Ask the Vet: Why do cats vomit? by Kristel Weaver, MPVM, DVM

I have 2 kitties and one of them throws up a ton!  I know people say that cats throw up; it's no big deal.  Why do cats vomit? 

Most cat owners have experienced the unpleasant surprise of finding a pile of cat vomit.  Fortunately, at my house I have two dogs to clean up the mess!  Before we discuss vomiting, we have to discuss the differences between vomiting and regurgitation.  Vomiting is an active process that involves stomach noise, retching and heaving before the food is expelled from your cat’s mouth.  Regurgitation is a passive process where the food just pops out, often undigested in a tube or cigar shape.  There are several reasons for cats to regurgitate or vomit:

• Gorging – Cats that eat too much too fast may regurgitate from triggering a stretch reflex in the stomach.  These cats regurgitate right after eating and the food is undigested in a tubular shape. It can also look like a round pile of undigested food.

• Hairballs – Cats spend a lot of time grooming.  In the process, they eat a lot of hair.  Some cats are able to pass hair through their digestive tract into their stools.  For other cats the hairball grows in the stomach until it causes irritation and is vomited up.  Hairballs look like vomit mixed with hair.

• Grass or other foreign bodies – If a cat eats something other than food such as grass, leaves, plastic or a hair band, it may lead to vomiting.  Obviously in this type of vomit you will see some non-food item that was probably the cause of that vomit.

• Food allergies – These are VERY common in cats.  When cats have a food allergy they are allergic to either the protein or the carbohydrate in their food.  For example, a cat that vomits frequently on a fish based cat food might do much better on a turkey-based food and eliminating fish from their diet completely.  If you think your pet has a food allergy, talk to your veterinarian about recommended foods.

• Constipation – Cats that pass a dry hard stool every few days may be constipated and vomit from feeling bloated and plugged up.

• Other health issues – Cats vomit due to metabolic disease, inflammatory bowel disease, toxins, cancer and a variety of other illnesses.

When should I be concerned?  

If your cat vomits several times a day, if there is blood in the vomit, if your cat is lethargic, losing weight or not eating then I recommend taking your cat to the vet as soon as possible. 

Usually, a cat that vomits once or twice a month is not a concern.  If your cat vomits or regurgitates more often than you feel is normal, I recommend discussing it with your veterinarian.  

Dr. Kristel Weaver is a graduate of the Veterinary School at the University of California, Davis where she received both a DVM and a Master’s of Preventative Veterinary Medicine (MPVM).  She has been at Bishop Ranch Veterinary Center & Urgent Care in San Ramon since 2007.  She currently lives in Oakland with her husband and their daughter, Hayley. If you have questions you would like Dr. Weaver to answer for future articles, please email info@webvets.com

Candice the Canine and the Mystery Meal by Erin Selby

Dogs really do eat the strangest things. Working in a veterinary hospital, you begin to feel like you have seen it all: plastic, entire chickens – bones and all, chocolate, snail bait, bags of trash, socks, shoes, underwear, rocks (!), nails, and of course their own and other animals’ bodily evacuations (yuck!).  But sometimes even we are caught by surprise by the mysterious contents of a dog’s stomach. Sometimes something that seems safe and even healthy can cause an unexpected visit to the vet.  

Candice, a seven year old Beagle, came to Bishop Ranch Veterinary Center & Urgent Care feeling very lethargic and sporting a distended, bloated abdomen. Understandably her owners were concerned, especially after she vomited the night before, so they scheduled an appointment with Dr. Baine.  After examining Candice, Dr. Baine decided to take some abdominal x-rays.  What he found was intriguing. Candice’s stomach was definitely distended due to a large amount of material that was not moving through her intestinal tract. But it was a mystery as to what exactly the material was. It was not apparent on the x-rays whether it was food or some kind of foreign material that was causing the uncomfortable bloating.

What could it be?

The next step was to induce vomiting and get little Candice some relief. Cue the big reveal: bright green peas were the culprit! When Candice’s owner learned what she had eaten, it all made sense - his wife had been using a frozen bag of peas the night before to ice her knee. Obviously Candice could not resist the temptation!  This wasn’t the first time Candice had to see a vet for something she ate; a couple years ago she had to go to the emergency room for eating chocolate. She is quite the little gourmet!

Those are frozen peas!

In general peas are not harmful for dogs and are perfectly fine for them to eat, even frozen ones. But Candice over ate and stuffed herself to the gills. She had a minor case of gastric dilation, otherwise known as food bloat. Her stomach was so stretched out it couldn’t function normally in order to digest the peas, leading to the distended abdomen, lethargy, and vomiting.

While some of her symptoms were similar, Candice did not suffer from Gastric Dilation and Volvulus (GDV) or what is also referred to as gastric torsion or bloat. This is a very serious medical emergency where a dog’s stomach twists, thereby trapping air and cutting off blood supply to the organ. This obstructs blood flow to the entire body and very quickly leads to shock and ultimately death.  Large breed dogs and barrel-chested dogs are the most susceptible to GDV. A distended or bloated abdomen, attempting to vomit but can’t, excessive panting and/or pacing are just a few of the possible signs. It is essential to get your dog to a vet immediately if you suspect they have GDV.

Luckily for Candice, she did not have GDV. Her food bloat was not very severe and was easily resolved. She was able to go home the same day, albeit feeling a bit queasy.  In retrospect, since everything turned out okay, it is hard not to have a little chuckle over the idea of an impish Beagle chowing down on a bag of frozen peas. But the ingestion of certain foods, materials, and substances that are potentially harmful is a serious matter. It is important to be aware of what our furry little friends can get into when we aren’t looking and to be quick to respond when they show the first signs of being ill, like Candice’s parents did. We are grateful that we were able to be there for Candice and her family in their time of need and that this story has a happy ending (our favorite kind). And now we can add frozen peas to the list of strange things that dogs eat!