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Shadow - HelenMac - 11-03-2019

Shadow has always had a problem with vomiting he will be good for maybe a week or two then we have a couple days of vomiting..   I've tried different foods even vets at a loss.   I still reckon its biscuits that's the problem because 90% of the time its undigested biscuits but vet insists on him eating the dental biscuits for his teeth.  Does anyone just feed wet and then do you end up with big vet bills for teeth problems.    Zimba is on same diet and he's fine in fact he eats way more dry than wet.   I use royal canin wet sachets and royal canin dental.    I did try the hills dental but Shadow was even worse on that vomited every day as he loved them and vet thought they were  too rich for him.  He has just turned 7 and I really want to get this sorted as tonight I'm ashamed to say I yelled at my poor baby as he puked a trail from hallway down into bedroom it was just too much I didn't know how I was going to clean it up and was second time today as I've just had major surgery on my knee so no way I can get to the floor.. After I finished bawling due to the guilt and apologizing and cuddling him I rang my poor neighbour to help me.  I'm really at my witts end I just don't know what to do the vet is no help and it can't be nice for poor Shadow either..  For now I'm putting Shadow's biscuit bowl away and will just give him the sensitive wet food for a few days see how we go. Zimba can still get his biscuits as he eats them out of a puzzle dish to slow down eating and Shadow won't even try to use it.


RE: Shadow - NatsFan78 - 11-03-2019

I’m so sorry Shadow is getting sick! A few years ago I had a cat that would vomit at least three times a day every day. After a bunch of tests and food changes the vet told me she did not think he was able to properly digest his dry food. She could not be certain without taking him off of it, she said it was just a theory. Since nothing else was working she wanted me to try feeding him only wet and see if he improved. After a few days he was only vomiting once a day and by about a week or so, no vomiting at all!

She told me to be careful when I give him treats, we are still not sure exactly what it was in the dry food that he was having trouble with. She recommended giving him freeze dried chicken for his treats to help with his teeth. I used Pure Bites, I they have them on Chewy. I am thinking of ordering some for Jaxon if Petsmart doesn’t have them in stock when I go Friday.

He was a completely different boy after that. He stayed on canned food only after that and freeze dried chicken treats (probably more than necessary to be honest but he loved them) and very rarely vomited. His coat was healthier and he was much more active. The vet was always happy with his teeth, he never had trouble with them. He was 12 when I lost him.

I hope you find something that helps your sweet boy.


RE: Shadow - JanH - 11-03-2019

The most common reason for cats vomiting right after eating (and you mention it is mostly undigested kibble) is that they eat too fast. The primary fix for that is to create an obstacle that slows them down - such as a clean golf ball in the bowl to force them to ear around it. You might also raise the bowl onto a small platform of some sort, since bending over can add a trigger.

There is no problem in feeding only a good wet food.


RE: Shadow - Smudge's Mom - 11-03-2019

Poor Shadow and poor you...no fun throwing it up or cleaning it up. I have the problem occasionally with Pooka who has a voracious appetite. She will eat as fast as she can, turn her head to the side, throw it all up, smile gleefully because she made room and continue gobbling.

If Shadow is eating too fast because he likes the food and it is coming up whole, he is not getting the dental benefits because he is not chewing it. You may want to look into dental treats. They are usually too large for the cat to swallow and must be crunched. You can dole them out one at a time a few times a day.


RE: Shadow - HelenMac - 11-03-2019

Thanks everyone appreciate your input.  The only dental treats here are tiny. For now definitely going to try wet only as last night heard him crunching his dental biscuits he then left the kitchen then promptly thru up leaving the trail down the hall way bedroom and enclosure. Some biscuits whole which amazes me as the dental biscuits are huge and some chewed. Times like this wish we didn't have carpet. The food bowls are on raised platforms and had a ball in kibble bowl. Really beginning to think its something in dry as have tried so many different types of dried kibble from tiny to huge. Hour later he was crying for food again. I gave him some sensitive wet before bed and again this morning thus far no vomiting and now curled up asleep on my lap.


RE: Shadow - NatsFan78 - 11-03-2019

I hope he continues to feel better.


RE: Shadow - Smudge's Mom - 11-03-2019

So happy to hear that Shadow has kept a couple of meals down. I would think that, like with human bulimics, the acid from vomiting is worse for the teeth than a bit of tarter buildup.


RE: Shadow - HelenMac - 11-03-2019

Wow bit blown away and unsure just got home from vet as went to grab some intestinal food for Shadow. Nurse got Gabe the vet to come talk to me after I told her whats been happening with the boy and he suggested I try Shadow on Raw Essentials its vet created NZ Grown a mix of free-range, WILD, organic, human-grade prey. This is processed in New Zealand, in MPI approved human and pet food facilities. I had to fill out a health enquiry form then the vet on site rang to talk to me about both Shadow and Zimba. Anyways Andrew is going in tomorrow to get some food to try the boys on. I'm not sure how I feel about it. But will try. It will be great if stops the regularly occurring vomiting. The food comes in frozen bite size blocks you take out the night before what you need for the next day. Shadow is to start on a bone broth with something else sauteed together for 3 days to settle his tummy before trying the cubes. This will be interesting.


RE: Shadow - JanH - 11-03-2019

No raw meat supply in the world is safe because the microbes are in the animal and cannot be kept out of the meat.

If he is better on wet food, then feed wet food. However, to choose raw is to choose the risks of raw meat, which are not just inconvenient. They can be deadly.


RE: Shadow - HelenMac - 11-04-2019

Thats my biggest fear JanH .  They were going to give me a bone broth and some venison to lightly  cook together for 5 minutes but don't know if that's enough to kill any bugs and I've just read that raw should not be fed to cats in a home with immune compromised owners well thats me so sounds like not something I can do unless can cook it properly.  This is doing my head in.  I want Shadow to be healthy and happy and not vomiting all the time as it can't be comfortable for him either poor baby.     

Today just gave him wet but its not satisfying him he is hungry constantly crying for food. He ended up eating two Royal Canin sachets today which if I continued doing that would cost me $40 a week just to feed him.  I need to suss out what else there is.  Hills is even more expensive and he doesn't tolerate it anyway. He refuses Ziwi peak zealandia and Feline Natural.  I see iams has some wet so will look at that.  Fancy feast and purina made them both sick last year so not going to even try that not sure there's much else here.