The Cat Is Vomiting White Foam: What To Do?

Notice that your cat is vomiting white foam? Find out the reasons and what to do.

It will always be with a caring owner who is always observing the pet, so he or she will know when the pet is acting differently. Cats that throw up white foam are usually heard from, but do not worry in advance – more often, it is not a sign of the disease. But, at the same time, it can be a sign that the owner needs to call a veterinarian. In today’s article The Cat Is Vomiting White Foam, we will describe the possible causes of this or that condition, how you know whether your pet needs help, and what should be done.

Causes of Foamy Vomiting in Cats

Vomiting white foam in a cat should not be considered a disease. It is just an indicator that can be the expression of a disease or the effect of certain vital processes in the animal’s organism. Vomiting itself is as protective as anything for the body since it rids the body of something that is not required. Ingestion of an object that is not easy to digest may cause vomiting if it finds its way into the stomach. Or, if the cat’s condition is accompanied by intoxication (during poisoning or an infectious disease), the body treats toxins with vomiting. Hence, vomiting foam can be of natural origin, for instance – vomiting swallowed hair; simultaneously, vomiting foam may signal a critical condition. Let’s take a closer look.

Natural Causes

Most often, vomiting foam in cats occurs once and is a natural consequence of reasons such as:

Hunger – cats do not tolerate it well, as they are characterized by frequent food consumption in small portions. Therefore, the cat’s body is not adapted to long hunger pauses, which can cause so-called “hunger” vomiting. Long-term hunger (more than two days) can cause the cat to develop such a dangerous disease as lipidosis (see below);

Hair swallowed by a cat while licking itself either goes further into the intestines and is excreted with feces or accumulates in the stomach, causing irritation and stimulating vomiting;

Digestive tract all from the same swallowed wool;

Severe stress – can cause vomiting as a defensive reaction – a kind of natural mechanism in a state of danger to get rid of “everything unnecessary” to be ready to run away at the right moment;

Transportation is also a cause of severe stress or motion sickness, which can cause the cat to vomit;

Pregnancy is a natural physiological process, and infrequent vomiting in a cat in its first trimester may be a sign of the norm;

A cat in heat can also provoke nervous overexcitement and, as a result, vomiting;

Since some medications produce a rather intense irritation to the gastric mucosa, they cause an active secretion of gastric juices;

Anesthesia – because narcotics act on certain parts of the brain, this always produces a gag reflex. This condition develops both before anesthesia and continues after it and lasts from several hours to two days.

Possible Diseases

If vomiting of white foam is repeated and/or accompanied by other symptoms such as diarrhea, depression, increased or decreased body temperature, convulsions, and the cat refuses to eat, then, in this case, we are most likely talking about a serious illness:

• Gastrointestinal diseases in cats are the most common cause of foamy vomiting. This can be one or a combination of such diagnoses as gastritis, stomach ulcer, duodenitis, colitis, pancreatitis, cholangitis, traditions;
• Lipidosis is a disorder of the liver that develops in cats during prolonged starvation (more than two days). Pets with excess body weight are at risk. Due to the peculiarities of metabolism in cats, glucose must constantly enter the liver cells for energy synthesis. During prolonged starvation, the breakdown of fats in fat depots begins, and they enter the liver cells instead of glucose. In obese cats, so many fatty inclusions begin to enter the liver that its cells cannot cope with their processing and, accumulating fat, turn into fat cells. As a result, these cells cannot perform normal functions, such as detoxification of metabolic products. This leads to the development of general intoxication in the cat’s body, which, combined with hunger, causes the animal to vomit foam from hunger;
• Poisoning is most common in cats that have the opportunity to roam freely, but it can also occur exclusively in indoor cats. Ingestion of toxic or other chemical substances causes acute intoxication with signs of vomiting in combination with other symptoms (lethargy, refusal to eat, diarrhea, convulsions). Eating some plants that are toxic to cats can also cause vomiting or excessive salivation, which can sometimes be confused with foamy vomit;
• Helminthiasis, with a sufficient accumulation of parasites, leads to intoxication of the body, which can provoke nausea and vomiting. Sometimes, even in this case, the parasites themselves can be found in the vomit foam;
• Intestinal obstruction by foreign objects, undigested bones, or hairballs causes reverse motility, causing food to be evacuated from the stomach – in this case, in addition to foam, the vomit will contain almost undigested food residues. But when the stomach is completely emptied of what has been eaten, the vomit will acquire a characteristic foam appearance. In case of obstruction, the vomiting is described as a sudden onset of the vomiting episode, and the cat could vomit after taking water. 
• Also, a tumor found in the stomach or intestines will cause a blockage in the digestive canal, which is accompanied by vomiting signs. In this case, the cat will most likely experience general exhaustion or a sharp decrease in weight, and vomiting will have an infrequent but constant periodicity;

• Infectious diseases lead to the development of acute intoxication. In this case, vomiting helps the body expel toxins, and it is one of the features of intestinal infections. It is easily spread and fatal and commonly referred to as feline panleukopenia and can be deadly if left untreated for a long time. It is particularly hazardous to kittens because their immune system has not developed sufficiently yet. Most often, panleukopenia occurs in street kittens and cats, but less often, it occurs in adult domestic cats. Infection of a pet is possible through human shoes, on which he brings the infection from the street. TiVo and periodic vaccinations remain the best and fairly reliable means by which a cat may be immunized from panleukopenia.
• Disease of the kidney, as the body belongs to a detoxifying organ, results in the build-up of the body’s waste matter to elicit nausea t and vomiting. Chronic kidney disease has a high incidence in cats and is seen most frequently in animals seven years old and older. A veterinarian should closely monitor any such animal; vomiting, which happens or recurs, is a signal to the owner of the worsening of the disease. However, kidney diseases in cats that are under one year old are usually acute. That is, they are characterized by sudden onset and the following signs – vomiting.
• Sepsis, also called blood poisoning, is the body’s response to any pathogenic microorganisms in the bloodstream. This is accompanied by intense poisoning, for which nausea and vomiting are observed. This pathology arises with infections – when the pathogen is highly virulent or with a significant exacerbation of the immunosuppressive processes. It often leads to death and requires emergency qualified veterinary care;
• A strong and frequently repeated cough can provoke over-irritation of the diaphragm and, as a result, vomiting. Therefore, any cough should not be neglected but treated;

Heart disease, due to the tendency to develop pulmonary edema, contributes to the appearance of a cough and, as a result, vomiting.

Diagnosis of Nausea with white foam

Vomiting a white foam results from the inclusion of saliva and gastric juice in the mouth. There is vomiting that occurs in cats that have not taken any food from their stomachs. To prevent the walls of the stomach from popping due to self-digestion, the stomach releases a liquid containing protein. It is this liquid that comes out as white foam in cats when they vomit.

Sometimes, vomit foam contains admixtures of yellow liquid, food remains, wool, grass, helminths, and inedible objects. These inclusions already help explain the cause of vomiting.

Diagnostics should be comprehensive. To make an accurate diagnosis, the doctor at the clinic might ask some questions about vomiting – whether it is frequent or what type, what has the cat consumed recently – could it have eaten something indigestible, whether any medications were given, and if there was an access to any chemicals, whether the cat has any chronic diseases, what vaccines and deworming has the cat received. Apart from the anamnesis, the doctor will perform an ultrasound of abdominal organs, a radiography, blood, and stool analysis. It is also possible to perform an endoscopic examination there.

First Aid At Home

Indeed, the condition will usually go away on its own, and if the cat vomits white foam once, eats normally, and plays as before, there is no reason for concern. However, if the same thing happens again and there are other symptoms, then help has to be given to the animal.

It would be best if you did not treat yourself at home because there are so many different causes of the disease, some of which are very lethal. The best possible solution for your cat is to have it treated by a professional – a veterinarian. If the owner knows for sure that vomiting was caused by hairballs in the stomach, it is not necessary to use special preparations – hairball removers – as it is possible to use them only as prevention; they are ineffective as a medicine. There are often cases when an animal accumulates so many hairballs in the digestive tract that it leads to intestinal dysfunction, up to the death of individual sections.

As a result, only emergency surgery to remove hairballs and the necrotic part of the intestine. Therefore, in any seemingly harmless cases of vomiting in a cat, it would not be a bad idea to visit a doctor, at least to do an ultrasound and make sure that the digestive tract is clean and healthy.

It is also not recommended to prescribe antiemetics to your cat on your own. Since vomiting is a protective mechanism, suppressing vomiting can worsen the animal’s condition.

Treatment

Treatment of vomiting foam depends on the cause of its occurrence. If the cause is a natural factor, then, as a rule, no help is required – in this case, vomiting foam is a protective mechanism against the factor causing it and goes away on its own.

If the cat vomits due to illness, then each case of treatment is individual and always requires only qualified assistance in a veterinary institution.

If during estrus or pregnancy, the cat periodically vomits and this is repeated with each episode, then the animal must be examined for pathologies. In some cases, the only solution is sterilization of the animal.

In case of vomiting caused by helminths, the cat is selected and prescribed antihelminthic drugs. This is done strictly under the supervision of a doctor. The pet may need preparation for deworming since when parasites die in the intestinal tract, they can release toxic substances, which significantly worsen the animal’s condition.

Vomiting caused by poisoning, gastrointestinal diseases, infections, obstruction, tumors, sepsis, kidney and heart disease requires an individual approach. The treatment regimen for each option can vary greatly and is selected by the attending physician, taking into account the symptoms and capabilities of the clinic.

Whatever the reason for vomiting in a cat, if it is repeated frequently and there is dehydration, the animal is prescribed IVs to replenish fluid in the body. In some cases, the doctor prescribes antiemetics.

If a cat suffers from intestinal obstruction, which may occur as a result of a foreign object being swallowed, surgery will be required. If the obstruction problem was detected early enough and the animal was brought to the clinic, an endoscopy may be enough—using an endoscopic device to remove the object. This procedure is not invasive—it is done without cutting the skin. It is conducted solely under anesthesia. In general, animals get well soon with no problems.

What do you do if a kitten vomits white foam?

Foamy vomiting is especially a very serious condition for a kitten. In his case, the risk of developing a dangerous disease is highly probable. Most often, this is a sign of infection, poisoning or helminthic invasion. Since the kitten has an active metabolism and the protective systems have not yet developed sufficiently, the disease can develop rapidly and lead to death. Therefore, in any case, the kitten should be shown to a veterinary specialist to provide qualified assistance quickly.

Prevention of The Cat Is Vomiting White Foam

Adherence to the basic rules for keeping, caring for, and feeding cats is the only method that might help to avoid foamy vomiting. Watch your cat—if a disease is caught early enough, it may never manifest itself in the cat.

Please adhere to the following rules:

1. Follow the rules of keeping and hygiene of your pet;
2. Follow the rules and norms of feeding – the frequency and time of feeding, as well as the volume of portions, should always be unchanged (except in cases of changes in the physiological status of the animal: pregnancy, feeding of kittens, old age, sickness. The cat mustn’t starve for a long time. If the cat does not eat for more than 1-2 days, its food should be forced into its mouth. However, it is wiser to present the pet to the doctor to remove any reason behind the lack of appetite.
3. It is important to feed your cat on a quality and well-balanced diet. In case your cat has been diagnosed with gastritis, you will have your doctor prescribe therapeutic diet food and then there is special food for cats with a sensitive stomach.
4. Vaccinate, deworm, and treat the external parasites at the correct time;
5. Your cat has a lot of shed hair, so make sure to brush your cat often. Cleaning is a great prevention of the build-up of hairballs in the stomach and the intestines. This is most especially true for long-haired cats and all cats,, particularly during the shedding season. For the same purpose, it is also useful to offer your cat pastes and treats that will help get rid of hairballs in the stomach, reduce the development of such balls in the digestion system, and improve fur and skin condition.
6. Bathe your cat periodically to get rid of hair that is shedding. When using high-quality shampoo and conditioner for cats, you can wash them once a month. During bathing procedures, the hair follicles relax and shed dead hair more easily. Therefore, washing your pet in warm water helps to get rid of shedding hair more effectively than simply combing. The main rule is to completely dry the cat with a hairdryer after bathing and eliminate drafts in the room. If the cat is scared of the hairdryer or the owner just does not want to do this at home, then the best solution would be to take the cat to the grooming salon.
7. Do not delay taking your pets to your veterinarian for annual checkups. This will help identify diseases at an early stage and treat them promptly.

What conclusion can be drawn from all that has been said: vomiting foam in a cat is not always a reason to contact a specialist. Most often, one-time attacks of such vomiting pass on their own. But suppose the symptom is repeated and the owner has discovered other signs of the poor health of the pet or suspects the possibility of poisoning or injury of the animal. In that case, it is better not to hesitate but to consult a veterinarian. Timely assistance will increase the likelihood of a quick and more complete pet recovery in case of illness.