My cat is throwing up and has diarrhea. Should I give him butter?

I am so sorry Ginger is not feeling well. It sounds like Ginger is in serious condition and needs to see a vet as soon as you can get him there. There are no over the counter medications that are safe give cats that are as sick as Ginger. There are lots of medical problems than can cause a cat to stop eating and have vomiting and diarrhea, and most of them a pretty serious. Some examples are gastrointestinal infection, toxins, pancreatitis, foreign body, kidney issues, liver issues, infectious viruses, etc. He needs to see a doctor to get a diagnosis and get started on medications prescribed by a veterinarian. I hope he feels better!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. If he is otherwise normal and still eating / drinking, I would withhold food for at least 8 hours and initiate a bland diet as outlined below. If he continues to vomit even on the bland diet or he worsens, I would get him examined by a veterinarian so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. GENERAL INFORMATION A bland diet is a diet that is soft and highly digestible. It is low in fiber, fat and protein and is high in carbohydrates. Bland diets are generally composed of a single carbohydrate source and a single lean protein source. The most common bland diet is boiled rice and boiled lean chicken breast, without skin and bones. Since bland diets are low in fiber, stool production slows and defecation is less frequent. Bland diets are fed to rest the gastric system and to help promote normal stool formation. Animals that are physically sick should not be fed bland diets as a method of treatment. PRIOR TO FEEDING A BLAND DIET Pets should be fasted for 12 to 24 hours. Young animals should not be fasted for more than 12 hours. Fasting will allow the intestinal system to relax and minimize acid secretions that may irritate and inflame the intestinal lining. During the fast small amounts of water or ice chips may be provided. Never fast a sick animal, it may cause disease progression and death. BASIC BOILED RICE AND CHICKEN BLAND DIET RECIPE CARBOHYDRATE SOURCE: Boiled white rice LEAN PROTEIN SOURCE: Chicken breast, no skin and bones BOILED RICE: 1 part white rice with 3 parts water boiled for 20 – 25 minutes or until the rice is easily crushed. BOILED CHICKEN: De-fat chicken breast and boil in water for 10 – 15 minutes or until the chicken meat is easily pulled apart and cooked all way through. MIXING INSTRUCTIONS: Finely chop the lean protein and mix 2 cups carbohydrate source and ½ cup lean protein source. STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: Bland diets can be premade and stored in the refrigerator for a maximum of 48 hours. The bland diet can be cooked in a batch and frozen in feeding sized portions to minimize preparation time. Thaw and warm the frozen diet prior to feeding. PERMITTED LEAN PROTEIN SUBSTITUTIONS Pork loin, egg whites, low fat cottage cheese. 7% low fat hamburger, plain low fat yogurt. PERMITTED CARBOHYDRATE SUBSTITUTIONS Boiled potatoes, boiled spaghetti, Minute rice. PERMITTED COMMERCIAL BLAND DIETS Science Prescription Diet I/D, Eukanuba Veterinary Diet Low Residue, Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Intestinal HE. FEEDING INSTRUCTIONS Estimate 25% of your animal’s diet and feed that amount of the bland diet every 6 – 8 hours. Smaller animals will require less and larger animals will require more adhering to the same carbohydrate to lean protein source ratio. The bland diet should be fed for 4 -5 days with no treats or other food sources until stools are firm. TRANSITION BACK TO A NORMAL DIET Never transition back to a regular diet rapidly. Transition back to the regular diet over a 1 week period. Start by adding 25% of the regular diet to 75% of the bland diet and feed that combination for 2 days. If stools continue to be firm then continue substituting the regular diet in 25% increments and feeding the combination in 2 day time intervals until the diet is 100% regular diet. Minimize treats for 1 week after moving the diet back to 100% regular diet.

Oh no, poor Toffee! She sounds quite sick at the moment, and her vomiting and diarrhea could be caused by a GI illness, eating something rotten or toxic, a foreign body, or pancreatitis. I see that she isn't spayed, and her symptoms could also be caused a pyometra, which is a life threatening infection of the uterus. When a cat is having both diarrhea and vomiting, it's time to see a vet immediately to prevent her from getting severely dehydrated and sicker. She does need veterinary attention now, please take her into an ER vet clinic; if there isn't one in your area, there will be a vet on call for emergencies. The information to reach that vet is found on a clinic's answering machine or website.

Hi. Imodium is contraindicated in cats. Please don't give otc meds to cats as many are toxic. I would recomend a vet visit if she is not eating, vomiting and diarrhea. She may have parasisites, have ingested toxins, have primary GI disease or any number of other things. Unless prescribed for her I wouldn't recomend the amoxicillin/clavanuate as one of the side effects of this antibiotic can be diarrhea and vomiting. If she was prescribed this, contact her vet as they need to know she is reacting to it. Try offering small amounts of bland chicken and rice. If she can eat and keep it down gradually mix her cat food back in. But if not she needs a vet visit.

Most likely she will have several bouts of diarrhea and perhaps some vomiting. The butter will create a sort of slip-n-slide and cause loss of fluid so it is important to give her small amounts of Pedialyte (if diarrhea or vomiting do occur) to prevent dehydration. Also a bland diet of tuna and rice can be given to help her stomach settle. She should slowly improve over the next few days as the butter exits her system.

I'm sorry to hear B.B. is not feeling well. Grease on the paper towel can definitely upset the gastrointestinal tract causing vomiting and diarrhea. Pancreatitis is another possible consequence as well as the potential for a intestinal blockage from the paper it's self. If it has not resolved within 48 hours, I recommend to take him into the vet's office. Bloodwork and radiographs will determine if pancreatitis or a blockage is present. If he is dehydrated they will give him some fluid therapy. A bland diet of chicken and white rice or one of the prescription plan diets can also help to decrease the G.I. upset. Hope he gets to feeling better soon.

He might have eaten something spoiled that is causing this. withhold food for 8 hours then offer Snoopy boiled boneless chicken and rice every 6 hours in small portions. if he is eating and not vomiting, continue with this diet for 2 days. After 2 days, you can put him back gradually on his normal food. If he continues vomiting or is not eating, take him to the vet to get treatment.