Help Please--Pet problems.

[redirish28]

Hi all. I don't know if there is a section for cat and dog lovers or however it is mentioned...but here is the deal. The one cat that owns my wife and I are throwing up. sometimes it looks like a furball but it is really making us nervous. I see days working nights and my wife works in the day. This evening we found 3 different spots where this stuff had been thrown up. like I said earlier some of it does look like furballs but others don't.


We feed all three cats Purnia cat chow-indoor forumla. We give them bottled water every chance we get. Even though each cat has his own bowl they all eat from one another bowls and seem to eat out of one more than the other two.

The other two cats seem fine and one has long hair.

any ideas?

We have talked briefly to our vet over the phone. Should we try changeing the type of food to one that deals with furballs? Does anyone know if Purnia make a kind like that? If not which cat brand is comparable to Purina?

And no we do not serve them soft food.

[justiceischeap]

1. Does your cat have a habit of eating string, plastic, etc?

Could be a blockage but I'm no vet.

[UTUSN]

2. Uh: ....Lounge. n/t

[Omaha Steve]

16. OT or Lounge?

I've never been very well treated there. I was a lurker before I became active 4 years ago. This is general. It is NOT politics. I'm fine with it here.

I hope the loved one gets better soon.

[flvegan]

3. Take them in to your vet.

They are the experts and will have your best answer.

Also, there are anti-hairball formulas of cat food, but your vet should determine that that is what the problem is.

For the record, I'd not touch a Purina product with a 10 foot pole.

Best to you and your kitties.

[glinda]

4. This is OT

I have lots of pets. Take him to the Vet tomorrow. Do not diagnose this yourself. May be also kidney problem. Now go talk politics!

[napi21]

5. How long has this been going on? Cats can dehydrate rather fast.

Is the sick on eating anything now? Is he/sge drinking any liquids?

[redirish28]

11. we notice it maybe once a week...twice at the most figure it was a

hairball but it is really worrying us because it looks like it happened three times today.

[bicentennial_baby]

6. Hairballs...Get some Petromalt

It's flavored petroleum jelly. You can get it at any pet store. Kittys will eat it up. Just a 1/2 inch per week will keep everything moving.

Foodwise, consider switching to a better food. We feed ours Wellness, which is free from animal by-products, grains, artificial flavors and colors. Our cat is incredibly healthy on it, since he was 2 months old (16 months now), and our Vet heartily approves.

Good luck! :)

[bahrbearian]

18. Thats what I was going to suggest or Zemec.

[bahrbearian]

19. Its easy to use.

[bicentennial_baby]

21. And if the kitty doesn't take to it at first,

smear a smidge on the nose, and they lick it off, and they're hooked :D

I used to use it on my ferret, and it comes in handy with our very sheddy short haired cat. :D

[Warpy]

20. Laxatone is another one

I've had great luck just putting a pea sized piece of Vaseline on a paw. The cat will lick it off and that takes care of hairballs---it's the active ingredient in the other preps.

Just keep an eye on the kitty and make sure it's nothing but hairballs. Some cats do puke more than others and if this is a chronic problem, then treating for hairballs is probably your best bet.

[nebenaube]

26. screw that...

They do just fine with straight pertolatum.

[jannyk]

7. We have a Pets Group here on DU - link

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topics&forum=243

Good luck!

[napi21]

8. BTW, there IS a pet forum too. Here's a link.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topics&forum=243

[polly7]

9. Sometimes

my cat does this too ..... but usually only if he eats a lot at once. I've cut down on the amount per feeding and he's doing a lot better.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

10. Post this in the Pets Forum and/or the Lounge

where more cat people will see it. Some cats just hurl a lot, but it would be a good idea to call a vet just in case. You could give the cat some Petromalt (a hairball remedy), which you can get at most pet shops. There are a lot of cat foods that are much better quality than Purina, which has a lot of grain and filler in it, and cats can't digest that stuff. Some are also allergic to grains. Wellness is a really good pet food brand that doesn't have grains and fillers.

Soft food is actually better for them than dry food because it's almost all meat (at least the good stuff is). The grains in dry food break down into sugars that actually harm their teeth. Also, since I started feeding my cats mostly canned foods, the litter box is considerably less disgusting.

[Sal Minella]

12. My experience is: one cat (male) did a LOT of grooming of a female who shed a lot.

(she NEVER groomed him!!!) He frequently threw up furballs after gorging on dry food -- this went on for years and I finally had him euthanized at the age of 22 years.

Not saying this is what's going on with yours, but this is one possibility, and there were apparently no harmful long-term results from furball yarking.

btw, he was a neutered (stray) Burmese, and when she had kittens (seven!) he would curl up with them in the nest box and clean them, while she took a break sleeping on top of the freezer.

I've been told Siamese males will do this. This one sure as heck did.

[redirish28]

13. thanks you all. I did not know there was a pet forum here. I will repost the post there

I do thank all of you for your help and suggestions.

[MadrasT]

14. What does your vet say?

If the cat is eating, drinking, active, and has normal litterbox activity, I would try a hairball formula food.

Purina has a hairball formula in their "Purina One" line. It's a little more $$ than regular Purina but I've had pretty good luck with it. Look for Purina One Advanced Nutrition Hairball.



This type of question would be appropriate to post in the "Lounge" section next time. If you are a DU donor there is also a "Pets" group. :hi:

[LeftyMom]

15. In the long run, a higher end cat food will pay for itself in fewer vet visits.

Also, keeping the cats brushed out will help with hairballs.

I would try the petromalt suggested above before an anti-hairball formula.

[bicentennial_baby]

22. Agreed on both counts

Unless there's an emergency, my cat will never come close to commercial pet food. :puke:

Wellness rawks.

:loveya:

[LeftyMom]

23. Every time I think I should downgrade a bit for economy, I get about two ingredients into a label

and forget the idea.

Vader's new adoptive Mom has her on Wellness. I can't afford to feed it to so many cats, but if I only had one or two it'd be very high on my list of foods to consider. The Natural Balance is a good intermediate step for me, a good formulation with no questionable ingredients, but something I can still afford to feed to a crowd.

[bicentennial_baby]

27. Sounds good to me

You gotta do what you can, and it sounds like you are doing the best, considering. :pals:

If we get the adorable girl tomorrow, she'll be on Wellness Indoor Health as well. $18 a month, plus the wet cans as a treat to $36 a month plus. We'll live. Healthy babies are worth it. :)

[lonestarnot]

17. I have a cat that does that, my little king of the jungle eats

fancy feast, and I buy him those fur ball treats that have cat nip in them. Before I bought those, he was a fur ball fling'n fiasco. Now it's a minimal problem. I will get the brand for you if you like.

[kwyjibo]

24. Brush your cat every day. Trim its hair in the summer if it's really long.

If you help him get the hair off his body, he'll swallow much less of it.

[CountAllVotes]

25. try some Petromalt

you can find it at the local grocery store or pet store. Even drugstore.com sells it.

Vomiting with cats is a very common problem. I have one that eats grass and throws up all of the time. I think she does this to clean herself out. If she starts doing it a lot, I rub some Petromalt on her front leg a few days in a row.

This should help/solve the problem I hope!

:dem:

[beam me up scottie]

28. You need a star to post in the Pets Group, would you like me to open a thread for you?

I wish I could buy you a star.

[arthritisR_US]

29. I went through this, PLEASE get your cats a dry cat food with enzymes in it,

I had to go to a health food pet store. After about 6 years a cats gut stops producing the necessary enzymes to break down their foods so they start throwing up. Purina, and all of the regular pet foods in these grocery chains, through their pet food processing procedures destroy any enzymes in the food which would assist your pets digestion. When I switched my cat to "Wellness" pet food the throwing up stopped, I only wish I had known about it sooner....

[bicentennial_baby]

30. Isn't Wellness great?

My guy has been on it since he was 2 months old. He's a big, shiny, healthy boy. And my Vet is SO happy we use it. :)

[arthritisR_US]

32. wonderful food and has all the necessary enzymes for his good health and

old (when he gets there) health. I only learned about it when my Seri was 13 1/2 years old and the vets were telling me it was the end. He lived another year past that, happily (his passing broke my heart). I spent over $2000 before that on cagey vets who always ordered more tests for nothing ...you are doing your pet well and he is so very lucky to have you! If I had known about that food years back, I would still have my Seri. Peace always be to you for taking such good care of your friend.

[wickerwoman]

31. I'd really strongly recommend switching to better cat food.

I switched my cats to Royal Canin with anti-hairball formula and I could see with three days that their coats were shinier, their eyes were brighter, they had more energy and they didn't throw up as much.

[soothsayer]

33. some brand of cat food is recalling their dry due to salmonella (a Mars product?)

My friend with 13 cats (not counting the farm cats) uses ProPlan Hairball Remedy (or some ProPlan stuff with the word hairball in it) and the cats love it.

[redirish28]

34. Thank you all for your thoughts and help. Just an Update.

We bought some Iams food hairball care.(it is suppose to reduce hairballs). We also called the vet this morning. They suggested giving the Iams formunla a try this weekend and see if we see any more spots. We are mixing the Iams food with the other stuff we usually give them so it doesn't really upset the stomachs. Also they want us to be triple careful as to who the one throwing up might be because we do have 3 cats and it could be any of them.


They said if it is still bad by Monday to give a call and they will fit us in but all three cats are playing and running around the house like crazy. Good sign.

[lumberjack_jeff]

35. Not named Oscar, by chance? n/t

[obamaforme]

36. Go to " Petlovers.com"

I am sure someone will give you the correct answer. There are a couple veterinarians that can help.

Here is the link: http://forums.petlovers.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=33

[WA98296]

37. Want what's BEST for your animals? Cook for them. It's not hard. At least you KNOW what it is.

I do for FIVE boxers dogs. Three cats would be soooo easy.