Vomiting

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peznin

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So I've been having some issues with Thomas (nicknamed Burrito). He's always been weird about his food, such that when I used to feed them a cup of food in the morning and at night he would get so anxious when I put more food down he'd eat too fast and vomit. For a few years I was free feeding them dry food and that worked out better, because he could see there was always more food in the reservoir for him. But if that food container got even LOW on food he'd eat too much and vomit.

When I found out he was diabetic, I switched him over to the fancy feast canned that's on the approved low carb list. Again, he'd eat too fast (what my vet calls the "scarf and barf") and vomit. So, she recommended smearing it all over a big dinner plate so it was harder for him to eat it quickly. He's now stopped vomiting the wet food.

My problem is that I have 2 other kitties that are still eating the dry. Xena loves the wet food but Bob barely touches it. Plus, Bob hangs back and likes to eat long after the other kitties are done, so having dry food out for him works best. I worried about having the regular high carb dry out though, in case Burrito got hungry in between his canned feedings. So I was reading up on possible low carb dry food and ended up ordering some Nature's Variety Dry Cat Food, Feline Instinct Chicken Diet. I figured if I was going to give them dry, it could at least be stuff I wouldn't have to worry about any of them eating. All 3 like the food and eat it willingly.

My problem now though is that Burrito vomits up the dry food. It's happening daily or at least every few days. A few weeks ago, he vomited food plus hair ball, which made me wonder if the source of his problem is really a hair ball, OR if he's somehow allergic to something in the dry food.

I'm not sure what to do, because cleaning up vomit piles daily from my white carpet is getting old. But I only saw one other dry food that's low carb in the discussions and its even more expensive than the Nature's Variety.

I should mention that aside from the vomiting he's acting completely normal and doesn't seem to be sick. Immediately after he vomits, he comes begging for more food to fill his stomach so I don't think he's nauseated.

Any advice??
 
Have you tried getting all your cats to eat wet? Lots of people here transitioned everyone. Dr. Lisa has some good tips on transitioning for difficult cats at www.catinfo.org.

Your only other choice is to isolate them when they are eating and then take up the dry. Besides the vomiting issue, any dry will also make Burrito's numbers go up.

Are you testing Burrito's numbers at home? If not, be warned that a completely wet diet can really change the numbers downward.
 
Dry food made my cat puke, too, but, of course, that was all she would eat. It took me seven, long, annoying months, but I was able to get her off of it and she no longer pukes up her food.

I know you have other cats there, but it looks like you're going to have to figure out a plan that prevents him from eating the dry. I know it's irritating, but probably less so than cleaning up all that puke and better for his gut, too.
 
I would freeze some wet food in ice cube trays and put out at different times. Wet food freezes well then you
can pop them in a freezer bag and take out as you need. I have a cat that panics when there isn't food out,
but if I leave a couple of cubes in a deep dish, he can eat a little all day.

I have just changed seven cats from dry to wet, only one is diabetic. When I realized how bad the dry was,
even the "natural" expensive I was feeding them, I just stopped it. I watched each cat and made sure they
were eating something, gave extra to the diabetic cat but would not give them what I now knew was not good
for them. Wet food is a pain but after reading everything the list pointed me to, and all the information on
the internet I knew I had to do it.

Also, remember they are cats and they will change if you make up your mind ..... and as I told my guys,
"I can out wait you" :) cats are notorious for knowing where their best interests are .... good luck.
 
I know any time I switch a brand of food my civie, Sasha, will puke it up for the first few days. She has a really sensitive stomach. That may be all that is going on with your Burrito. But I agree with the frozen wet food suggestion.
 
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