Blue Buffalo Natural Veterinary Diet Gi Gastrointestinal Support Cat Food
If your cat suffers from frequent digestive issues and you cant seem to find a diet that works, it may be time to try a veterinary diet like this Blue Buffalo Natural Veterinary Diet GI Gastrointestinal Support Cat Food. This recipe features all-natural ingredients including highly digestible proteins, carbohydrates, and healthy fats to provide balanced nutrition that wont upset your cats stomach. It also contains prebiotic fibers and probiotic supplements for healthy gut flora and essential vitamins and antioxidants for immune support. Overall, it provides 36% protein, 14% fat, and 5% fiber.
- Pros: Designed specifically to support healthy digestion, all-natural ingredients, prebiotic and probiotic supplements, rich in quality protein, supplemental fibers, chelated minerals
- Cons: Only available with a prescription, expensive to feed as a staple diet
What Causes Cat Indigestion
Yes! Cat indigestion. Chances are, youve experienced indigestion yourself, and while not life threatening, it is a miserable experience that can persist over several days or even be a chronic issue in your life. While food and quality nutrition are important, just as important is understanding what foods affect the G.I. tract for you or your pet. While there are certainly common culprits, what causes your cat indigestion can be a highly individual thing. Email us at and we will help you find the right food and supplements for your cat.
How Do I Recognize Vomiting
Vomiting may begin with a stage of nausea, in which the cat appears restless, and possibly anxious. The cat may lick its lips, salivate, and repeatedly swallow. Vomiting itself involves forceful contractions of the abdominal muscles, leading to expulsion of fluid, froth, or food. The severe effort associated with vomiting may be distressing to the cat.
It is important to differentiate this from the abdominal contractions associated with coughing. Cats may cough up some froth or foamy material that they subsequently swallow. Cats usually crouch down on all four legs when coughing with the neck stretched out. It is helpful if you can show a video to your veterinarian of your cat exhibiting the behavior so they can help you distinguish coughing versus vomiting.
âIt is also important to differentiate vomiting from regurgitation.â
It is also important to differentiate vomiting from regurgitation, which is usually associated with problems affecting the esophagus and is a more passive process. Features that help to differentiate vomiting from regurgitation include:
- vomiting typically involves abdominal contractions and effort
- regurgitation typically occurs quickly without abdominal contractions
- regurgitation often occurs right after eating or drinking
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A Suggested Feeding Schedule:
- Day 1: give 50% of the recommended daily amount divided into 6-8 portions
- Day 2 and 3: give 75% divided into 4-6 portions
- Day 4 and 5: give 100% divided into 3-4 portions
- Once your cat has been normal for a couple of days you can gradually re-introduce the usual food
Typically, cats need 50ml of liquid per kg of body weight per day. This means about 200ml for a cat weighing 4kg.
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Poorly Kitten Upset Stomach Problems Get Facts And Advice Here
Being a parent to a kitten is both a joy and a huge responsibility.
You are responsible for all aspects of your kittens growth into adulthoodfrom choosing the right food to making your house a safe space for the little one to explore and play.
Tummy upsets are part of growing up, whether they are food-related or caused by external factors. However much you accept this, it is still traumatic to see your kitten suffering.
What should you do when youre having tummy trouble with your kitten? Upset stomach issues arent to be taken lightly, so read on for the best advice on getting your kitten healthy again and get all the kitten facts you need!
From birth up to four months is the critical time for kittens.
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Common Causes Of Upset Stomach In Dogs
There are many reasons your dog may have an upset stomach, though theres one common cause: they ate something they shouldnt have, says Kathy Backus, DVM, at Holistic Veterinary Services in Kaysville, Utah.
Dogs are curious like kids theyre always putting things in their mouth, she says. Vomiting and diarrhea are signs that a dogs body is trying to expel something that shouldnt be in their system. In a healthy dog, its a protective mechanism of the body thats totally normal.
These are a few things that can trigger an upset stomach in dogs:
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Ingesting something that they shouldnt
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Bacterial imbalances within the digestive tract
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Chronic conditions such as food sensitivities
What To Do If Your Cat Is Sick
If your cat is displaying any unusual behaviors it’s worth a trip to the vet for diagnosis and treatment. Early detection and treatment of illnesses can help to prevent conditions from becoming more severe or potentially life-threatening.
Cat injuries or illnesses often require urgent medical attention, surgery or even emergency care. It is essential to seek professional veterinary advice as soon as possible. The sooner treatment begins, the sooner your furry friend will be acting more like themselves again.
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Reasons Your Cat May Be Dry Heaving
There are a wide variety of reasons your cat may be repeatedly dry heaving, some less serious than others. Here are two of the most common reasons and a list of other, more serious, potential causes for dry heaving in your cat.
Dry heaving, in particular, can be a relatively generic symptom. It is associated with a wide range of conditions and diseases.
Signs That It May Be More Than The Diet
If you see any of these signs, do not wait to contact your veterinarian because they can be signs of a more serious condition. Cats are masters at hiding illnessthe wait and see method can be dangerous.
- Blood in the stool
- Changes in behavior, appetite or thirst
- Darker than usual stools
- Straining or vocalizing in the litterbox
- Not producing urine or feces in the litterbox
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Monitor Your Kitten Closely
If your kittens tummy upset doesnt clear up within 24 hours, you need to act quickly.
After this time, kittens will start to mobilise fat reserves to provide energy. This can lead to the liver becoming flooded with fat cells, which it has to store around its surface area.
Such fatty build-ups around the liverknown as hepatic lipidosiscan seriously harm your kittens ability to process food.
What Can I Give A Cat For An Upset Stomach
Home»Cat Health Articles»What Can I Give a Cat for an Upset Stomach
Cats are a bit more sensitive compared to dogs and other types of pets, meaning that you cant just adapt the dosage of some human medications and administer them whenever your feline friend has an upset stomach.
In fact, cats are known to have severe allergies to some drugs. So, even if you give your cat pet-appropriate medication, you still have to be cautious. However, if your feline companion has an upset stomach, there are some home remedies that you can rely on and that arent known for causing any problems.
In this post, well look at some of them and assess their effectiveness, but well also discuss how you can make the difference between mild indigestion and something more severe, that might call for a visit to the vet as soon as possible.
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Home Remedies For Cat Vomiting And Upset Stomach
Vomiting and an upset stomach can happen for various reasons. It can either be something that happens once and never happens again, or it can be a recurring problem.
Your kitty may have developed a tummy ache from slurping that bit of milk you just offered after breakfast.
It could also be that she cannot tolerate that new cat food you just brought her, or maybe she simply eats too fast. Hairballs are also notorious causes of vomiting.
If the upset stomach is a one-time thing, think about the following possible causes:
- Sudden diet change
- Eating something that blocks their stomach
- Medication side effects
- Viral or bacterial infections
If your cat seems to have recurring vomiting and upset tummy, one of these might be the cause:
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Metabolic disease
- Motility disorders
- Many other causes
It cannot be repeated enough that in some cases, vomiting may also indicate serious issues such as intestinal obstructions, kidney disease, internal parasites, or even cancer. Any of these would obviously require prompt veterinary attention!
If your cat has an upset tummy but is still bright and alert, home remedies may be helpful.
What Are The Main Causes Of A Cat Being Sick
While cats dont have the same reputation as dogs for scavenging, some do habitually eat things they shouldnt.
Common causes of cats being sick include swallowing foreign objects such as pieces of string, rubber bands and ribbons, dangerous human foods such as onions and chocolate, and poisonous substances such as antifreeze, plants and human medications.
Internal parasites and serious diseases such as cancer or diabetes are also reasons for cats throwing up. If your cat is being sick regularly, there may be an underlying problem that will need to be diagnosed by your veterinarian.
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What Is The Symptomatic Treatment For Acute Vomiting
Non-specific symptomatic treatment is often prescribed initially in mild cases of acute vomiting. Your veterinarian will usually advise you to feed your cat an easily digested, bland diet in small quantities given frequently. A veterinary prescription diet specifically formulated to be easy to digest is often recommended. Alternatively, a specific home-cooked diet may be recommended. It is important that the cat does not receive any other foods other than what your veterinarian advises during this period.
âWater should be freely available and is important to prevent dehydration.â
Water should be freely available and is important to prevent dehydration. If the cat is improving, the quantity of food offered at any one time can gradually be increased back to a normal quantity and then the catâs normal diet can be reintroduced gradually over several days.
In some cases, your veterinarian may prescribe medication to control vomiting or relieve inflammation, for example maropitant citrate famotidine or metronidazole . This approach allows the bodyâs healing mechanisms to correct the problem.
If your cat does not improve with symptomatic treatment, your veterinarian may make a change in medication or perform further tests to evaluate the problem more thoroughly.
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Try A Different Feeding Routine
Cats that eat large meals are more likely to vomit very soon after eatingtongue-in-cheek, we call this scarf and barf.
With a stomach the size of a ping-pong ball, cats, in particular, are physiologically and anatomically designed to eat small, frequent meals. They are designed to hunt, catch and play with many small meals a day. Eating one large bowl of food a day can lead to frequent regurgitation.
In general, small, frequent meals are best. This results in less gastric retention of food and increases the amount of food that is digested and absorbed.
You can recreate this natural feeding behavior with the award-winning, veterinary recommended Doc & Phoebes indoor hunting cat feeder kit.
Instead of filling the bowl twice a day, use the portion filler to put the food into each of the three mice and hide them around the house. This natural feeding style provides portion control, activity and stress reduction that has shown to decrease or eliminate vomiting.
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Treating A Cat With Diarrhea
There are a few different things that you can try when treating your cat’s diarrhea at home. One of them is changing her diet . Cat food often includes dyes and other artificial ingredients, which may make your cat’s gut have to work harder to process them. Switching to a more natural brand can help clear up the current trouble and prevent future bouts. Watch out, though changing foods can also cause intestinal upsets, so do it gradually.
You also may consider giving your cat a bland home-cooked diet until the diarrhea subsides. Two parts cooked white rice mixed with one part boiled hamburger or chicken is easy to digest. Some cats balk at rice, so you can use plain mashed potatoes instead. Rice-based cat foods are also available at most pet supply stores.
Sometimes a 12 to 24 hour fast is enough to calm things down. If nothing at all goes in , there’s nothing to process, and the diarrhea should go away. When you resume feeding, begin with the bland rice mixture, then slowly mix in regular food, reducing the amount of the rice mixture until the cat is back on a normal diet.
A bulk-forming laxative such as Metamucil seems to have a normalizing effect on cats with diarrhea. If your cat’s stools are still a little soft during or after a couple of days of the bland diet, try adding about a half-teaspoon of the Metamucil laxative to each of his or her meals for a day or two.
Originally Published: May 20, 2011
Causes Of An Upset Stomach In Cats
So, what can cause an upset stomach in cats? As mentioned above, there are lots of possible causes. Some are more serious than others.
Determining the cause of vomiting and diarrhea in cats is often difficult, and you might find that your veterinarian simply rules out the more concerning causes before treating the symptoms, rather than trying to find an exact diagnosis:
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Kitten Diarrhea: Common Causes Symptoms And Treatment
Much like human babies, kittens can be sensitive to sudden changes in environment or diet. They can even suffer from food allergies. These factors can cause diarrhea, a condition in which the kitten will release frequent, liquidy stools. If you notice loose stools, you should monitor their bowel movements to make sure the condition is not chronic or a sign of a more serious problem.
When it comes to kitten diarrhea, it could be just a reaction to new foods, but it could also be a sign of a more serious, underlying illness.
If your kitten is suffering from diarrhea, its not time to panic. Dr. Erick Mears, a BluePearl veterinary specialist who is board certified in internal medicine, points out that kitten diarrhea is usually a treatable condition. Its pretty common and tends to be very responsive to treatment. Most of the time the things you look for are dietary causes or parasites, he says.
Treating An Upset Stomach In Cats
Before offering some home remedies for stomach pain in cats, we must distinguish between whether your cats clinical picture is mild or serious. If your cats stomach pain or discomfort is mild, you can try and treat it at home with these following remedies. However, if the case is severe, you need to consult a veterinarian immediately. If your cat is vomiting excessively and experiencing severe diarrhea, it can result in dehydration, which in worse cases can lead to death. Read how to tell if a cat is dehydrated. If in doubt, go to the veterinarian.
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How Is Gastroenteritis Treated
Once the results of the diagnostic tests are known and other causes of the clinical signs have been eliminated, your veterinarian will prescribe a treatment plan. The principal treatment of gastroenteritis consists of rehydration and the restoration of blood electrolyte balance . Depending on the cats degree of dehydration, this fluid replacement may be given orally, subcutaneously , or by intravenous treatment.
Medical treatment may also include:
- Antibiotics may be administered if the clinical signs are severe or if diagnostic tests suggest a bacterial infection.
- Anti-emetic or anti-vomiting medications, for example maropitant or metoclopramide , may be given to your cat.
- Gastrointestinal protectants, for example famotidine or ranitidine , may be used to prevent stomach ulcers .
Food may be withheld for 8-12 hours during the initial stages of treatment and then slowly be reintroduced via small, frequent feedings of a highly digestible, low fat diet. Your veterinarian will advise you on the best diet to feed your cat for a speedy recovery.
Preventing An Upset Stomach In Your Cat With Their Diet
One of the simplest ways to help protect your cat against digestive issues and upset stomach is to feed them a complete, nutritionally-balanced food. If your cat has particular digestive sensitivities your veterinarian may recommend a specific food with nutrients to support digestive health.
These diets contain highly-digestible protein sources which are easy for your cats body to digest and absorb. Your veterinarian may recommend a diet that is energy-dense, which means your cat can eat smaller portions to get the necessary nutrients and calories from their food.
A food designed to improve the gastrointestinal health of your cat may also include prebiotics. These encourage the growth of beneficial bacteria in your cats digestive tract.
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Cat Dry Heaving And Vomiting
Just like in people, our cats may duffer from an upset stomach for any number of reasons. There can be any number of causes for your cat’s dry heaving and vomiting, including parasites, viruses, a reaction to toxic substances or more serious underlying conditions like organ issues or cancer.
If you notice your cat dry heaving or vomiting more than once in short succession, or every few weeks or month, it’s a good idea to bring them into your Tracy vet to determine the cause of their behavior.