My cat throws up every day

[MisaGoat]

A few weeks ago a cat showed up on our back deck and we took her in. No one claimed her from our ad and we didn't see any missing cat notices around either. She was very skinny when we first got her and still is. She throws up everyday.

At first we thought it was just because she was eating anything she could, tiramisu, yogurt, milk, chocolate. She will eat off the counter or even lick plates that are in the sink. We started making sure everything was put away as soon as it was finished with. She is still throwing up even on just cat food.

I took her to the vet yesterday and she tested negative for FIV and there are no parasites in her stool. He suggested trying to slow her eating down and see if that will help, if not we will look into other possible causes.

Any suggestions? What type of food would be best for her?

[fiorio]

You may want to try a grain-free cat food. It's a little more expensive but IMO worth not cleaning up cat puke every day! I have three cats and at least one would throw up every day until I started them on grain-free food. After they had been eating that food for a few days the throwing up happens maybe once a month.

[greenmagick]

If she is on dry kibble, I would switch her to wet. It's better for them and the kibble swells once consumed and causes some cats to vomi it back up. Also make sure it's a food quality, preferably grain free food.

[2xy]

Ditto the grain-free and wet food. Cats aren't built to eat cereal.

Also, some cats tend to gobble their food, either out of anxiety or because commercial food is so easy to eat. A cat in the wild would actually have to work to eat their food, y'know? If she's a gobbler, give her small bits at a time...like, maybe a teaspoon or tablespoonful every couple of minutes until the portion is gone.

[SubliminalDarkness]

We also had a cat that ate anything and everything. In the end, that did him in. He was vomiting and losing weight. Turns out he had an obstruction. He had eaten an entire bootlace(thanks BIL) and it was in his intestines. We had him put to sleep.

[SophieAnn]

Oh, that's awful SubliminalDarkness.

OP - did the vet rule out an obstruction? Is the cat pooping regularly? I haven't had a cat in years, but I think they should poop at least once a day for sure.

[lonegirl]

Did they do an Xray to confirm no obstructions? If it continues and they didn't I would request one. Not everything shows up on rads....but a lot does. They can also do a barium series which would outline non radiolucent foreign bodies.

[MisaGoat]

He didn't do an x-ray but he said he didn't think it was an obstruction because she is having formed, normal stools.

[Pogonia]

My cat throws up too. But I've watched her inhale her gain-free, dry kibble and know I just need to make her eat slower. But she does get some high-quality wet food, also.

A couple of months ago my g/daughter mentioned the cat, Petals, was getting skinny. I had just started chemo and couldn't even get myself a drink of water and, after three stays in the hospital, had not been doing the feeding for awhile. My husband and g/daughter barely remembered to feed them the dry, and give them fresh water. Since I couldn't afford a vet, I talked with a pet store employee. Of course, she mentioned Petromalt, which is at least soybean oil now instead of petroleum. And the wet food her picky cat eats. I put the Petromalt in her morning wet food for a week, and she's putting on weight again. Unfortunately, she still throws up with her first dry food of the day.

Anyway, I don't know if any of that made sense. But I think the Petromalt may have helped dissolve a hairball and now she just eats too fast again. (It's not a case of just getting more oil in her diet because both cats often lick the small bowl of coconut oil beside their food dishes. )

Oh, and how wonderful for you to take in this poor kitty. Both of mine were strays, too, and I'm so glad they found me.