strange thing in cat vomit

bubbba · #1 09/23/04, 10:59 AM

I had my cat of 16 years die on me yeaterday and its a drag. We not sure exactlly what happened but while he was sick he threw up a few times and one of the times there was a weird thing in it. It was bright yellow and about a inch long and 1/2 inch wide shaped kinda like a leaf it was very rubbery and tough. We took this thing to the vet but she wasnt sure what it was. The cat only ever ate dry food as he didnt like the wet stuff. He had been losing weight for awhile altho he was eating OK. Like I said the cats dead but I am still pretty curious as to just what that thing was?? any ideas???

:waa: It sure sucks when our furry friends die on us

januaries · #2 09/23/04, 11:25 AM

I'm so sorry about your cat.

It's so sad to lose a friend.

Not sure about the thing in the cat's vomit. My cat will often eat leaves and then throw them up several hours later. Could it have been a piece of a toy she was playing with? I had one cat who would eat christmas tree tinsel and rubber bands if we weren't careful.

Ravenlost · #3 09/23/04, 01:21 PM

So sorry you lost your cat. Sounds like he lived a long life with a loving family. It is hard when they leave us.

My cats eat all sorts of weird things. Have you tried cutting the item in half? You'll probably never know what it is unless you take it to a lab to have it analyzed.

southerngurl · #4 09/23/04, 01:29 PM

I sure do know how you feel :waa:.

I wonder if it was some foreign object he was playing with and accidentally injested. Maybe something from a kids toy? Or was it not like that? The way cats tongues are, they have a hard time getting something out of their mouth once it gets in the back of their mouth.

Sorry you lost him.

soulsurvivor · #5 09/23/04, 07:09 PM

so sorry for the loss of your friend.

Do you own a rubber plant or would the cat have been around anyone who had a potted rubber plant? Could have been a small diseased leaf that fell off the plant. They normally have large rubbery leather like leafs and are poison for small pets. Great stomach upset would have been a symptom.

**Ross** · #6 09/23/04, 08:49 PM

I'm sorry to read that your cat died, 16 was a good age though and to get there he had to have a very good home.
The thing that popped into my head first Liver Fluke the yellow colour from the bilary duct and only disloged from the third vomiting attack. If you're in Florida (or presumably any of the southern states, the lizards, toads etc, can be vectors to cats as they are hunted. My second thought was a tape worm segment.

countrygrrrl · #7 09/23/04, 08:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ross

I'm sorry to read that your cat died, 16 was a good age though and to get there he had to have a very good home.
The thing that popped into my head first Liver Fluke the yellow colour from the bilary duct and only disloged from the third vomiting attack. If you're in Florida (or presumably any of the southern states, the lizards, toads etc, can be vectors to cats as they are hunted. My second thought was a tape worm segment.

I was actually thinking something similar, Ross. Although my thoughts weren't liver fluke so much as some kind of liver failure caused by ???.

Sorry about your kitty.

bubbba · #8 09/23/04, 09:43 PM

OK I spose i should have been more specific. It looked like a leaf but definately wasnt one. We kind of thought it maybe some sort of fluke as well, theres some more to tell the cat was given a booster for his shots on the weekend and after that he was quite sick within a day ore 2 very lethargic and he felt "tight"in his body and his fur. We think that was from dehydration because once we got some fluids in him that feeling went away, the cat also got quite jaundice so that maybe another reason to look at something to do with the liver, i felt this yellow thing and it was quite rubbery, wish i had a digital camera to show you what it was.

Losing the cat was/is definately a drag we still have 4 more cats and we have 4 dogs at the moment as well so we not exactly short of furry companionship.

Im pretty choked at the vet for giving the shots to the poor cat 1 because of his age 2 apparently the cat had a lower temperature at appt then was normal..... grrrrr i swear some of these vets are just out to screw folks sometimes $$$$$$

One more thing is the cat has had a sneezin problem past few monthes and when he got sick he had a seriously bad runny nose do these fluke things ever take up residence in nose cavity??

What more can you tell me about flukes?? nasty lookin lil buggers I wonder if theres some treatment we can safely give the other cats to ensure they dont also have them????

Thanks for the input, I am showing my mother these responses and trying to get her fired up about trying the puter out herself ....and where on the internet could i fnd a better group of people???

bubbba · #9 09/23/04, 09:46 PM

O BTW I am in Ontario not Florida now If we talk again in a few monthes I maybe deluding myself that I am in florida because it will be too darn cold up here :haha:

countrygrrrl · #10 09/23/04, 09:50 PM

I don't know anything about flukes, but I went through some similar stuff with a hound doggie who contracted tick disease (ehrlichiosis with babesiosis conifection). Lots of liver complications

and strange stuff coming up, including some bright yellow poop which is characteristic of a hemolytic anemia they get and lots of very strange vomiting.

I've heard liver cancers can cause some pretty strange things, too.

If your cat had a certain kind of upper respiratory infection, too, that's bad.

It was likely NOT the shots which killed your kitty, in any case --- it seems more likely there was some kind of serious underlying condition which was complicated by the shots.

I've HEARD cats can develop pretty bad liver problems if they go too long without eating, too. If your kitty was dehydrated and jaundiced, it may have occurred due to inadequate food intake.

In any case, I am really sorry.

**Ross** · #11 09/24/04, 07:16 AM

Flukes take up residence in the liver where they eat red blood cells. As adults they move to the biliary tract and can cause bacterial infection like salmonella. There are lung worms but I don't think they are related. Flukes need snails to start their life cycle, if your cat was a hunter in wet areas she could have eaten a critter that eats snails. There could easily be different types of flukes here that are a problem in Ontario, for cats too! That said while my sheep are at risk for flukes but I've never heard of a cat getting them here. Treating for flukes is easy enough Panacur (Fenbendasole) kills them and tapes.