When we adopted Frankie in February of 2014, we noticed that he puked a lot. To be honest, I don’t remember if we took him to the vet for that specific problem but he has been to the vet a few times since then and I can’t imagine I never mentioned it to the vet. I think we just assumed that he ate too much too fast and then puked it up.
We don’t know Frankie’s backstory. I used to think that he was bulimic but now I think he must have had gastric bypass surgery before we got him and his stomach can’t handle eating too much food at one time.
For a long time I have been feeding our cats a large 5.5 Oz can of cat food in the morning and another later in the afternoon. That is 1.83 Oz per cat and actually a little less because I would often end up with uneaten food on at least one of the plates. It doesn’t seem like that much food but you have to account for the extra that Frankie was eating, usually at the expense of Chris
When I was working full-time I would feed them when I got up in the morning and again when I got home from work. This year I’ve been working almost full time in addition to working at home. Rose has been working from home more and usually Frankie bothers her so much that by 3:00 she feeds them.
That was the routine when we lived in Florida. Very often, but not always, Frankie would quickly finish his food and then he would finish Chris’s for him. A little while later I would have to clean up puke.
When we moved here to West Virginia and I took a two-month hiatus from my job I decided to buy the smaller, 3 ounce cans of cat food and feed them three times a day instead of twice.
I think the smaller portions have worked. Frankie has only puked twice in over two weeks. The first time was probably because I had brought the larger cans with me and used them up the first few days we were here. The second time he puked was after I gave them a large can of tuna as a treat.
I don’t like paying more per ounce for the smaller cans but considering that a lot of it was getting wasted it probably comes out even. Plus, I don’t have to clean up puke as much.
Bad Cat Chris 
Sounds like Frankie just is a fast eater and his system can’t deal with a big load at once. Also sounds like you figured that out – smaller meals more often has helped him control the habit of gulping down his food too quickly!
YAY
Hugs, Pam
He’s costing me a little more money but it’s working.
how good that it seems to work… all the best for less puke-ventures …
Thanks.
We hope this continues to work for Frankie.
Thanks.
Sounds like the smaller portions are working well for Frankie. I’ve seen that happen to cats who gobble too much, too fast, too.
Yes. So far, so good.
Kitty tummies are so small, it’s easy to get in too much food too quickly.
Yes, and Frankie eats like a pig.
Glad you found a solution. My Joanie and Sammy are our resident pukers- they eat too fast and too much.
It seems pretty common.
Our Einstein was a gobbler when he was younger and many times would puke. He was not allowed to eat by his brothers when he was feral so when he saw he had FOOD he went a bit cray cray growling and swatting the bigger cats away. This mostly stopped but at times he will still gorge and then puke. Like yesterday. And last week, and… I have done the same and it does seem to work
I think maybe Frankie was feral because of his ear notch. If so, that might explain his eating habits.
I was thinking the same thing. Cats in the wild will gorge because meals take a lot of work to get. They might not eat for a while. Frankie may have been out on the streets for a length of time. We’ve already discussed his possible mating before being caught and neutered.
If he was in the wild he must have had plenty of human contact as a kitten because he is so friendly and unafraid of strangers.
Semi-feral?
Sounds like it’s worth the extra $$$ for you AND for Frankie. Good luck.
I think it is.
Puking in a cat is never normal. I hope the smaller meals help.
I think they will. Thanks.
Andy has a delicate stomach and I discovered the same thing you did – smaller portions more often. His prescription cat food, unfortunately, comes in the larger size can only (as far as I’ve been able to determine), so I divide it into six or more portions as best I can, using how much is left over each time (if any) to determine how big the next portion will be. For the most part, this works out. So much for that! I hope you’ve settled Frankie’s problem. One hates to see a pet struggling with health issues!
Thanks. It would be more cost effective to buy big cans and split it but I don’t like having to refrigerate it and then warn it up again.
Even the small cans were more than Andy and Dougy ate at one sitting, so I never have been able to avoid refrigerating some part of a can.
Sounds like a good solution!
Not perfect but it works.
Aww, poor bulimic Frankie! Does Chris not hoover up his leftovers?
Chris is a dry food addic. He lets Frankie and Floki take his wet food.
Sounds like win-win for you and Frankie
I think it is.