Cats can throw up for a variety of reasons ranging from minor to serious. Common causes include sudden diet changes, overeating or eating too quickly, food allergies or intolerances, hairballs from grooming, ingestion of toxic materials or foreign objects, infections, and underlying health issues such as kidney or liver disease, inflammatory bowel disease, pancreatitis, or endocrine disorders like hyperthyroidism. Vomiting may also be caused by eating plants, chemicals, or spoiled food.
If the vomiting is occasional and your cat is otherwise acting normal — eating, drinking, and active — it might not be an emergency. However, repeated vomiting within 24 hours, vomiting blood or bile, lethargy, refusal to eat or drink, abdominal pain, or other symptoms call for immediate veterinary attention as they could signal a serious medical condition.
Some specific scenarios for vomiting include:
- Hairballs causing vomiting of fur clumps
- Eating too fast or too much, causing stomach upset
- Food allergies leading to vomiting with other symptoms like itching or diarrhea
- Toxic ingestion leading to profuse vomiting and requiring urgent care
- Foreign object ingestion potentially causing obstructions and persistent vomiting
It is important to observe other signs like appetite, energy, litter box habits, and any additional symptoms to determine the urgency of a vet visit.
In summary, the cat’s vomiting could result from minor digestive upset or serious illness, so monitoring closely and consulting a vet if symptoms worsen or persist is advised.
