Senior Cat Regurgitating Frequently

[KavKit]

I have a 13 year old female calico. She seems to have eating issues. She can’t have dry food because she automatically throws it up or regurgitates it. But she also does it occasionally with her wet food. I’d say at least once a week. Not every meal or every day. Any advice on why or what to do?

I don’t know if she’s always done this because I only got her a year ago. But she has done it since I have had her at least. Vet says she has no GI issues or oral issues. But she does have 4 teeth removed. We do have one other cat but they don’t compete for food.

She won’t drink water either, she gets all her hydration from her wet food and I add water to that on top of it sometimes.

No potty problems either.

How do I keep her from regurgitating her food? She will eat, throw it up, then cry for more food because she’s hungry because she vomited what she ate.

do elevated food dishes do anything?

 

[Antonio65]

Is your cat eating fast?
I had a cat like yours. She would gobble down her food as if there was no tomorrow, then she would regurgitate the meal (especially when it was dry food) and a few minutes later she would re-eat it...

An elevated dish might help, but also it would help if she could eat slower (in the case she is a fast eater).

 

[KavKit]

Is your cat eating fast?
I had a cat like yours. She would gobble down her food as if there was no tomorrow, then she would regurgitate the meal (especially when it was dry food) and a few minutes later she would re-eat it...

An elevated dish might help, but also it would help if she could eat slower (in the case she is a fast eater).

she actually is the opposite. She is a very slow eater. She takes her time.Sometimes 10-15min to finish or she will walk away then come back a few minutes later.

However you bring up a good point. I don’t actually know if the days she regurgitates she eats faster. I’m usually not home home when it happens. It generally happens during lunch when my husband feeds her. And he puts down the food and walks away. She does not normally do it when I feed her.

 

[Antonio65]

So, I doubt she has a "double personality", if you see her eating slowly, eating some kibbles then walking away and then coming back, it's unlikely she eats like a wolf when you're not there.

Do you feed her always the same type of food? Do you see she's regurgitating more likely with a certain food?
Certain food intolerances can lead to regurgitation when one or more ingredients triggers that intolerance.
My cat, I also found out she was sensitive to grains and fish.

 

[Furballsmom]

It generally happens during lunch when my husband feeds her. And he puts down the food and walks away. She does not normally do it when I feed her.

Hi
Not to spy on your husband, but can you find out exactly what he's doing differently? Even set up a camera so you can watch her behavior?

Also, are you brushing her so she doesn't have hairballs? You could add some cooked egg yolk (very small amounts at first so her digestion becomes used to it) which helps in dissolving them.

 

[BellaBlue82]

she actually is the opposite. She is a very slow eater. She takes her time.Sometimes 10-15min to finish or she will walk away then come back a few minutes later.

However you bring up a good point. I don’t actually know if the days she regurgitates she eats faster. I’m usually not home home when it happens. It generally happens during lunch when my husband feeds her. And he puts down the food and walks away. She does not normally do it when I feed her.

This may sound odd, but have you had the vet check her for stomatitis? My oldest cat Casper always ate very slowly, but at 14/15 I noticed he would regurgitate after eating way too often. After a dental exam and a few teeth pulled, his vet said that older cats can develop a reaction to naturally occurring bacteria in their mouth which can lead to inflammation and upset stomach/regurgitation. Now we're on a monthly pulse dose of antibiotics (5 days a month he gets clin tabs) and he no longer throws up after eating!

 

[stephanietx]

What food are you feeding her? Do you rotate flavors? Are you feeding any fish or chicken flavors?

 

[Margot Lane]

Doesn’t sound as if she’s indoor/outdoor, but obviously if there is grass in the vomit, well then Bob’s your uncle.

 

[Astragal14]

Definitely try elevating her food dish, but it's curious that she is a slow eater and that it rarely happens when you feed her. It could be something physical, like stomatitis or allergies, but that fact that she usually regurgitates with your husband and not you makes me think it is emotional (such as adrenaline/stress or food insecurity).

We had a similar situation with our cat - I prepare most of his meals and having my husband prepare them used to be enough of a deviation from our cat's routine that the stress made him regurgitate. What fixed the situation for us was when my husband made all the meals for 6 weeks after I had knee surgery. There was a lot of regurgitating at first, but after two weeks our cat came to accept this as normal and he's been fine with it ever since. I wish I had a better solution for you!

I would start taking notes during mealtimes and look for patterns. You'll want to note details from before, during and after eating. Consider factors such as: how long since her last meal, how hungry does she seem, her activity level prior to and after eating, stress level prior to and after eating, does she eat in the same spot and with the same bowl, what is her pre- and post-meal routine, what was going on in her environment at the time and is it typical, was anything new introduced, what things do you and your husband do the same or differently.... things of this nature.

Hopefully this will lead you to some emotional or environmental circumstances, or you'll find clues that it's a physical ailment. Good luck and