Need advice on what is considered "normal"?

[DB89014]

Hi all, I am concerned about one of my cats. When he was a kitten, he used to throw up frequently, sometimes multiple times per day. He got a clean bill of health from the vet and we attributed it to eating way too fast. With the use of slow feeders and pressing dry food down into the wet food it pretty much was resolved.

This is almost a year later now and he seems to be throwing up frequently again. A lot of the time it's watery food but there is a hair ball of some kind in it. Is this normal when a cat throws up a hairball? He is a long haired cat so he certainly has a lot of hair. Now most of the time he seems to be throwing up mostly water with a tiny bit of food in it. Does that even count as throwing up? I mean it's possible he is drinking from his water bowl too quickly but I dont see him doing it. Is this a reason for concern? Is there any way I can get him to drink water more slowly if this is the problem? I'm sorry if this seems silly but my first cat never throws up so I am not sure what is considered normal. Thank you in advance

 

[Babypinkweeb]

My older cat is long hair and has often thrown up hairballs. For long time I thought it was normal from mainstream media, but later learned it's actually not normal. My current vet told me healthy cats shouldn't be bringing up hairballs more than maybe 2-4 times a year. Cats should be pooping them out instead!

In my case, switching to a better food and brushing more regularly has reduced his vomiting a lot. He hasn't vomited any hairballs in several months since the changes. Food sensitivities can also cause irritation in the digestive system and sometimes show as frequent vomiting. Feeding wet food can also reduce food gorging related vomiting as they do not swell up as much as dry food does in the stomach. I'm sure other members can also help chime in to possible reasons. FYI most vets may not be very in tune with feline nutritional needs as many vets I've had including my current one has not found any health concerns with my cat, and even tried to push prescription food with garbage ingredients. Thankfully I learned a lot on this site, and is feeding him a more suitable food now which has so far resolved this issue.

 

[hexiesfriend]

Try hairball remedy everyday. In my experience if there is hair in the vomit it’s normal. Each cat is different. I have one that never coughs up hairballs but when she does they are long cigars and I have another one that will cough up a little at a time with a few pieces of hair. The spring is usually worse when there is more shedding. You can get hairball remedy anywhere

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I agree with Babypinkweeb that throwing up hairballs isn't really how that hair is supposed to go through their system. They really ARE supposed to "poop" it out. And feeding a high quality wet food should also help the hair slide on through. But when a cat has tons of long hair, they might need some help, so daily brushing, or really a good combing, can be very helpful. I have a longish haired cat, and find that combing works better than brushing.

You can also add some egg yolk to their diet, either cooked or raw, but if raw, don't add in any whites with it. Many people just mix in a partial egg yolk right into their wet food once or twice per week. Sometimes beating it up in a little water then adding it in helps so it's not so "sticky".

I don't think you can get him to drink water more slowly, but if you feed an all wet diet, he shouldn't need to drink much at all, especially if you add some water directly into his food. That's what I do to make sure they are plenty hydrated. I still leave a water bowl out, but rarely see them drinking from it.

 

[stephanietx]

Normal is no hairballs and not throwing up. I had a cat once who was a frequent puker. We figured out, by process of elimination, that she could not tolerate any food with any kind of fish in it. Once we eliminated fish, and switched to only chicken, turkey, rabbit, and duck, she stopped throwing up. The other issue is overfeeding dry food. Dry food does not pass through the body as quickly as wet food. It takes longer for the body to break it down and absorb the nutrients. This can lead to overeating and throwing up. Hair should pass through the intestinal tract and be elminated in your cat's stool. If things get backed up, the cat will throw up. So, make sure you're not overfeeding dry food and try an elimination diet to see if that helps.

 

[DB89014]

Thank you all for your feedback! The hairballs are small maybe the size of a dime most of the time. I know i see hair in their poop but I have 4 cats so it's hard to tell which poop belongs to which cat. I will definitely try brushing them more frequently and the hairball remedy. Does anyone have suggestions of a good one to try? Mrsgreenjeens is the egg addition to the food good for the throwing up or is it just good for them in general with the added protein? I feed them very little dry food i put about a cup out at night which is shared between them. Otherwise I've been rotating between Wellness, Whole hearted and Fancy Feast canned food. There are no fish flavors, just turkey, chicken and beef but maybe I can start by eliminating the beef?

 

[neely]

One thing I would definitely suggest is using a stainless steel comb instead of a brush for longhaired cats. Here's an example of it:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0007KTL8K/?tag=thecatsite

And a recent thread about grooming longhaired cats: Brush recommendations for long hair?