My senior cat won't eat dry food after throwing it up. What's wrong?

It is pretty likely that he has a tooth ache, has severe gingivitis or other problems in his mouth that make eating hard dry food difficult, so he will not eat enough to satisfy his hunger. Keep giving him more wet food and schedule an appointment with your vet for a dental exam. Older kitties often have dental problems and eating with a tooth ache is horrible.

I would be concerned about possible dental issues causing the changing in Soleil's eating habits. We can see tooth root abscesses, gingival inflammation, as well as tooth fractures that will affect how well a cat will eat. If Soleil has not been examined by his veterinarian in the past six months or so I would recommend scheduling an exam. If his teeth are all normal then you can discuss with your veterinarian how to address this, such as adding water to his food to make it easier to chew. There are prescription dental diets however they tend to be more for keeping the teeth clean versus easy to chew.

Poor Sweetie! In older cats, I would be concerned that the vomiting is caused by kidney disease, inflammatory bowel disease, a foreign body, or intestinal lymphoma. I would take her into the vet first thing in the morning. The vet can do a physical exam, routine blood tests, a urinalysis, x-rays, and possibly an ultrasound to determine what is causing her vomiting. Once the cause is found, the vet can recommend a possible treatment.

Given the symptoms described, gum inflammation ([gingivitis](https://www.petcoach.co/cat/condition/gingivitis-and-stomatitis)) or other [dental disease](https://www.petcoach.co/cat/condition/dental-disease-1/) may be the underlying cause(s). Both are very common in cats and may cause pain, especially when eating hard/dry food. Any[ treatment](https://www.petcoach.co/article/4-ways-to-treat-dental-disease-in-pets) will depend on the diagnosis but may include a [dental cleaning](https://www.petcoach.co/article/your-pets-dental-cleaning-what-to-expect), extractions, antibiotics, pain management and brushing her teeth at home. Consider a second opinion with a veterinary dentist if necessary. A dental cleaning and extractions (if necessary) will likely resolve the issue. To treat severe gingivitis, the last resort is total teeth extraction, which solves the problem for most cats. [Cats can eat without teeth](https://www.petcoach.co/article/5-things-every-cat-owner-should-know-about-dental-care/) and the appetite may actually increase due to there being no more pain. If your cat eats wet food without any problem, I would probably advise to just keep her on wet food as a full mouth extraction is a major surgical procedure.

I would be concerned this is related to Duster's kidney problems, as kidney failure is very common in senior cats and causes vomiting. It could also be a problem with his liver. I'd have him seen by a vet right away for this problem. Best of luck.

Draco may be eating his food too fast and then it expands (in the case of dry food) and the stomach wants to get rid of it, "thinking" it is overfilling, Better feed him smaller amounts of food over three to four times a day. Eating grass is a sign of a tummy ache or nausea. Draco may also be trying to get rid of a hair ball. In addition, there is a possibility of chronic pancreatitis and gastritis. Older cats also tend to get old cat diseases, such as hyperthyroidism or kidney disease, both of which can cause vomiting. Worst case scenario, especially since Draco is an older kitty, would be lymphoma. I suggest you take Draco to your veterinarian for a senior exam including blood tests, possibly x-rays, if the vomiting does not subside with changing to feeding smaller portions more frequently.

Hello, thank you for your question about Whiskers. Based on the symptoms that you are describing and her change in eating habits it is possible that she could be experiencing pain in her mouth. Oral pain can be secondary to bad dental disease, jaw pain, or other conditions. In pets with mouth pain it becomes more difficult for them to chew on the dry kibbles and they often prefer the softer food. I would recommend having Whiskers seen by your veterinarian so that they can examine her and look for any abnormalities that could be contributing to this change. They can palpate her abdomen and look for evidence of constipation. Depending on their findings they can discuss the need for additional diagnostics or treatments. Hope this helps!