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Expert: - 7/29/2010


Question
My cat is four years old and lives indoors 100% of the time.  About five days ago she started throwing up at at least once a day, everyday.  At first I didn't think anything of it because she has always had a sensitive tummy and has thrown up hairballs before.  But she has never thrown up this much for this many days before.  There is no hair in the vomit.  We took her food away for 24 hours and she did stop throwing up.  I started giving her small amounts of food yesterday and she seemed fine, but this morning I found vomit on the floor again.
She has no other symptoms and seems to be fine in every other way, but I'm getting worried.

Answer
Have you recently changed her food or gotten a new house plant? Changes in food can cause stomach upsets in cats with sensitive stomachs.

Some cats get into house plants as well. Not feeding optimal foods can introduce bacterias and other things that can make her sick. By that I mean feeding her what we call garbage food from the grocery store etc.

Since she has been vomiting for almost 6 days I would suggest you get her into the vet's before this weekend. 6 days is too long. The 24 hour fast was a good idea but since she is vomiting again and while you didn't mention any yellow vomit I would be worried about her pancreas. Vomiting also causes dehydration and then you are looking at some serious stuff going on. Don't wait any longer.

So call the vet and get her in soon.  

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Jana Connell RVT, CVT

Expertise

PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING TO ME: I am NOT a vet and do NOT diagnose diseases. That is only for a licensed Veterinarian to do. I will give you suggestions and steer you toward calling your vet for help. You can call the vet's office and talk to the technician there or the vet at times. Don't be afraid to call them! If you have a serious issue with your pet please post it to one of the veterinarians in here- I will tell you the same thing in my answer. IF your pet is injured or in an emergency situation, CALL YOUR VET- Do not wait and post in here. Just call the vet's office and get them in to see the vet right away. Critical treatment time is lost if you seek answers here when you should have your precious pet at the vets!! Don't sit at home waiting for an answer when your pet is critically ill or injured!! I can answer most questions about small animal and wildlife care as well as small animal nutrition. I can also answer questions about all phases of dental care for small animals. I DO NOT answer questions about birds (unless it is wildlife or songbirds) or HAMSTERS/GERBILS/CHINS/GUINEA PIGS/REPTILES/FROGS/RABBITS/PET BIRDS OF ANY KIND so please submit these questions to the appropriate sections. I, as well as other experts in here, do NOT do homework questions- that is for YOU to do! Please respect these rules for all of us. Thanks!

Experience

I have over 35 years experience in the field of veterinary medicine. I specialized in small animals and did wildlife rehab for over 25 years, mostly raptors, squirrels and opossums. I am a Small Animal Nutritional Consultant with 6 certificates from Hills Pet Foods, CNM and Purina. I also specialized in Small Animal Dentistry which is a field I truly love.

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Audubon,World Wildlife Federation, American Society of Veterinary Dental Technicians.

Education/Credentials
Licensed with California and Oregon, RVT and CVT. Certified Veterinary Dental Technician Have over 500 logged hours of Continuing Education Credits(that means I keep up to date!).

Awards and Honors
Nominated for Expert of the Month for the last 5 years.

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