My Shadow...

How precious "Me and My Shadow." My heart goes out to you for your baby.

Cat foods definitely can affect our babies and though vets are good, sometimes people with experience are better. Some years ago, while shopping for Whiskas canned food for my Gidget, a lady in the aisle mentioned her experience with Whiskas and suggested I rethink my purchase. She advised that it caused her cat something called, I think it was "ash disease." However an employee who overheard her advised me that Whiskas was fine and there was no recall, so I should not be alarmed. I took the suggestion of the lady in the aisle and bought another food. My Gidget was quite the finicky eater and when something didn't agree with him, I sought a different product. Pro Plan was his fav for years and he liked different flavors. The first cat food recall I remember was with Friskies - his favorite at the time was Lamb. I fed him and after he ate, he laid down. He just laid for a while which I found to be unlike him. I rubbed him and prayed silently and a short time later he was up and about. I changed his food that day to Pro Plan. A short time later there was a mass recall on a lots of cat foods, thankfully Pro Plan, at that time, was not included.

There's no way to know which way to go sometimes when others are in charge of quality control and that's scary, so I began to pray over his food all the time before I gave it to him. One day I gave him a new flavor of Pro Plan and he had a bad urinary reaction to it. At that time, I had no clue it was the food. I raced to the store and bought some urinary tract foods and he was better. After that I paid strict attention to his behavior anytime I feed him his food. The next time I gave him this particular flavor by Pro Plan (Sole), he had the same reaction. I'm not saying this particular food flavor is bad or any of the foods that I mention is bad, but only that my baby had a bad reaction. He could eat the other Pro Plan flavors without a problem.

I learned so much when my baby was here regarding cat foods - especially with all the recalls. It wasn't until he was 15 years old that I learned about better cat foods - though better came with time. I started researching and learning more about organic cat foods and there were two that held my focus - unfortunately I can only remember the name of the one I began feeding Gidget. It was Nature's Variety Instinct (canned). My only regret (to me) is that I learned so late. He got to enjoy this food, but not long enough for me. His favorites were Salmon and Lamb. These foods may well have been around for years, but they were not at my local store.

It's not easy for anyone to try to console you during a stressful and anxious time when your baby's well being is in question. They cannot tell us, so we worry. We only want the best for them. I encourage you to stay strong so that your stress level doesn't affect Shadow. As we all know pets are sensitive to us and our emotions.

May your focus be clear and steady throughout this trial and Shadow's health and lifestyle improves.

Hi. You have a really sweet kitty. Loved reading your description of how bonded you both are to each other.

Concerning her vomiting: Do you have any houseplants that she may be chewing on? Is there anything else in the house (or outside, if she goes outside...) that she may be chewing on (especially while she's stressed when you're away?)

Is it possible that she is eating litter? Sometimes stressed cats will eat litter or chew on other strange things (plastic, paper, fabric, etc.) This problem is called "Pica" in cats.

I'd observe her carefully to see if she is chewing on something that she shouldn't and if you find that she is doing this, remove the item she is chewing on.

Cats will also vomit if they have a hairball that isn't coming up. You can put one or two drops of high oleic safflower oil in her canned cat food daily and that will help pass the hairballs.

Also, food allergies could be the problem. Is kitty on canned cat food (wet) or dry cat food?

Dry cat food dries out the cats digestive system and that causes all kinds of health issues with cats; constipation, hair balls, kidney problems, etc. You may want to switch your cat to a canned cat food diet (if kitty is currently on dry cat food...) with dry cat food given only as a snack (20 -30 kibbles per day.)

If she isn't chewing on anything (to your knowledge) and the vet says she's fine, you may want to change her diet and see if the vomiting stops.

You can also add a pet fountain to encourage her to drink more water. Ceramic or stainless steel is best.

Also, you might wish to buy her a TURBO SCRATCHER toy that she can play with independently while you're away. This will keep her mind busy and help her with her separation anxiety. They are at Walmart for about $12.

If her separation anxiety is causing her to be too restless, consider buying a FELIWAY plug in diffuser. You can plug it in while you are gone and remove it when you're home. Feliway is a synthetic cat pheromone that calms cats.

By the way, if you decide that you want to change your cats diet, here's a great chart that lists the current cat food and the specific calories, protein & fat of each choice. A lot of us cat people here have used this chart to help us make better diet choices for our felines.

Here's the link:

http://www.catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf

All of my cats that developed kidney problems did the same thing -- the spit up of the "milky" liquid or foam -- that is definitely a sign of increased stomach acid. All the pepcid will do is treat for the nausea created by acid and alleviate the spit-ups. But I'm surprised your vet wouldn't want to see your cat -- because you have to get at the reason FOR the acid production in the first place.

And the most common reason is kidney problems. Cats with kidney problems develop increased acid, and kidney problems are the No. 1 cause of serious illness/death in cats. Not to scare you, but to say that knowing early in the game means that treatment can begin right away and often extend the life of your cat for many years!

Kidney failure usually doesn't "show its face" symptomatically until kidney function is 75% gone, so early detection is critical....and, yes, it can suddenly crop up in bloodwork in a matter of months. Simple blood tests/urinalysis will give you an assessment of kidney and liver function and at least rule these out -- then, knowing this good baseline, you can start looking at diet and other possible factors.

Just food for thought. Many of my cats with kidney disease which does progress to kidney failure lived many years because they were diagnosed early.

Best wishes for your family and Shadow (Shadow was the name of my first cat as an adult and she beat back kidney disease for 4 years).

LadyAmara...Jeremiah 2911..Sammycat1...

I can't even begin to express to you how very touched I am by your sensitive, thoughtful, caring and very informative replies to my post; however, I didn't expect any less from the Pet Lovers' Forum and that is why I came here to share with all of you.

When I got home later this afternoon, I immediately called the Vet again with a few more questions that I had...She called back tonight and we had a very good conversation...She told me that she didn't mean to alarm me when she said it could be nothing or something more, such as the beginning of kidney disease...She was stating that there can be many minor, as well as major, causes for this type of upset...She also asked me what Shadow's eating pattern was...in other words, did she tend to nibble throughout the day and night...or did she eat a lot at one time and go for a long period without eating, etc....I told her that Shadow tends to be a late night eater...overnight actually...She will eat a small amount each morning and then she doesn't eat much at all until the middle of the night...when my husband and I get up in the mornings, her food dish is almost empty...Of course, this is their nature, as they are nocturnal...and my Shadow is not going to change her natural instincts and allow any human to tell her any differently...LOL

Well, the Vet then told me that there is a condition known as "bilious vomiting"...due to a buildup of stomach acid, which is caused by going a long period of time without eating...so she suggested to me to put Shadow's food near her favorite spots...one is by the sliding doors in our dining area...and the other is by her cat tower near our front door...and this may encourage her to nibble more throughout the day...rather than going too long without food...Let me mention here that I have always had her dishes located in the kitchen area, except I would also put an extra dish of water by her cat tower at the front door area.

So, after I spoke with the Vet, I immediately split up a small can of food and put each dish in these areas...Well, guess what?...My Shadow has been nibbling more, so this is where I will place her food from now on...I have no idea why she doesn't just go into the kitchen to nibble, but that's my Shadow!

Hopefully, it will turn out to be "bilious vomiting"...or, perhaps, the new formulated "Ideal Balance" which just has not agreed with her and I am discontinuing...and, hopefully, nothing more serious.

Okay, I wanted to give you all a good overview and now I will address each of you separately on another post, as I'm trying to keep this as short as I can...which can be difficult for me at times...LOL...I am feeling more positive tonight!

You've clearly gotten a lot of excellent advice from some wonderful ladies who know what they're talking about.

I have nothing to add as I've never encountered this problem with any of the many cats who I've shared my life with. I'm currently mommy to four kitties...Tabitha,Samantha, Henry and Jack...all rescues.

Sending out lots very special prayers to your precious Shadow and hoping that she's feline fine ASAP!

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All of my children have paws =^..^=

Good luck with Shadow - I hope everything turns out well and that going too long without eating is the problem. Bilious vomiting syndrome is very, very rare and also is usually a sign of something else...a bad motility problem (the food moving too slowly or too quickly through the GI tract) or gastritis or kidney problems.

Because bilious vomiting syndrome is very rare, it would be perhaps the least likely culprit of Shadow's problems; that's why I wrote what I did -- it's odd that the vet wouldn't want to rule out the most likely cause first and would diagnose her over the phone without an exam and tests.

I only write these things because I've fostered and owned cats for nearly 40 years, and never had a vet diagnose a problem by phone, especially when a new situation crops up. (And we have a great vet who has talked to us by phone with terminally ill pets on smaller matters, but that's after we had a thorough grounding in what we were dealing with).

I see fear all through your post -- and I can relate to your worry -- yet please don't delay taking Shadow in for a solid assessment because you may fear the outcome. Doing so will actually set your mind to ease to rule out a bigger problem. And if there is a problem, like a kidney or GI situation, it can stay small if caught early.

This is offered in a helpful spirit and not intended to worry you further. It's obvious you love Shadow very, very much and I wish the very best for her.

P.S. My Shadow used to follow me around everywhere, just like yours does, from the time she was 5 weeks old!

LadyAmara...I was so touched by your post when you shared how you prayed over your precious Gidget and his food...As you mentioned in your post, they definitely do pick up on our emotions and react to them...I thank you so much for sharing your experience with various cat foods....When I was googling last night, it was truly alarming to read some of the terribly serious health problems that many people have experienced with their pets, due to the pet foods that they were feeding them...I am definitely going to check into Nature's Variety Instinct and do much more research...It is very unfortunate, to say the least, that we have to be so vigilant and can't even trust the pet food corporations to provide healthy food for our pets...Let me mention here also that, with all of the recalls on human food, it isn't really all that surprising that there are some very unsavory practices going on in the pet food industry also!

I also want to tell you that there is no need for regrets on your part regarding your precious Gidget...It is obvious that you provided him with a wonderful, caring, loving home and did all you could to see to it that his life was filled with loving care....What a great comfort that can be for all of us!

I definitely hope that you have another precious pet...in memory of your precious Gidget!

Thank you again so much for your kind and caring reply!

Jeremiah...Thank you so much for taking the time to reply to my post with such sensitivity, care and attention...I am so very appreciative of your very informative and knowledgeable input!

Shadow is an indoor cat only...which she isn't all that too happy about and I truly wish that I could let her outdoors to run freely and wildly as it should be...as she definitely is not the type of cat to settle with just indoors; however, I do my best to convince her that it is for the best, but she is just not buying into it!...I love her spunk and energy and she definitely keeps me in good shape, as she insists that I always join in with her during her aerobic workouts!...LOL

No, I have no indoor plants, as I am aware that many can be toxic to our pets...She also doesn't have "Pica" (chewing on strange things, as mentioned)...We would be very aware of this if it existed...You mentioned hairballs also and, in the 10 years that she has been a part of our family, she has thrown up any hair that has accumulated in her system...I also do a daily brushing on her, and have a furminator which I use once a week, so I do all I can to be sure that I keep this issue under control.

As far as her eating, she has shown preference to the dry niblets; however, I also include the canned food...and have now started adding some niblets to her soft food, which many have told me they do and she seems to prefer it that way so far.

She has scratching posts and boards in each room of the house; however, I will definitely check into the Turbo Scratcher that you mentioned...Let me mention here that I have bought all kinds of stimulating toys for her that I thought she would enjoy, but it turned out that I was more excited about them than she was!...LOL...She just looks at me like she is saying..."Do you think I'm stupid?!...LOL...Just can't outsmart my Shadow!

As far as the Feliway, I have heard about this, but never felt that it was necessary for Shadow...However, I'm rethinking on this after seeing your post, as I think this would be especially helpful for her when we go away on vacations and have a pet sitter come in to take care of her...We don't go away for any more than a week on vacations...We do take weekend trips also every now and then, but we don't like to leave her alone for any length of time.

I can't thank you enough for all of your concerns and suggestions...so very much appreciated and helpful!...I am truly overwhelmed by the caring and thoughtful posts that I have received!