Worried About my Cat Vomiting Clear Liquid

[Teresa_Rae]

I found this forum through a Google search today, so I am brand new here.

My husband and I have 5 cats. Our oldest cat Milton is 9 or 10 years old (he was a stray so I’m not sure of his exact age). He is the most amazing cat that I’ve ever met…he is incredibly loving, loyal, and extremely intelligent. We love all of our cats dearly, but Milton is very, very special.

Last night Milton was in bed sleeping with us as usual when he suddenly jumped down from the bed to vomit on the floor.

It wasn’t a regular cat vomit or hairball…it was completely clear liquid, and a pretty decent amount. I smelled it and there was no odor at all.

By the time I got back with paper towels to clean up the mess, Milton was gone from the bedroom…he had apparently rushed downstairs to the litter box. I went to check to see if he was in the litter box, and he was. It appeared that he had just urinated, as there was some fresh wet litter, but with 4 other cats, someone else could have used the box before Milton.

My vet is out of town until next week. He has another vet filling in for him, so I made an appointment for tomorrow.

Everything I can find online says that clear liquid usually means renal failure. I am now sick with worry.

I don’t know for sure whether Milton has been eating well or not…with 5 cats in the house, it is hard to tell. The vomiting happened around 3 or 4 in the morning, so I guess it is possible that his stomach was empty because he had been in bed with us since around 11 pm or so…or it could mean that he hadn’t been eating, which can be a bad sign.

I do routine blood work at his annual check-up, and everything was fine as of last fall.

I was thinking about quarantining Milton in our bedroom tonight and tomorrow so I can monitor how much food and water he takes in and also his litter box usage.

Any thoughts or advice? Anything I should be looking for? Could this be something other than renal failure?

[JGallo]

Welcome to the forum, and I'm sorry Milton is having problems. Did he only vomit once?
Unfortunately as a dog owner, I have no advice for you except to say that you and Milton are in my prayers.

[Teresa]

Welcome to the forum and I hope Milton is all right.

When our Brzee vomited clear liquid all day, it turned out to be something associated with his pancreas. They give him an anti-nausea medication to keep him eating, and he was better in a day or two.

We'll keep our fingers and paws crossed for good news.

Teresa

[calicokitty]

On ocassion, my cats have upchucked clear frothy fluids. Never turned into something other than having to clean it up.

You are isolating him, to see if there are litter box issues, which will help you a lot.

It is easy to jump to the worst possible problems, but I like to take things one step at a time. Since you have made an appointment already, soon you will get a better answer than any of us who can simply guess.

Even when a diagnosis is found, keep us advised, and share pictures. This forum is filled with a lot of animal lovers, and caring people. Oh, and lots and lots of experience in about anything to do with cats and their problems, as well as lots of other animals.

[KarenA]

Vomiting can be caused by any number of things. Is he an indoors cat or could he have gotten into something out of doors? It's wise to get him to a vet quickly.

Even if this proves to be a renal issue, let me assure you that many of us here have prolonged our kitties' lives by years by hydrating them, a procedure that is not as threatening as it seems, believe me (I have experience with it too).

Let us know how Milton is doing and what the vet has to say.

[Teresa_Rae]

Yeah, as far as I know the vomiting only happened once...but I've had Milton for 8 years and have never seen this before...

Milton stays inside, so I don't think he got into anything.

I lost a cat about 2.5 years ago to renal failture and it was truly devastating...she was 14 and I felt like she went way too young.

Thanks for your kind words and prayers, I truly appreciate it.

[BeckyMorgan]

It can also be a ton of sinus drainage, which doesn't have a smell. It's gross and sticky, but not smelly.

[Mountain-mama]

I wouldn't panic but making a vet appointment will make sure of what the problem might be. Cats seem to vomit easily, he could have gotten hold of a bug that disagreed with him. Is he eating and drinking normally? I have several vomit clear liquid and it was just an upset stomach. Let us know what the vet says.

[Teresa_Rae]

Well I've had Milton on quarantine for about 4.5 hours now. He has access to the master bedroom and bathroom...he seems to be fine with it, but the other four cats are going crazy wondering why he's in there and they aren't allowed to be.

Milton has gone to the bathroom at least once and has eaten some food....it's hard to tell with the water. I weighed the food and water so I'll be able to tell how much he's had.

Thanks for the support folks...it is really very helpful.

[JGallo]

Well I've had Milton on quarantine for about 4.5 hours now. He has access to the master bedroom and bathroom...he seems to be fine with it, but the other four cats are going crazy wondering why he's in there and they aren't allowed to be.

Milton has gone to the bathroom at least once and has eaten some food....it's hard to tell with the water. I weighed the food and water so I'll be able to tell how much he's had.

Thanks for the support folks...it is really very helpful.

Keep us posted on how he's doing, and let us know what the vet says.