Expert: Jana Connell RVT, CVT - 4/23/2011

Question
cat is 13 yrs old - throws up undigested food around every other day -has been to the vet - xrays - no blockage - has changed dry cat food 3 times in the past month - curretly trying blue mountain this week  - went to buy some more & told my store has dicontinued this product - do you know anyting about this cat food - should I try to look for it - is there another cat food I should be feeding him?  How can we stop the vomiting?

Answer
Hi Sher,
I am so sorry, but I sent you a long answer to this question and it seems to have not gone through. I have contacted the tech support in here as at least 7 of my answers disappeared and don't show as being answered.

So I will try and remember what I wrote before...
A 13 yr old cat that is regurgitating food is a concern on many levels.
My concern would be for him kidney health, but since some blood work was done (I hope) with the xrays, then they must be fine.

Any time you change food 3 times in one month it is going to cause some major digestive issues. Cats and dogs are both prone to having some serious digestive problems from food changes that are done too soon.

This can cause gastritis, which is where the stomach and small intestines are inflamed, or pancreatitis, which is where the pancreas is so inflamed it starts to digest itself. This is not only painful but it can be fatal very fast.

Cats that regurgitate usually do so because the food is causing an irritation right away to the gut. You don't state when this started or what kind of food he was eating before the vomiting started. Some cats are just uneasy eaters and do this trough out their life with no ill effects.

Giving foods that are actually not of the best ingredients or formulations that are not trial fed but only formulated to meet standards are not good for any pet, let alone one that is a senior. Cats over 7 years old should be on a high quality, easily digestible, lower protein diet that is made just for seniors. Kidney failure is way to common in older cats and foods too high in protein can make it hard for older kidneys to function well.This leads to a build up of toxins in the bloodstream which then leads to vomiting.

Blue Mountain food is way too high in protein and it is not made for seniors. Grocery store foods are also not high quality and are a major cause of illness in cats. We are what we eat and that applies to pets as well.

If this was my cat I would put him on a three week trial of feline I/D prescription diet from your vets office. That is a highly digestible easily passed food that is geared for pets with digestive issues.

It will calm his gut down and help with inflammation as well. After about three weeks I would then slowly transition him to Science Diet Senior or Sensitive Stomach formulations and see how he does on one of those foods. Science Diet is made with a fixed-formulation which means that he will get the same high quality food bag after bag. Other foods are made with open-formulations which means the company buys whatever is cheapest on the docks that day.

Vomiting in cats is common but not always easy to solve. If he hasn't had blood work done, then you need to have a kidney and liver panel run on him.
I hope that this answer goes through and helps. Please let me know if you get this and how he does.