Any cat experts here?

[Archae]

My b/w female cat lucky is losing weight, quit a bit.
She feels rather bony, and she pukes about 3-4 times a day.
Nothing in the puke, it's just "dry heaves."

She is over 15, is she just getting old?

[CurtEastPoint]

1. Yes but a vet check is called for.

Could be serious and you might be able to help her feel better. Wish I could be more specific.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

2. Could be kidney troubles - older cats are susceptible to that.

Could also be diabetes or hyperthyroidism. A trip to the vet is definitely in order. 15 is old but not ancient; what she has could be treatable.

[KMOD]

3. I'm not an expert, but I've had a few kitties in my life

Is she an indoor only cat, our does she also go outside?

How is the litter box looking, as far as her output there?

Is she eating?

Any major changes at home?

[Archae]

4. Former stray, now indoor.

No other changes I've noticed.

[KMOD]

8. yeah, a vet check is certainly in order.

It could be something very treatable (worms) or perhaps something more serious (kidney failure).

I wish her, and you the best.

[petronius]

5. Weight loss, I think, is definitely something that a vet should be consulted on

Particularly in an older kitty. Hope she's OK...

[Kali]

6. my old MamaKitty died last spring

same symptoms, the first two possibilities were thyroid and kidney failure, she was negative for both so the vet said it was most likely cancer in her GI tract somewhere. we gave her steroids for another month or so before she passed - it helped give her some comfort and a few more weeks to be babied and say our goodbyes.

take her in for some basic blood/urine tests, if it is thyroid that is pretty easy to treat from what I understand.

[Brigid]

7. Possible kidney failure for the poor kitteh. :(

Very common in older felines. See your vet.

[shenmue]

9. Hugs

Get well soon, kitteh.

[Wolf Frankula]

10. Go to The Vet ASAP

Is she eating well? She might have hyperthyroid condition. The cure for that is a radioiodine injection. I have a hyperthyroid cat who is going to get that. Has she developed allergies. Go to the vet and get blood work done.

Wolf

(a crazy cat guy)

[grasswire]

11. check her gums for inflammation

some cats have trouble eating due to this problem. The remedy is omega 3 fish oil in the food, and a soft diet.

[hopemountain]

26. appreciate this tip. nt

[blackcrowflies]

12. Take her to the vet

If you can't afford the vet, local animal groups sometimes have funds to pay vet bills. That's private animal groups, town-run shelters rarely do that. Or you maybe able to work out a payment plan with the vet.

Anything could be wrong with your cat, She is obviously sick and needs vet care. She might have swallowed something that is blocking her system, also.

[Sanity Claws]

13. Is she drinking more water?

Is she drinking a lot of water? Has she slowed down recently? How much is she sleeping or just resting? These are symptoms related to both diabetes and kidney disease. I just want to help you list all of the symptoms for the vet. It is very important to take the cat to the vet asap.

[yellowdogintexas]

14. Don't waste time on this could be liver failure

Two of ours went off their feed and I wasn't really aware until they started dropping weight. One of them just sort of melted away over night almost.

What happens is the body starts drawing on the liver, they continue to not eat and they go into a condition called feline fatty liver syndrome and if not treated it is fatal

Both of mine had to be force fed, hydrated and there were lots of labs. One of them was found to have a tumor in his gut. After we got him stabilized and weight back up, we had the tumor resected and he is quite hale and hearty 2 years later. His brother had a relapse event but we pulled him out of it and he has also been doing well I think both events started with a kidney infection

When their other brother started to look like he was dropping a little weight, I started giving him soft cat food to plump him up a bit. It seems to have worked.

Now I have 3 kittens in the house and all the adults are eating everything in sight. Possibly protest???

[Sweet Freedom]

15. In my experience

hyperthyroidism or kidney failure as mentioned above, but also a flea allergy can cause vomiting. Regardless, take the poor kitty to the vet. No matter what its cause, the constant vomiting has to be miserable.

[GreenPartyVoter]

16. Mine got hyperthyroidism at about that age. See the vet!

[Rhiannon12866]

17. And please let us know how she's doing!

[Mnpaul]

18. My 14 yr old B/W male had similar problems in April

He couldn't urinate on top of it. He had to be catheterized and was put on antibiotics for several weeks. It took about three weeks for him to get his appetite back but is doing fine now. I had to switch him to canned food(he would not touch the vet food) and some dry food.

A trip to the vet is needed. You have will have to closely monitor their input/output from now on. Also make sure the food you are using doesn't contain a lot of grain.

[Beaverhausen]

19. take her to the vet

whatever it is could be managed and she might live several more years.

Might be kidneys, might be hyperthyroid.

Please take her to the vet.

[diabeticman]

20. Please get lucky to a vet. My wife and I had a Cat Brody who ended up having cancer.

From what a vet told us the average age for a house cat ranges from 13 to 15 years of age.


Please get her to a vet.

[blackcrowflies]

22. I've had cats get to be 18 or 19

But I took them to the vet when they were sick.

Could be thyroid, kidneys, cancer, irritable bowel, pancreatitis, food allergy that's recently developed, any number of other things, many treatable.

[diabeticman]

23. I hope you are right. We have just seen so much death this year.

[blackcrowflies]

29. I wish you and your kitties the best

Hope everyone is healthy and happy for a long time.

[mackerel]

21. Worked for a feline vet for 5 years. First thought would be renal

failure. Next might be the thyroid.

Renal problems are most common at that age due to cats high protein diet. Fluid therapy helps but maybe for only a year or so.

[hopemountain]

24. do you feed her wet or dry food?

if you are only feeding your cat dry food, she may have lost enough of her teeth that she is unable to break it down enough to digest the kibbles.

my 15 yr old cat lost quite a bit of weight and was meowing contantly - in addition to frequent vomiting of whole food. she was becoming quite weak. during one of her "meows" i looked in her mouth and most of her teeth were missing. began feeding her wet food - the "classic" kind - not chunky or stringy - the mushier the better - and now, she is back to her "old" self. it took several months to find the right food for her that she could eat without chewing. (note: it is recommended to still keep a dish of kibble available along with the wet food because the kibble keeps the cat's gums toughened.)

good luck with your cat. take her to a vet.

[Number9Dream]

25. Take her to a vet asap... had a couple older cats with similar symptoms

My 16 y/o Siamese had the dry heaves and stopped eating. After our vet performed a number of diagnostic tests, he thought it was pancreatitis. None of the medicines were working, and he was fading away. As a last resort, the vet gave him a steroid shot (methylprednisolone). Within a couple hours, he was eating again, and has been eating somewhat normally for ten days. The key is to get her to the vet. Good luck.

[Beaverhausen]

27. have you taken Lucky to the vet yet?

[Archae]

28. The vet is going to call me back later.

Lucky is still drinking water and eating a little, I hope I won't have to take her to the vet.

[bettyellen]

30. did you tell them she hasn't eaten for days- this is urgent. Pls take her in.