Expert: Jessica - 7/19/2011

Question
Hello jessica i was recently in contact with Ali but i was unable to send her the answer to her questions she sent me.  I am really trying to find out what is wrong with my cat here is the post i sent Ali along with the follow up answers she asked for hopefully you can help yitty!!

I took in a stray cat about 3 years ago.  She seemed healthy a little skinny, but over all health was fine.  We took her for her first check up and they said she was in great shape, but just needed proper nutrition.  We fed her the same way for several years, but within 2 1/2 years she started vomiting a lot. Within the last 6 months we have taken her to several vets without being properly diagnosed.  She continues to vomit bile and foam after meowing/crying.  She is now vomiting at least twice a day.  She still eats, plays, and seems normal.  We do not allow any toxins in our house so i am not sure how she could be exposed to chemicals of any kind so we have ruled that out.  We have tried many things such as the vets recommendations (alka seltzer, pedialyte, and changing her intake of food)  We are now feeling as if we can not trust vets since we have spent hundreds of dollars at several offices without a reason as to why our cat is still omitting.  Please Help!!!

Thank You, Amber & Yitty"

-   Has Yitty had full blood tests done to ensure that her organs and various body systems are functioning within the normal range?
-   She has had 3 lab test done by 3 different vets.  The only thing they said they found was a possible heart murmur but that came form one vet.  All other organs seemed to be functioning normally.

- Has Yitty's urine been analyzed to check for issues within her bladder, kidneys and urinary tract?
-   Not sure on this one.  We were told numerous test were done.  

- Has Yitty been tested for diabetes? Thyroid issues? Kidney issues? Stomach issues? Allergies?
-   Yes she was tested for all of this.  They said she might have a g.i. issue they could see anything but most likely it was gastric reflex.  Two vets told us to give her alka seltzer and pedialyte and see how she does.

- What are you feeding Yitty?
-   We had her on an all natural diet of actual fish and meat, but our other cat wasn’t eating and yitty would eat both there meals.  We saw little improvement during this time so we switched them to Wellness cat food.

- Would you be willing to check out catinfo.org (a website created by a veterinarian to educate pet parents about the unique nutritional needs of their feline companions)?
-   I have done that and followed as much of it as possible if im not mistaken that’s where I got the idea to start feeding her the fish and meats.  

- Has Yitty's digestive tract been studied to ensure that there are no minor blockages or congenital deformities causing her to vomit?
-   As far as we know yes.  We brought that up to our vets and they never found an issue.  

- Does Yitty go outside unsupervised?
-   Yitty was an alley cat when we took her in.  She is mostly indoors but when she does get out she stays close to the door and when downstairs there is always someone watching her.  

- Has Yitty had basic FIV (Feline Immunodeficiency Virus) & FeLV (Feline Leukemia, both of these viruses are similar to HIV/AIDS in people in that they cause the immune system to fail and since Yitty was a former stray there's a good chance she's been exposed to one or both of these infections) testing done to ensure that this isn't an issue related to these common viral infections?
-   Yes when we first got her and several years after that we took her back for her checkup and she was given her second round of shots.  I did notice that after her second round of shots she started acting funny.  Right when they gave her the shot she started to vomit.  But it was nothing compared to how much she vomits now.  

- What does Yitty use for litter box filler?
-   We use arm& hamer cat litter.  We tried an all natural non scented litter but neither of our cats would use the box.  We also tried I think its called fresh step, but that litter created a strong menthol scent and we had to stop using it.  

- Do you use all natural cleaning products or conventional chemical products?
-   No chemicals are allowed in our house.  We got rid of all of that a few years ago.  Everything we use to clean is also put in a higher cabinet out of reach of the cats.  

- Do you own/rent your home? Sometimes management in rental companies will use chemicals outside your door that are incredibly toxic - in fact we've had experiences with rental property maintenance workers using chemicals that caused us and our cats to react negatively...
-   We rent.  We live upstairs and we don’t have many plants around the perimeters.  Im almost positive that they don’t spray our plants.

Answer
Hi Amber,

Since all of your cat’s organ functions seem to be normal, you may need to go back and do some further diagnostics to get to the bottom of this. Or, you could talk to your vet about the probability of a condition called Inflammatory Bowel Disease, and see if treating for this empirically might be the best idea.

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is a condition that isn’t well understood. It is believed to be strongly related to anxiety/stress, and it also seems to be allergy-related. Most vets feel that cats have sensitivities or allergies to food ingredients and perhaps to bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract. An immune response causes the lining of stomach and/or intestines to become inflamed, resulting in chronic diarrhea in some cats, and chronic vomiting in others. Affected cats will vomit (or have diarrhea) so chronically that, over a long period, they will lose weight. Left untreated, the condition can be fatal due to malnutrition.

Typically, the most successful treatment for IBD is an oral dose of prednisone given regularly at home. This helps reduce inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract. There are some other treatments available if the kitty doesn’t respond to this. Probiotics added to food and special diets can also be helpful, but I see you might have difficulty with this, since you have multiple cats.

Unfortunately, there is no test for IBD, and the diagnosis is made after all other reasonable diagnoses are ruled out. So your vet may want to do an abdominal ultrasound, an endoscopy, or more detailed bloodwork to determine if anything else could be responsible for Yitty’s symptoms. Sometimes cancer or chronic pancreatitis could also cause chronic vomiting without causing any significant changes on standard blood chemistry panels or completely blood counts. An abdominal ultrasound would be very beneficial for detecting both of those problems. However, since these can all be a bit of an investment, many vets are willing to try the kitty on a trial period of prednisone to see if she improves. If she does, it’s a good indication that IBD is the culprit.

Best wishes!

Jessica