My long-haired cat keeps vomiting. What can I do without a vet?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Lilly. A longhaired cat should only produce 3-4 hairballs per year. Any more than that is considered abnormal. If her initial blood panel came back normal, I typically recommend a secondary panel that checks for pancreatitis, a disease known as pancreatic exocrine insufficiency as well as cobalamin and folate levels. This can reveal the cause of the vomiting or give some treatment options for her. Inflammatory bowel disease is common cause of chronic vomiting. This will typically result in a low cobalamin levels. It can not be diagnosed without intestinal biopsies, but those are very invasive. An abdominal ultrasound can give a lot of information and rule out other causes of vomiting. If I suspect this to be the case, I will treat the patient with a prescription hydrolyzed diet to help decrease inflammation and sometimes medication as well. I hope this information helps!

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Alonzo. It could be irritating from the hair ball or it could be due to a stomach illness. I can give you a home remedy for him see if that helps. I recommend withholding food for tonight, then feed a bland diet of boiled white meat chicken (no bones) in small amounts several times a day for a couple of days. Then slowly add back in his normal diet. If the vomiting continues in the absence of food, he refuses to eat the bland diet, he vomits the bland diet, develops diarrhea, stops drinking water, starts vomiting water, or becomes very lethargic, he will need to see a vet right away. I hope this helps!

It's possible Snickers may be dealing with some problematic hairballs, however if the vomiting has been going on this long it is best to seek veterinary care for a complete exam to make sure there isn't another underlying cause. You can attempt to groom Snickers more at home by brushing daily and offering hairball paste (found in most pet stores), however if the vomiting continues, vet care is needed. If you are having trouble affording veterinary care, this site may help give you some ideas about how to make it more affordable: http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/trouble_affording_veterinary_care.html

HI, thanks for using Petcoch! Poor Molly! Due to Molly's age I want to be sure that you have had your Vet do a physical and had full blood work done to check her for kidney disease and an overactive thyroid. If you haven't that should be done. The most common reason if the blood work is normal for chronic vomiting with or with out hairballs is inflammatory bowel disease. Molly could have her belly ultrasounded to take a look at the thickness of her intestines and how big her lymph nodes are. Treatment consists of steroids and a prescription hydrolyzed diet. Another option is to have a groomer perform a lion cut! That cuts down on the hair she can ingest and plus she will look super cute! I hope this helps and good luck!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Dry heaving / vomiting could indicate a hairball obstruction, dietary indiscretion, systemic disease / infection, etc. I would recommend withholding food for at least 6-8 hours and then initiate a bland diet as outlined below. If the symptoms does not resolve or it worsens, I would recommend having a veterinarian take a look at Tiddles 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. Please take the time to mark this question as helpful or not as it helps us to improve on the quality of our answers to other pet owners. Thank you kindly! 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.

While vomiting hair occasionally is normal for some cats the increased frequency you have described is concerning. It is possible at Midnight is grooming more due to a seasonal coat shedding or she may have some underlying intestinal irritation contributing to the vomiting. Cats that hunt are at higher risk for parasites and this can also contribute to vomiting. If the increased frequency of vomiting continues or if you notice any other signs such as decreased appetite, lethargy or weight loss, I would recommend that you have her seen by your veterinarian. They may recommend checking a stool sample for parasites and possibly blood work to rule out other potential causes for vomiting such as kidney disease or thyroid problems.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It looks like Lily has a skin infection. I recommend taking her to a vet for antibiotic’s and something to relieve the itching. It is possible to be from a food allergy or an environmental allergy. This may be the cause of her vomiting as well. You need to speak with a veterinarian about what she eats and the environment she is in. They will then be able to treat her appropriately. Good luck and kisses to Lily!