Hi everyone!
I’m just popping in to share a little story about my cat’s health: she used to throw up bile in the morning, but the problem is now completely sorted.
She’s perfectly healthy now and everything is fine, so you might wonder why I’m even bringing it up? Well, it’s because, like most people, I scoured loads of cat websites and forums looking for an explanation for her symptoms, and I only ever found ONE single article that accurately described what my cat was going through!
So, I wanted to share this here in the hope that it might reassure anyone else dealing with the same thing.🙂
So, the initial situation: my cat was in top form, eating and drinking totally normally (I give her dry food from the vet), and she was her usual lively, playful, and cuddly self. Then one morning, I noticed she’d been sick just as I was getting up. I was worried straight away because it was yellow, bilious vomit. Everyone told me not to overthink it and that cats are sick quite often, especially as she seemed so full of beans otherwise.
Except that after a normal day of playing, cuddles, and her usual food, the exact same thing happened the next morning at the same time: yellow sick.
Again, she was fine afterwards, ate, drank, and went off to play. I thought maybe it was just a stubborn hairball...
Then I started wondering: what had changed over those two days compared to before?
You have to understand that my cat is a little star and sleeps in my bedroom by my side all night. From the minute I go to bed until I wake up, she’s usually snoozing and doesn't leave the room. When I get up, she gets up. Basically, she has completely adapted to my rhythm. I also wonder if she’s a bit scared to go to the kitchen on her own at night (even though her dry food and water are always left out for her and she manages her own appetite perfectly during the day).
And for those two days, the thing that had changed was MY OWN SLEEP PATTERN. Since I was on holiday, I was going to bed around 1am and getting up at 11am (long lie-ins, right?). Normally, when I’m working, it’s more like 11pm to 6am.
Because my cat was adapting to my holiday schedule, she was sleeping for 10 hours straight without eating. Her stomach was empty for too long, so she was producing bile!
As soon as I realised this (thanks to this article: http://www.amonchat.com/syndrome-vomissement-biliaire.aspx), I immediately tested it by breaking my rhythm. I went to bed at 1am but set an alarm for 7am just to take my girl to the kitchen for some dry food, wet food, and a cuddle. She was very grateful, and then we both went back to sleep to finish the night.
And just like that—no sick in the morning, and she was in top form!
Since then, no issues at all. Problem solved!
Now, I’m not saying this is the answer for everyone. Often, a cat being sick is rightly a cause for concern and you should obviously take them to the vet (especially if they aren't eating or seem lethargic), but thanks to this experience, I now know my kitty adapts so much to my life that she sometimes makes herself poorly, and sometimes you just have to listen to their own internal clock!
Sorry for the massive wall of text, but I hope this helps someone else!
