? I rotate them with mostly chicken and rabbit, but have added turkey for a few weeks

 

[dhammagirl]

Has he had vet visit for this issue?
If not, it may be time. There’s a number of issues that can cause a cat to have vomiting issues, including food allergies.

My ginger boy Bilbo had vomiting issues more frequently than the other kitties. It turned out he had hyperthyroidism. Once we took care of that, the vomiting pretty much stopped, just the occasional hairball.

 

[everariana]

Has he had vet visit for this issue?
If not, it may be time. There’s a number of issues that can cause a cat to have vomiting issues, including food allergies.

My ginger boy Bilbo had vomiting issues more frequently than the other kitties. It turned out he had hyperthyroidism. Once we took care of that, the vomiting pretty much stopped, just the occasional hairball.

I haven't taken him to the vet for this issue because my vet doesn't know much about raw feeding. I have identified a holistic vet who supports raw feeding and does it with his own cats, so I might make a trip to him. Another reason I haven't gone is because 95% of the time he's totally fine with raw feeding. He normally doesn't vomit from chicken, rabbit, or turkey, only in the instances when he hasn't eaten them in a while. And he definitely doesn't vomit from his canned food which is chicken so I don't know about food allergies

 

[dhammagirl]

I haven't taken him to the vet for this issue because my vet doesn't know much about raw feeding. I have identified a holistic vet who supports raw feeding and does it with his own cats, so I might make a trip to him. Another reason I haven't gone is because 95% of the time he's totally fine with raw feeding. He normally doesn't vomit from chicken, rabbit, or turkey, only in the instances when he hasn't eaten them in a while. And he definitely doesn't vomit from his canned food which is chicken so I don't know about food allergies

Hey, that’s great to find a vet who supports raw feeding!

Your sensitive tummy kitty might benefit from some probiotics. Or maybe smaller, more frequent meals, if you consult the holistic vet, let us know what he suggests.

Good luck!

 

[nycats]

Hi! My Billi also seems to have a sensitive stomach with raw. He can't handle red meat (pukes every time), and he puked twice when I switched food from Darwin's to Hare Today. Same turkey protein, but I guess the change was a shock to his poor tummy. I gave some slippery elm to soothe his tummy then gave him a smaller amount today. He as not puked it, as far as I can see. I feel that he is also sensitive to food change, so I have ordered another batch of Darwin's, so that I can transition slower for him. Hope it works.

dhammagirl has a good point about making sure the cats are healthy, as there could be other underlying issues. I need to take 2 of mine for an annual physical, once this Stay At Home order eases up a bit. They are also due for dental. $$$!!!

 

[BaileyCat]

Constipated cats will often barf. Is you cat having any poo issues?

 

[everariana]

Constipated cats will often barf. Is you cat having any poo issues?

Luckily he hasn't had any poop issues. He's very regular

 

[everariana]

Update for everyone: I started transitioning him slowly back onto the raw chicken grinds over 9 days, and he hasn't vomited. The transition has been over for a few days now, and him eating full raw chicken meals over the past few days hasn't caused any additional vomiting so it seems likely that he just has a sensitive stomach and always has to be transitioned back to food regardless of if he's had that specific meat before or not.

Thank you everyone for your help!

 

[Alig224]

Luckily he hasn't had any poop issues. He's very regular

I am just wondering how your cats gets fiber when feeding a raw meat diet? I'm trying to transition my cat to homemade, but worried he isn't getting enough fiber. I tried adding a tiny amount of chopped salad greens and flaxmeal to his meat, but both times he threw up after.

 

[everariana]

I am just wondering how your cats gets fiber when feeding a raw meat diet? I'm trying to transition my cat to homemade, but worried he isn't getting enough fiber. I tried adding a tiny amount of chopped salad greens and flaxmeal to his meat, but both times he threw up after.

From what I’ve read, fiber isn’t necessary in raw diets. My cats eat canned food for lunch (raw for breakfast and dinner) so they get a little fiber from that.

if you do feel like your cat needs fiber, definitely don’t give them leafy greens or salad; it’s not appropriate for their body so that’s probably why they threw it up. A good alternative is canned pumpkin! It helps with both constipation and diarrhea as it basically regulates their vowel movement with the fiber it contains. Make sure to get pure canned pumpkin with no additives, so avoid pumpkin pie filling as that has sugar and other spices. You can look at the ingredients to make sure it’s just pumpkin. The dosage is a little tricky depending on the cat, but you can start with 1/2 teaspoon each day added to their food and go from there.

also keep in mind that it’s 100% normal for cats to poop less on homemade/raw diets. That’s actually a good sign, I know Dr. Pierson over at catinfo.org mentions that her cats only poop every other day on a raw diet. My cats still poop every day (probably because of the canned food they still receive for lunch) but it’s still definitely less than when they weren’t eating raw.

I’ve seen people talk about fiber, pumpkin etc. on here so definitely keep searching!

 

[Mrcclms]

Try a raw food that is boneless