Senior Cat Eating Too Fast And Throwing Up

[TobiDaDog]

Sirvester is being...a pill. He's figured out recently that Reese has some pretty awesome stuff in her dish too, so he scarfs his food as fast as he can, then runs across the room to get hers. Aaand then tries to scarf that before I can reach him. And then pukes it all up in her dish. He's done it twice in the past week. I'm assuming that the load of food in his belly is just too much, because he used to be free fed and now I'm weaning him onto meals?

When I mix his wet food with dry, it slows him down significantly because he has to stop to chew. It helps the food from coming right back up the hatch. But jeez buddy! Slow down! I've taken to putting them in separate rooms to eat, but Reese hears him crying when he's done and quits eating so she can go peek under the door frame at him.

I tried the ping pong ball option on Reese this past week when she was scarfing after her spay, but my cats eat on small plates and she just rolled the balls right off. It didn't help at all.

 

[abyeb]

This article has some nice tips for fast eaters: 18 Awesome Cat Feeding Tips By Thecatsite Staff Members

Have you tried a puzzle feeder or slow feeder? That works nicely for kibble, and gives cats some mental stimulation too! My Charlie likes getting his kibble in a treat dispensing ball. I also sometimes put food inside of a paper towel tube to make it a fun game for him.

This article has some specific tips for multi-cat households: Feeding Cats In A Multi-cat Household: A Quick Guide

 

[Tobermory]

I have to feed three cats in three rooms, one behind a closed door. It didn’t take too long before they learned their assigned spots. Iris, the slow eater, also regurgitates her morning meal if I give her all of it at once. I give her half then wait about 30 minutes and give her the other half—behind a closed door, of course, because Lily and Mocha are indignant that they're not getting fed again!

 

[Furballsmom]

There's this too that could help;
Fantastic Food And Water Dishes - A Product Guide (updated For 2019)

 

[TobiDaDog]

Thank you guys. I haven't tried any puzzle feeders, but that's mostly because he's very, very picky about how his food is served. He has a rather flat face and I think that kind of bugs him if he's not eating off of an open plate. He turns his nose up at a treat ball without even a second glance.
I did however try smearing his food around the plate instead of making a pile, and it slowed him down quite a bit this morning.

 

[Furballsmom]