The cat is vomiting white foam: how dangerous is it and what needs to be done

Veronica Igorevna Sharipova

veterinarian Petstory

When a cat vomits white foam, most owners immediately contact a veterinarian. Most often, vomiting manifests itself as diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, and these are one of the most common diseases of domestic cats. Later in our article we will look at why a cat may spit up white foam and what to do.

The cat is vomiting white foam: the main thing

• There are many reasons for a cat vomiting white foam, which do not differ in appearance, which is why diagnosis is important.
• If your cat is vomiting white foam, it is important not to self-medicate. The pet's condition can quickly and significantly deteriorate, leading to death.
• It is important to conduct a comprehensive diagnosis so as not to miss concomitant diseases.
• It is always easier to prevent a disease than to treat it. Therefore, it is important to feed your pet properly and do not forget about vaccination and treatment for parasites.

When to contact a veterinarian

Many people try to cope with the problem on their own, but do not know what exactly to do when a cat starts vomiting with white foam. It is strictly forbidden to eliminate this symptom with Cerucal injections or other drugs.

Vomiting is a protective mechanism by which the body gets rid of unnecessary substances. Therefore, if vomiting is repeated in an animal more than 2 times a day, accompanied by depression and other clinical signs, then contacting a veterinarian is a mandatory procedure.

Diagnosis of the problem

In order to understand why the cat is vomiting white foam and what to do next, it is necessary to conduct a comprehensive examination. Diagnosis should include general and biochemical blood tests, abdominal ultrasound and x-rays. The fact is that vomiting is a nonspecific symptom. And, as we have already discussed above, it can have a large number of causes, and there may not be other accompanying symptoms. Moreover, by prescribing symptomatic treatment (for example, malt paste - if vomiting due to fur is suspected, or anthelmintic - if worms are suspected), you may miss time for diagnosing and treating a more serious disease. Therefore, in most cases, in the presence of vomiting, doctors insist on a full diagnosis.

In some cases, especially to rule out a tumor, a CT scan may be needed.

In case of one-time vomiting caused by fur, eating grass, overeating, hunger or vaccination , provided that the pet has an appetite, you can monitor its condition without going to the clinic right away. If vomiting recurs, it is necessary to exclude other causes and conduct a full examination.

Also, when vomiting hair, it is recommended to pay attention to the grooming of the pet - comb it out more often, and during the molting period - give a special paste that helps remove hair from the body (malt paste).

If vomiting is caused by inappropriate food , and your pet has no other health complaints, you can try changing the diet and observing the changes. A similar principle applies to vomiting due to helminths - giving anthelmintics can completely solve the problem.

If vomiting occurs during pregnancy or estrus, an ultrasound scan of the abdominal cavity is required to examine the condition of the uterus and ovaries.

Vomiting due to stress . In this situation, a trip to the clinic can only worsen the pet’s condition. In this case, a good solution would be to contact a veterinarian online (ideally, a zoopsychologist). A specialist will help identify the cause of stress and, if necessary, prescribe sedatives.

Vomiting after taking any medications requires a mandatory visit to the clinic and drawing up a diagnostic plan depending on the specific drug. If vomiting occurs due to the use of antibacterial, painkillers and other drugs, the doctor will select an alternative treatment.

a foreign body or oncology is suspected, an ultrasound and x-ray of the abdominal cavity should be performed. If necessary, the doctor will prescribe other tests.

When vomiting due to viral infections, after surgery or due to sepsis, blood tests are required first of all to assess the general condition of the body.

If you suspect a pathology of the digestive system or kidney disease, an ultrasound of the abdominal cavity and blood tests are necessary to identify both the anatomical signs of the disease and the severity of the process.

What is the consistency of foamy vomit?

The appearance of white foamy vomit is considered normal during a long hunger strike or severe stress. In this case, the vomit will not smell unpleasant, and there will be no impurities (except for a small amount of liquid).

If the hairball has accumulated for a long time and stagnated, the vomit may acquire an unpleasant odor. In this case, it is advisable to inspect what the cat burped and make sure there are no bloody or greenish streaks. If they are not there, everything is in order, the body managed itself.

But if you see the presence of impurities or a change in color, feel a sharp unpleasant odor, find blood or strange clots, then it is better to immediately contact a veterinary hospital. A strong, incessant gag reflex will lead to dehydration and exhaustion, so your pet will definitely need your help.

Treatment

Treatment for single vomiting caused by wool, grass, overeating, hunger or vaccination is usually not required. If vomiting recurs and the pet’s condition worsens (refusal to eat, lethargy), a visit to the clinic is mandatory.

If you are vomiting due to food, you need to reconsider your diet. When feeding with industrial food, you need to try options for sensitive digestion, and when eating a homemade diet, contact a nutritionist to create a proper and balanced diet.

Vomiting due to estrus or pregnancy requires treatment if there is any pathology. In case of estrus, which is constantly severe, sterilization may be recommended, and in case of pregnancy pathology, its termination.

Vomiting due to stress in each specific case requires an individual approach. Only a doctor can detect and help eliminate the cause of a cat’s stress, as well as select an individual regimen for administering sedatives.

In case of vomiting caused by helminths , deworming is mandatory. To determine the frequency of treatments and select the right drug, it is recommended to contact a veterinary clinic or contact a veterinarian online. Under no circumstances should you use medications - they can poison the animal.

If vomiting is caused by the presence of a foreign body in the pet's stomach or intestines, surgical intervention is necessary. In this situation, it is strongly recommended not to use petroleum jelly and other folk remedies, as you may waste precious time. If the condition is neglected, pets may develop intestinal necrosis and severe intoxication of the body, often leading to death.

For vomiting caused by other causes (drug poisoning, oncology, kidney disease, etc.) , treatment is developed individually in each case and depends on many factors (age of the pet, presence of concomitant pathologies, severity of the disease, etc.).

Help at home

You can help your pet at home only if the vomiting occurred once and he is in good health and has no other complaints. For example, if an animal vomits something that it recently ate, there is no need to give it anything.

It is also not recommended to self-prescribe antiemetic drugs, as they can not only blur the picture of the disease, but also worsen the pet’s condition (for example, when eating a foreign object).

Diet

For most diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, manifested by vomiting, a diet (food labeled Gastro Intestinal) can help. But it is worth considering that, for example, in case of vomiting caused by kidney disease, a different diet is needed (food labeled Renal). When feeding your pet homemade products, a consultation with a veterinarian nutritionist is necessary to correct the diet.

First aid for a pet

Fact! First aid for a pet with a gag reflex and white foam is a starvation diet for a day, since limiting feeding will reduce the load on the entire body. The consistency, smell and color of vomit will help to recognize the root cause of the illness.

The color and composition of vomit can say a lot about the nature of the animal’s disease:

• vomiting white foam means that the pet is hungry and there is no pathology;
• the presence of white mucus in the vomit indicates a helminthic infestation in the animal;
• vomiting of a pet with saliva without additional impurities with white or yellowish foam can be a sign of terrible diseases - feline distemper or panleukopenia;
• The red tint to the vomit is given by blood, which means that the pet has damage to the organs of the digestive system;
• the gray tint of the vomit suggests the presence of dry food residues in it, and the pet’s diet should be reconsidered for its benefits and health;
• dark color of vomit is a sign of the presence of hydrochloric acid, which can cause gastritis or internal tumor;
• Bile gives the yellow color to the vomit, which indicates dysfunction of the liver and gallbladder;
• the cat vomits water with foam with strong pressure, the reason for this may be a tumor of the internal organs, encephalitis, high intracranial pressure in the animal, thrombosis or brain disease;
• vomit with green foam indicates intestinal obstruction, attacks occur mainly at night;
• A gag reflex involving feces is extremely rare and is a dangerous signal indicating serious intestinal injury.

The pre-cleansing reflex is accompanied by nausea, the pet behaves restlessly and nervously, rushes about, makes plaintive sounds, often licks its lips, and saliva may flow profusely from its mouth.

Copious vomit leads to rapid dehydration of the animal's body. At the same time, his saliva becomes viscous white and thick, his eyes become sunken, and his gums stick. Frequent gag reflexes are white with foam at a high temperature plus the depressed state of the pet is a bad signal. What to do then? In this case, the cat urgently needs the help of a specialist .

It is important to know! One sign of severe dehydration with prolonged vomiting is that if you lift an area of ​​skin and release it, the dehydrated area will slowly return to its original shape.

What to do when a kitten vomits white foam?

• If the gag reflex occurs due to poisoning, the pet is given activated charcoal at the rate of 1 tablet per 10 kg of animal weight. Charcoal is dissolved in water and injected into the cat’s mouth from a syringe without a needle.
• In case of short paroxysmal vomiting, the pet will be helped by drinking Regidron solution.
• Enterosgel and Atoxil will help prevent dehydration due to severe vomiting.
• If the cat is weakened and refuses to take fluids, then it is necessary to inject Ringer's solution.
• An intramuscular injection of Cerucal or No-shpa helps to cope with pain and nausea.
• For frequent and prolonged white vomiting, antiemetic drugs are effective: Torekan, Paspertin and Phenothiazine.
• In case of severe intoxication, the cat is prescribed a course of drips with glucose and ascorbic acid.
• Severe lesions of the gastrointestinal tract are treated with antibiotic blockade and sulfonamide drugs.

Treatment of vomiting in a cat and the recovery period should be accompanied by a special diet: all food in semi-liquid form, only boiled and soft meat, feeding in small volumes, and sufficient liquid. The appearance of a pet's appetite is a positive sign, but the transition to the usual diet should be carried out smoothly and gradually.

What should you do if your kitten vomits white foam?

If a kitten is vomiting white foam, do not self-medicate under any circumstances, only doctors know what to do. Kittens have a very fast metabolism, and if he spits up white foam, he can instantly develop dehydration, which will lead to the death of the pet. Therefore, to make a diagnosis and prescribe treatment, you should immediately consult a doctor.

Prevention

Given the variety of reasons that can cause white foam vomiting, the main preventative measures include proper feeding and maintenance of the pet.

For example, when feeding your pet with professional premium food, the risk of vomiting due to poisoning or digestive system disease is minimized. Timely vaccination protects your pet from vomiting due to viral infections. To prevent hair vomiting during the molting period, cats need to be thoroughly combed and given special preparations that facilitate the removal of hair from the body (malt paste). To prevent starvation vomiting, cats need to be fed small, frequent meals or given ad libitum.

It is also important to provide the cat with leisure time in the house. When a cat interacts with special play complexes, scratching posts made of various materials, and safe toys, the risk of vomiting as a result of eating foreign objects due to boredom is reduced.

It is advisable to sterilize cats that are not involved in breeding to prevent incessant estrus and unwanted pregnancies.

Unfortunately, not all diseases can be prevented. Diseases of the kidneys, heart and other organs, accompanied by vomiting, are often hereditary. There is no way to prevent them.

Other possibilities

Another reason for the release of white foam from the stomach is malnutrition and even hunger . It just so happens that cats are very sensitive to lack of food. Their body will synthesize all the necessary digestive secretions in the same volumes for a long time, without reducing their quantity. If you don't feed your cat for a long time, the buildup of hydrochloric acid can cause stomach irritation. As a result, the same foamy vomit will occur. It is for this reason that the duration of a fasting diet for cats should not exceed one day .

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