Vomiting. Has your cat ever gotten sick from switching food too quickly? How long did it take to recover?

[olliepurrington]

I took my cat to the vet two weeks ago when he vomited 7 times in one day. The vet and I thought it was a possibility that switching dry food may have been partially causing it (he hated the new food I was transitioning to, so I increased the "old" food which happened to be a new formula).

He's currently just on the canned Fancy Feast pate until an order for a sensitive stomach food goes through next week. He's usually done mostly ok on Fancy Feast in the past.

For the past week he's down to about an average of one vomit per day, but he also gags strongly while eating once or twice a day. His energy level is mostly normal, but slightly less (he is jumping on windowsills etc but not playing much recently).

So he generally seems to have improved, but not sure if this is a normal rate of improvement. I was going to call the vet today, but they're closed for Memorial Day, so I thought I'd ask if any of you have had an experience like this. Would a cat still be recovering from a food switch two weeks later?

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi
I'm not sure a food switch would cause all this?

 

[PushPurrCatPaws]

I took my cat to the vet two weeks ago when he vomited 7 times in one day. The vet and I thought it was a possibility that switching dry food may have been partially causing it (he hated the new food I was transitioning to, so I increased the "old" food which happened to be a new formula).

He's currently just on the canned Fancy Feast pate until an order for a sensitive stomach food goes through next week. He's usually done mostly ok on Fancy Feast in the past.

For the past week he's down to about an average of one vomit per day, but he also gags strongly while eating once or twice a day. His energy level is mostly normal, but slightly less (he is jumping on windowsills etc but not playing much recently).

So he generally seems to have improved, but not sure if this is a normal rate of improvement. I was going to call the vet today, but they're closed for Memorial Day, so I thought I'd ask if any of you have had an experience like this. Would a cat still be recovering from a food switch two weeks later?

I'm glad you took your cat in when he vomited that much in one day (7 times!). Did the vet do any bloodwork or other exploration as to the actual cause of the vomiting?

In my experience, it's not normal for a cat to be vomiting daily!
(My cat is 7 years old, and she has only ever vomited 4 times in her entire life with me. I realize I may have a cat with a strong stomach, but still... frequent vomiting is not normal -- and also not healthy for the cat longterm.)

I would recommend taking the cat back to the vet (or to a "2nd opinion" vet, if needed) to see if you can find a cause. Is it possible he could have swallowed some object and it is still causing some problems, causing a gag reflex (e.g. if something is stuck in his esophagus or whatnot)?

 

[olliepurrington]

I'm glad you took your cat in when he vomited that much in one day (7 times!). Did the vet do any bloodwork or other exploration as to the actual cause of the vomiting?

In my experience, it's not normal for a cat to be vomiting daily!
(My cat is 7 years old, and she has only ever vomited 4 times in her entire life with me. I realize I may have a cat with a strong stomach, but still... frequent vomiting is not normal -- and also not healthy for the cat longterm.)

I would recommend taking the cat back to the vet (or to a "2nd opinion" vet, if needed) to see if you can find a cause. Is it possible he could have swallowed some object and it is still causing some problems, causing a gag reflex (e.g. if something is stuck in his esophagus or whatnot)?

I agree that he shouldn't be vomiting daily. I feel so bad for him

No blood work has been done yet, since there seemed to be a possible cause, but I do plan on having him checked out further if it seems the food is not the only culprit.

I do have an appointment for him lined up at his regular vet on June 13th, but I was thinking of calling the emergency vet (who he saw two weeks ago) to get advice on whether I should bring him in to them same-day instead.

As for the swallowing a foreign object, I think it's not out of the question. I didn't see him doing anything, however he is obsessed with chewing on plastic bags and will do it any chance he gets to the point of ingesting them. We stash them where he can't get to them, but it's possible one got loose. He also has a tendency to overgroom, so... large hairball maybe??

 

[Furballsmom]

He also has a tendency to overgroom

Have you tried any calming products, or Cat Music?

 

[olliepurrington]

Have you tried any calming products, or Cat Music?

I have never used Feliway but I've heard good things about it, maybe I should try it? I bought some homeopathic anxiety relief drops from Chewy to try for fireworks days, but I haven't tried to use it on a regular basis yet. Also I used to play cat music to him at night I could try it again. Good suggestion.

In January he got a Depo Medrol shot (if I'm remembering the name correctly) for his overgrooming and itching, and it seemed to work for at least a while, but when he got one again in April, it didn't seem to have the same effect. One more thing I wanted to address at his next appointment.

 

[Furballsmom]

Let us know how things go

 

[louisstools]

I would make sure the vet did an extremely thorough oral exam to rule anything oral out. I say this bc the gagging reminds me of my boy eating when he had oral cancer. The cancer ate a hole in the roof of the mouth into the nasal passage. When discovered it was a dime size hole...but it was completely missed in a check up for issues eating. Vet visit few days later the doc happened to get the right angle and saw it and was shocked she missed it...but that cat wasn't exactly cooperating.