cats

[susandennis]

Betty has been a thrower upper for years and years and years.  For most years it was really just dry heaving but for the past couple of years it's been - ah hem - more productive.  For the past year it's been really messy and disgusting and happened at least daily.  Then I switched her to ONLY canned food and that cut back the instances.  Then I added pumpkin - a lot of it to every meal.  Then, when Zoe came, I got some very simple dry food (California Natural) and started feeding her increasing amounts.

She went from desperate to get more food all damn day long (and eating up whatever I fed her instantly and begging for more) to not even waking me up in the morning but waiting until I got up for breakfast.  She's excited about each meal but not desperate.  She eats most but not all and there is often dry food left to much on.

And she has not throw up at all for more than a week.  The last time she pooped outside the box was Saturday. I can't believe that after all this time, I've finally stumbled on a fix and I do believe it's too early to declare victory but I am ohhhhh sooooo hopeful.

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Today is swim class.  The good instructor is supposed to be back but if he isn't, I'll just enjoy and not worry about it.  The pool with the good instructors will be open again in 10 days.

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I have more TiVo testing to do to narrow down the issue.  Last night there was a live baseball game on and I could not get it to fail.  Maybe it was because it was a Red Sox game.  It actually did fail the first time but for the rest of the game, it operated like it should.  Weird. Tonight is a Mariner game.  We shall see.

Comments

[fyremaven.livejournal.com]

you are probably sick of discussing it but it just occurred to me that i've not heard you talk about hairball remedy before now. Is Betty getting it, or something that passes for it. I say it like that because some people don't "believe" in hairball remedy but having been a past breeder of cats I can tell you that even the shorthair breeds pick up enough hair to cause enough of a problem that necessitates vomiting to help clear the digestive tract of the cat. What a lot of cat owners do is to give the hairball remedy of their choice (over the counter stuff like "Laxatone" or whatever or homemade stuff like petroleum jelly on the paw) about an inch a day till the vomiting stops.

And just because you dont see hair in the vomit doesnt mean it's not causing the behavior either. It's worth a try especially since you said she'd done it for years. The fiber idea is a good one but it might simply be a hairball or hair overflow issue in her gut.

Feel free to disregard. :D

[susandennis]

Interesting. the hairball thing never ever occurred to me because she does not shed. My short hair cats all have and Zoe does a little but while Betty was the only cat around, there was zero cat hair.

BUT your info about not seeing any in the vomit (and I never have) not making any difference is also something I've never heard.

Petroleum jelly on the paw? I just tried that and she was having NONE of it. So I just mixed about an inch of it into some of her favorite food and she ate it right up.

We'll make that an afternoon treat. And see if it works. THANKS!!!

[fyremaven.livejournal.com]

You're welcome! I really hope it helps. Lots of times (and i'm surprised your vet didn't mention it) hair can accumulate in the gut and the food will simply go around it. There's a lot of gut in most animals (us too) so the potential is high for a lot of hair in the colon. Also, even though she doesn't shed it doesn't mean a heck of a lot. The ones that shed might have LESS of a hairball issue because their hair ends up on YOU. or the couch. or your pants. or your pillow. With Betty (and other non visual shedders) she gets the hair when she cleans herself. I forgot the actual life cycle of a cat's hair (yes there's such a thing..lol) but if she licks her coat hair WILL go down her throat at some point.

A trick i learned when i was a vet assistant was to smear a bit of vaseline (just a bit) onto the top of their paw, they can't shake it off if it's just a little bit and normal cats will want it off bad enough to lick it off. Your method seems to be working but just in case you need an alternative method. Also the ones sold at Petsmart and Petco are flavored and most cats want them badly. :D

[susandennis]

good to know - all of it... thanks so much for explaining.

[unclecliffy.livejournal.com]

Pumpkin? Is that the secret? Allo throws up 2-3 times a week. No vet has diagnosed a problem, and I have just come to the conclusion that this is just a part of our lives. Though I can't think it's v comfortable. Anyway, tell me about the pumpkin ....

[susandennis]

Check the comments about hairballs...

Pumpkin adds fiber. Betty needed strudier poops so that's when I starting adding canned pumpkin (NOT pie ready but regular unmessed with pumpkin - it's expensive but easy to find - canned veggie aisle).

I have been adding about 2 tablespoons to every meal for Betty. Her poops are much improved. Bright orange but nice and well formed orange.

However, some Googling this afternoon sounds like hairball remedies might negate this.

http://www.vetinfo.com/how-effective-is-vaseline-petroleum-jelly-for-cats-hairballs.html