My cat has obstruction? Very confusing results (eating, vomiting, feline)

[LalaCat12]

Hi everyone,

On Christmas my cat ate xmas garland but threw it all up few minutes later, then proceeded to continue throwing up just bile. We took her to the vet right away and they took an xray and found no signs of obstruction, gave her cerenia and sent her home. She was fine after, her regular self. Then a month later despite us taking down the tree right away climbed into the closet, we didn't know that she ate tinsel. She started vomiting again and we couldn't figure out why but when we came to the vet they found a piece of tinsel under her tongue, they wanted to operate and thought the tinsel went all down her stomach and did not want to remove the piece under her tongue. That didn't sit well with us and we didn't want her to go through the tough surgery if it was that small piece of tinsel there. We took her to another vet for a second opinion and we did not find the tinsel under her tongue then, she swallowed it. So, another shot of Cerenia and we went home. The vet said she will most likely pass the tinsel. She was fine all after that. We then switched her food to something more natural because at times she would start vomiting after she passed a hairball. Off we go to the vet again because of the vomiting and they still think we are dealing with a possible obstruction but we do not want to get the surgery because there are no hard facts of this--even our vet told us she wasn't sure--and because in October she had some teeth removed due to her age--she is 11--and had a hard time recovering. We do not want to put her through another surgery, poor thing. So the vet told us to do a sonogram--which came back all clear on all counts--now obstructed bowels, everything clear. So again they gave her some Cerenia and she was back to normal.

We switched her to new natural food that helped-she was not vomiting but did develop constipation which we thought would go away once she adjusts to the food, we also started finding A LOT of fur in her dry poop. The poop also occasionally had small amounts of mucus-like blood in it. We thought this might be due to constipation.
One of our relatives who lives with us also at that time decided to buy her some new food that did not sit well with her and she would throw it up--this happened two weeks ago. The vomiting stopped after she went back to the natural food--grain, added color free. Then this weekend we decided to give her some of her old dry food because she was doing so much better--big mistake--she vomited it all up and proceeded to vomit four more times after eating even her natural food. She is now being given Fancy Feast appetizers and is holding it down and pooping, however it is still dry poop despite us now giving her Laxatone to help with the hairball issues in poop and constipation.
I have not been home in a week due to travel for work but my relatives tell me she is fine but I can't be too sure there is no blood in her poop--they aren't so enthusiastic about inspecting her poop as closely as I do.
So what is going on? Is there still an obstruction? She is her old self-playing, eating, peeing, sleeping. If it WAS an obstruction, a lot of time has gone by since the original garland incident. It is all so confusing and a lot has happened all at once. Does anyone have any suggestions?

[Rene S]

I have some thoughts. First, at any point did either vet run blood work, and did anything unusual show up? Your story is reminding me a bit of our Tucker's from a number of years ago. Unknown to me, he ate a mouse toy and several days later was vomiting blue (from the toy) all over the place. He eventually developed pancreatitis, possibly from the trauma to his intestinal tract. I found this article helpful: WSAVA 2001 - Feline GI Pearls

Next, given her age, the possible constipation and dry stools, and vomiting, I would ask you to consider feeding her a wet diet, like grain-free canned or even raw. Dry food is just not good for cats, especially in her situation. Here is a great article on feline nutrition: Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition :: healthy cat diet, making cat food, litter box, cat food, cat nutrition, cat urinary tract health

[LalaCat12]

Hello Rene,

I do think there is some trauma now to her intestines and throwing up so much--tummy needs to get back to normal, vomit has a lot of acid.
No blood work was run by our vet--if some other complication or further signs develop, we will be taking her to another vet in another area. We don't have a car and the taxi fare will stack up, but if it will need to be done, then of course, we'll take her.

Perhaps I wasn't clear in my post: We do not feed her dry food, she used to eat Wet and Dry food together but after the bouts of vomiting we decided to feed her wet food only and after the food switch she developed constipation and small amounts of bloody mucus in her stool. We thought it might be food allergies--the new food was Wellness grain free wet food.

Did Tucker get better?

[Rene S]

First, let me say, that yes, Tucker did get better, though it took about six weeks and 10 days at the emergency vets. He is now nearly 16, and while he is aging, is overall doing well.

I am surprised that no blood work was ever done. If she needs to see another vet, I'd certainly have a panel run, especially if she continues to vomit regularly.

Thanks for clarifying about the food. Sadly, Wellness food isn't what it used to be since they sold to a large organization. You may want to try another brand of grain free. There are many more choices or, like I said, give (commercial) raw a try. I am not affiliated, nor is this a comprehensive list, but it's a place to start with food information. I like how it's broken down: Today’s best cat foods–reviews of canned and raw options | Natural Cat Care Blog

If she's having hairballs, obviously you want to brush her often. You can add some water to her wet food (maybe a tablespoon or so) before giving it to her. Some people feed a bit of plain pumpkin puree for the added fiber.

[Catsmylove]

I do not know where you live, but if you live in the twin cities. MN there's a wonderful place called woody's pet food deli. they sell both cooked and raw homemade meals for cats and dogs. in 1 pound 2 pound and 5 pound containers.