? Dry heaving - what could be going on?

It's been a while since I've posted so I'll give you some recent background on my sweet kitty, Radar.

We boarded Radar at the vet for a few days at the end of March while we were out of town. He was given a B12 shot to stimulate his appetite as experience shows that this works well so he will eat in that environment. When I brought him home, he was happy to be free from kitty jail, but he was a very reluctant eater. After a couple days of eating almost nothing, I took him to see the vet.

The reluctance to eat has been an issue about once a week for the last month or so and I was hopeful that we could discover what might be going on in his system to cause this. We did bloodwork which the vet told me revealed no reasons to explain the lack of appetite. He was given another B12 shot and I was told to give him mirtazapine every 3 days. I have not given him the mirtazapine based on information I found here. Instead, based on my research, I decided to try giving him a few tablespoons of unpasteurized goat's milk each day. His eating seems to have improved since I started giving goat's milk so I'm thinking it's helping to settle the tummy.

Here's my question: Radar often - like once every two days or so - has what I can only describe as dry heaving bouts where he acts like he's going to throw up and makes all those throw up noises - but nothing comes up. Like the reluctance to eat, this behavior has been going on for at least a month. What could be causing this? Anyone have any wisdom or experience to share? Is there anything to check for or watch for that could help provide clues for the vet to figure out what's going on with Radar's system??

 

Hi Jan,

Sorry to hear Radar's having eating problems. I suggest watching to see if he's showing any signs of nausea or excess stomach acid.


Mogs
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I've had kitties who did this when they were trying to relieve themselves from a hairball, although their attempts were usually successful. Just a thought. Does Radar have a history of hairballs? Here's an article that you might find interesting.

 

How are you and Radar doing today, Jan?




Mogs
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Just throwing this out there
Did they do a good exam of his trachea and the soft tissue going down throat to rule out any soft tissue inflammation or growth ??

 

Thanks for the hug and for checking up on us, Mogs. And thanks to all the others who've made suggestions about what could be going on. Your thought about excess stomach acid is right on track with what I think causes Radars tummy issues. I've seen many signs of nausea when he won't eat. In recent days he has been eating very well and he hasn't done any of the dry heaving while I've been home to see it. It's such a relief when he digs into his bowl of chicken and leaves nothing behind. There's also been no evidence of a hairball expulsion, although this is something I'd considered as a possible cause for the heaving with nothing coming up. The vet has not done anything more than a basic look in Radars mouth to look for tooth problems, but I think your idea is a good one for a future visit if the eating issues continue and we are still looking for causes. For now I'm hopeful that the eating will continue.

 

Oh, Jan, I'm delighted to hear Radar's feeling better and eating OK. (Anti-jinx.) Thanks for the update: I was worried about you both.

Try elevating his food and water dishes: it's a simple thing, but it really helps. Also, check out the info on Tanya's Site about slippery elm bark. Another thing to keep an eye out for is constipation; it can trigger vomiting so I guess it might cause nausea, too? Lots of helpful info at www.felineconstipation.org. If Radar does need anti-nausea meds at any stage it's a good idea to make sure he stays regular as some of the treatments can be constipating.


Mogs
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What about some cat safe greens? My kitties like to nosh on greens and it's supposed to be good for icky tummies.