Health question about one of my civvies

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Squalliesmom

Squalliesmom

Member Since 2015
One of my civvies has a terrible habit of trying to eat things (frequently non-food items) that she should not eat. Very early yesterday morning she threw up what I later discovered to be cellophane that I think she stole from the trash; it had had sausage in it. Since his time I have not seen her use the litterbox, which doesn't necessarily mean she hasn't, I realize, but I am concerned that she may have some type of blockage. She has not thrown up again, and she has eaten a minimm of four meals since then. She is not very interested in her food, but she doesn't really like this food at the best of times, so I may be reading more into this than is there. She doesn't seem to have any aversion to pilfering anyone else's food!

I just wondered if I should continue to be concerned about a blockage or if I'm being too paranoid. Any advice is greatly appreciated! Thanks! :)
 
Is she usually pretty regular with going to the LB? I can understand your concern. When she threw up, was there food or just the cellophane?
 
Mostly just cellophane, looked like there was maybe a little food mixed in with it. She's my IBD kitty so I have to be careful about her diet, but I just tried mixing her food half-and-half with the other guys' 9 Lives and she cleaned the bowl in short order, so I'm guessing her appetite is good and she just doesn't like her $$ food anymore. :( Still no evidence of anything in the LB, though. Yes, she's fairly regular about it, too.
 
Lucy I'm not sure if cats present with blockages the same way dogs do but I had a rescue beagle eat a bunch of things she shouldn't have and ended up in surgery. They tried gastric lavage but it didn't work. She started having diarrhea first, combined with vomiting profusely and repeatedly. I think those would be what to watch for.

The only other thing I would be concerned about is not fully passing any cellophane, and that would be if it's in a large piece. That will be evident on the bum end, I would think. Like tinsel, better not to pull on it... My civvie Picasso LOVES cellophane so I have to be very careful what I leave out. I had a Siamese who would do the same with gift ribbon and plastic bags...

Do you have any hairball type stuff, I think it's called Dulcolax? If there is anything left in her tummy it might help it pass better, but not sure if that is okay with IBD.

Hope She's okay!
 
Ah yes, actually I meant Laxatone - not a big fan of PetroMalt with the corn syrup, but should be okay for civvie cat. @BJM do you know if any laxative/hairball remedy is safe for a cat with IBD?
 
Brashworks said:
Lucy I'm not sure if cats present with blockages the same way dogs do but I had a rescue beagle eat a bunch of things she shouldn't have and ended up in surgery. They tried gastric lavage but it didn't work. She started having diarrhea first, combined with vomiting profusely and repeatedly. I think those would be what to watch for.

The only other thing I would be concerned about is not fully passing any cellophane, and that would be if it's in a large piece. That will be evident on the bum end, I would think. Like tinsel, better not to pull on it... My civvie Picasso LOVES cellophane so I have to be very careful what I leave out. I had a Siamese who would do the same with gift ribbon and plastic bags...

Do you have any hairball type stuff, I think it's called Dulcolax? If there is anything left in her tummy it might help it pass better, but not sure if that is okay with IBD.

Hope She's okay!
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Thanks for the info, Melanie! That is exactly my concern, that she's got a big wad of it down there that is causing blockage. But she's been eating normally and not vomiting for two days, three if you count today, so I'm figuring she must be okay.

She tries to eat everything! She especially likes plastic or anything of a similar material, and bird seed, and will knock over trash cans (she wrestles the lid off the kitchen can!) to find "tasty" bits to eat. She also like to lick the TV screens, go figure. I worry constantly about her ingesting inedible materials. I have no idea why she does this. Some form of pica, I guess?
 
BJM said:
Dulcolax is a human med for constipation. You'd need to check if there is a cat appropriate dose of it.
Perhaps you meant PetroMalt, which is intended to help with hairballs.
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Thank you, BJM, I will check with my vet to see if she can have it (because of her IBD)!
 
Squalliesmom said:
Thanks for the info, Melanie! That is exactly my concern, that she's got a big wad of it down there that is causing blockage. But she's been eating normally and not vomiting for two days, three if you count today, so I'm figuring she must be okay.

She tries to eat everything! She especially likes plastic or anything of a similar material, and bird seed, and will knock over trash cans (she wrestles the lid off the kitchen can!) to find "tasty" bits to eat. She also like to lick the TV screens, go figure. I worry constantly about her ingesting inedible materials. I have no idea why she does this. Some form of pica, I guess?
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Could she be part raccoon?
 
Brashworks said:
Ah yes, actually I meant Laxatone - not a big fan of PetroMalt with the corn syrup, but should be okay for civvie cat. @BJM do you know if any laxative/hairball remedy is safe for a cat with IBD?
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I gave Marshmallow Laxatone -- the vet said it was okay for her IBD. Turns out he didn't know much about IBD so he could have been wrong but she seemed okay with it.

Lucy, did she poop normally yesterday? I know it's hard to tell in a multiple cat household. Marshmallow once scarfed down some Christmas ribbon when I had my back turned for a few seconds and I was terrified until I saw the ribbon in the litter box. After that I was OCD about never having any ribbons in her vicinity. :rolleyes::nailbiting:
 
Melanie, I'm already OCD about everything this cat does!:rolleyes::nailbiting:

I have not seen her use the litterbox for the past two days, and that is one of the things concerning me. She usually goes fairly frequently and I'll see her in the box at least once or twice a day. I saw her pee this morning but that was all. She doesn't seem to be in any discomfort, and her little tummy is not hard or distended, so I just don't know what to think. I don't know how long a cat can go with an obstruction before you'd see obvious signs.
 
BJM said:
So long as she is not blocked, you could try any of the suggestions at Feline Constipation - Miralax, psyllium fiber, etc - to help move things through gently.
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I don't know whether or not she is blocked, that's what I am concerned about. I don't know how long a cat can be blocked before you start to see obvious signs. Ironically, this is the kitty we are trying to clear up diarrhea in! :rolleyes:
 
granadilla said:
I gave Marshmallow Laxatone -- the vet said it was okay for her IBD. Turns out he didn't know much about IBD so he could have been wrong but she seemed okay with it.

Lucy, did she poop normally yesterday? I know it's hard to tell in a multiple cat household. Marshmallow once scarfed down some Christmas ribbon when I had my back turned for a few seconds and I was terrified until I saw the ribbon in the litter box. After that I was OCD about never having any ribbons in her vicinity. :rolleyes::nailbiting:
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Squalliesmom said:
Melanie, I'm already OCD about everything this cat does!:rolleyes::nailbiting:

I have not seen her use the litterbox for the past two days, and that is one of the things concerning me. She usually goes fairly frequently and I'll see her in the box at least once or twice a day. I saw her pee this morning but that was all. She doesn't seem to be in any discomfort, and her little tummy is not hard or distended, so I just don't know what to think. I don't know how long a cat can go with an obstruction before you'd see obvious signs.
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Sorry, Shane, got confused about who said what, lol!
 
BJM said:
Diarrhea will move around a partial blockage.Will she let you rub her belly firmly or does she act painful?
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She'll let me rub it, and put gentle pressure on it. She doesn't act like she's in any distress. She's also running and jumping and playing with her usual abandon. I have not seen any diarrhea in the LBs, but I haven't seen her use any of them, either.
 
Lucy if she's not in any distress, I think you can just remain on litterbox sentinel duty. When Tita the beagle was blocked, it was only 12 hours from ingestion to very dramatic signs.

She would "try" to vomit but nothing would come up but bile. She would strain to poop and nothing would come out but some bloody diarrhea. Her back was hunched in pain. It was VERY obvious something was wrong.

I'm thinking if a cat's metabolism is faster than a dog's, you should have seen something by now in terms of symptoms if she had a serious blockage. Are you positive there is cellophane missing or is that your OCD?
 
Oh, and I should also ask - I know she's not a big eater, but has she eaten today without throwing up?

My very rudimentary understanding of blockages is that if she had one, she wouldn't be able to keep food down for long. My experience is ONLY in a dog, though.
 
Brashworks said:
Lucy if she's not in any distress, I think you can just remain on litterbox sentinel duty. When Tita the beagle was blocked, it was only 12 hours from ingestion to very dramatic signs.

She would "try" to vomit but nothing would come up but bile. She would strain to poop and nothing would come out but some bloody diarrhea. Her back was hunched in pain. It was VERY obvious something was wrong.

I'm thinking if a cat's metabolism is faster than a dog's, you should have seen something by now in terms of symptoms if she had a serious blockage. Are you positive there is cellophane missing or is that your OCD?
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It's very much my OCD. I have no way of telling how much she ingested because I'm not 100% certain of the source. I do know when she vomited in the early AM on Thursday she brought up some substance that looked like either cellophane or tape, but it was kind of "crackley," not soft, but it had also dried some, so I don't know.
 
Brashworks said:
Oh, and I should also ask - I know she's not a big eater, but has she eaten today without throwing up?

My very rudimentary understanding of blockages is that if she had one, she wouldn't be able to keep food down for long. My experience is ONLY in a dog, though.
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She has been eating as well as she ever does-which is, not real well- and no vomiting or nausea.
 
Lucy, I totally get the OCD - you know I share it. I know I wouldn't rest easy until I saw a BM in the LB, either. But if this happened Thursday and she's been eating at least some food, if she's showing no symptoms I think you can relax at least a little. The only other concern about eating foreign objects can be tears in the intestines, but I don't think cellophane would cause that.

Keep us posted when you find a nice treasure in the LB.
 
Brashworks said:
Lucy, I totally get the OCD - you know I share it. I know I wouldn't rest easy until I saw a BM in the LB, either. But if this happened Thursday and she's been eating at least some food, if she's showing no symptoms I think you can relax at least a little. The only other concern about eating foreign objects can be tears in the intestines, but I don't think cellophane would cause that.

Keep us posted when you find a nice treasure in the LB.
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Thanks for the advice and encouragement, I definitely need it! Yes, I'll let you know how the treasure hunt goes, lol!:):):)
 
HAHAH! *drum roll* I think we have poop!!! Pretty sure it's hers, and happily, it looks perfectly normal - more normal than usual, for her, which definitely makes it hard for me to differentiate hers from the other cats', and leaves a tiny bit of concern in my mind (in case it isn't really hers). But since everything else seems fine, I'm good to go with that particular "treasure" really being hers!
 
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