Old cat throws up almost everytime she eats?

Question

I have no idea how old she is... I am at least her third owner. She is very loving, and I feed her once a day. Almost everytime she eats, she throws up. (The food is unusally not even digested yet) I used to feed her Meow Mix, then switched to Purina One for sensitive systems... this helped a little bit. I am currently trying Purina One hairball control but it doesn't seem to be working. I only feed her dry food b/c I have given her canned food and she throws that up too... more often than the dry food. My major problem is, she is old, and I really can't afford a vet bill. I don't know what to do anymore. I don't think I have the heart to put her down, but at the same time I can't imagine that all this throwing up is good for her. Can someone help me make the best decision for my cat?

Answer 1

I know vets are expensive. I hope maybe you can find a lower cost clinic perhaps through the humane society or a cat rescue group. She really does need to see a vet if she is throwing up that much. There may be medicines that can help her.; Meds for a human digestive problem or a dog digestive problem would probably not be safe for a cat though. Is there a vet that you or a family member has used that might give some advice on the phone or a vet school at a university not too far away that may have a lower cost clinic?

There are a couple of things you can try that may help. There is a paste for hairballs that is sold at WalMart and many pet stores. It comes in a tube. You just put it on the cat's paw and as she licks it off she takes the med. It has vitamins too which can be helpful. , If the problem is a hairball that may help more quickly than a hairball preventing food. You might also try a senior cat formula food. or even cooking her a little rice with chicken broth and see if she can eat and retain that. There is also a product that is in grocery stores and WalMart type places called cat-sip which is a milk that cats can drink and not get the runs like from regular milk. Perhaps she can drink that and keep it down and get some nourishment that way, Or maybe she can lick and digest a bit of yogurt. Our cats love it especially the vanilla kind.

How are her teeth? Can she chew at all? Does she bolt her food (big gulps at once?). Does her stomach feel hard or swollen? Does she cry or pull away if you touch her tummy? Will she drink and can she keep down what she drinks? Is she using the cat box for both pee and BMs and able to do so easily? Is she drinking normally or extra much or less? Is she dehydrated? You can tell by gently lifting the skin on the back of her neck at the shoulders.and letting go If it immediately goes back in place she is not dehydrated. If it goes back slowly or stays up she is dehydrated and this is a serious problem that can be life threatening. If her tummy is swollen or painful or she is dehydrated or is not using her litter box normally or has pain in using the litter box she really does need a vet even if you have to put something off or borrow to do it because something is very seriously wrong and she is suffering. Often it is less expensive to takle a kitty to the vet before the problem becomes a crisis. I know that is a hard decision when there are other urgent expenses and little money.

Does she keep liquids down OK? Bolting food can cause throwing up. If she does that see if she will eat from your hand and offer a few pieces at a time. or blend dry or moist food and warm water to a soup like consistancy and see if she can eat and retain that. Or crumble up something like Tender Vittles which is a semi moist food. By crumbling it she is getting such small particles thatn she may digest them. There are kitten nutrition formulas like for bottle feeding a kitten.that are a powder that is mixed with water. You can try this solo or mixed with a liquified adultb cat food if she can and will drink. It won't be exactly the right mix for an older cat, too much protein for one thing but it will nourish her enough to hopefully keep her alive and as well as possible till you can take her to a vet.

If you absolutely can not get her the care she needs and she is in obvious pain it may be necessary to make the hard decision to take her to the human society to be euthenized but if you can help her live and be loved and she is not suffering she can be with you longer.

Answer 2

Talk to the vet and find out first, what the vet might be able to arrange for you. Vets often will work out payment plans for people who don't have much money. Taking an animal to be euthanized often costs more than having a vet do a physical exam!


Take your cat to the vet for a physical examination, you owe that to your faithful old family member. The vet can use his hands to palpate (feel the cats insides) to feel if there's any kind of tumor that might be causing the problem. A physical exam can often reveal likely causes of the vomiting, the vet can often tell if the cat might have age related kidney or liver problems just with the physical examination. The vet can listen to the heart and breathing, check neurological function, etc.

Vomiting is a symptom that can have many causes. It may even be caused by something as simple as the need to be wormed. If it is an age related problem, often a special diet and a few inexpensive medications can give an old cat a few more good years of life.

Answer 3

my cat does this too!!! but if its the same problem that my cat has, the problem isnt related to age.

Basically the sphincter between the esophagus and stomach is defective, and it wont open properly (or something like that). This doesnt allow the food to enter the stomach at the rate the cat is eating. It backs up a little in the esophagus and forces the cat to throw up. (Basically, Im not a vet, so I dont really know the specifics)

What I've tried doing is only giving my cat a teaspoon of food at meals (I use tuna, because its cheaper than regular cat food) and then she has access to dry food during the day if she gets hungry. If your cat doesnt know when to stop, having the dry food available might not be the best idea to stop the problem tho.

My cat still throws up occasionally, but not nearly as often!

Good Luck!!

Answer 4

That's really not a good sign. Liver and kidney failure are common in old cats and vomiting is a common symptom.

Even if you can't afford much, I encourage you to scrape something together and get her checked out. When you know how serious (or not) it is and what kinds of costs you're looking at, you can decide what would be best for the cat considering your financial situation and her quality of life.

Basic bloodwork and an exam shouldn't be too costly. Unfortunately, it's impossible to make the best decision without having some idea what's going on.

Answer 5

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RE:
Old cat throws up almost everytime she eats?
I have no idea how old she is... I am at least her third owner. She is very loving, and I feed her once a day. Almost everytime she eats, she throws up. (The food is unusally not even digested yet) I used to feed her Meow Mix, then switched to Purina One for sensitive systems... this helped a...

Answer 6

My old cat has kidney trouble causing him to throw up regularly. I give him Fortekor5, half a tablet a day (I'm European though, not sure if this particular brand/med is available in the US, it may go by another name). He still throws up sometimes but not near as bad. I think you should see your vet; perhaps you can arrange a payment plan? My cat started throwing up over two years ago and he's still around so in my case at least it was worth the vet's visit! Old cats can go often go for quite a bit longer when they get good care.

Answer 7

Wow! You've got lots of LONG answers here!

My older cat was doing the same thing. I took him to a vet and found out that his teeth were getting bad. Because of that, he was swallowing his food whole and then would throw it back up. Once we had some teeth removed, the vomiting stopped.

We had some blood tests done too (ver expensive) and found out that he had some elevated levels in his kidneys and he was put on a medication that took care of it.

I encourage you to try the vet route. I know it's expensive, but usually the office is so understanding that they will let you make payments over a period of time. Explain your situation.

Answer 8

I had a brother and sister and they lived to be over 19 years old. They too started to throw up their food and started to lose weight pretty fast. I took them to the vet (at different times) and they were both diagnosed with kidney failure. The male had to be put to sleep first and then about 6 months later, the female had to be put down. They were doing real well and seemed to be quite healthy (for their age) until just before they started to throw up their food. It was the best for both of them. The vet told me that total kidney failure is not pleasant for the cat and that my decision to put them down was the right one.

Answer 9

My older cat, 9 yrs, is a puker too. He throws up quite frequently and of course it's not just one time. He has to make a few stops in different places.

I asked our vet about it and he said that some cats just do that. It doesn't necessarily have to do with their age or the food. They're just more likely to throw up their food. He said that one of his own cats is like that. He gave me some medicine that helps to calm the stomach but I didn't notice a significant decrease. He still throws up every couple days. It's just part of how my cat is. He's a lover and a puker. =)

But, it'd still be a good idea to have her checked out to make sure that there's nothing wrong with her physically.

Answer 10

If it's not close to being digested it it may be because she gulps her food too quickly. I know my dog throws up a lot and the vet said to give him zantac but w/ a cat that may be dangerous you'd have to research that. I'm not sure what else to do. I hope everything works out