Any cat lover knows the telltale signs of an upset stomach in their feline friend is dry heaving, gagging, and pitiful meows. Among the various reasons for this condition, food and diet are some of the most prominent causes, and also the most easily addressed. With that in mind, picking out the best cat food to prevent vomiting is a matter that every cat lover should consider when dealing with any health conditions that have their furry friends feeling under the weather.
Here we have compiled best cat food for cats that throw up. There are a lot of considerations when you have a cat with vomiting issues and each of these brands prides itself in helping your cat live to the fullest. Ensuring your furry friend has the correct balance of nutrients to promote their health can seem overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. Here are the top 10 to get you started.
Top 10 Cat Food to Prevent Vomiting in 2019
| Product | Features | Rating | Checkout | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Hill’s Science DietCheck price |
Meat: Chicken Specifications: For sensitive digestive systems; improve skin & coat health Recommended For: Adult cats with sensitive stomachs and/or sensitive skin |
5 of 5 | Check price |
| 2 |  Blue Buffalo Sensitive Stomach Check price |
Meat: Chicken Includes: Vitamins & minerals, blend of antioxidants, selected by holistic veterinarians Recommended For: Specific needs of kittens, adult and mature cats |
4.9 of 5 | Check price |
| 3 |  Halo Natural Dry Cat FoodCheck price |
Meat: Chicken Specifications: Supports healthy eyes and heart, maintain the muscles and energy level Recommended For: Adult cats |
4.9 of 5 | Check price |
| 4 |  Royal Canin Feline HealthCheck price |
Meat: Chicken Benefits: Digestible proteins; help prevent soft stool Recommended For: Adult (1+ year) |
4.8 of 5 | Check price |
| 5 |  Purina ONE Sensitive SystemsCheck price |
Meat: Turkey Specifications: Help to support strong muscles Recommended For: Adult (1+ year) |
4.7 of 5 | Check price |
| 6 |  Royal Canin Feline Health Nutrition Indoor Intense HairballCheck price |
Meat: Chicken Helps manage: hairballs by moving hair the cat swallows through the GI tract Recommended For: Adult (1+ year) |
4.6 of 5 | Check price |
| 7 |  Instinct Original Grain Free RecipeCheck price |
Meat: Chicken, turkey, fish Benefits: Real ingredients, made with omegas for skin & coat Recommended For: Cats all life stages |
4.6 of 5 | Check price |
| 8 |  Wellness SignatureCheck price |
Meat: 6 flavor combinations Benefits: All natural, easy to serve, quality ingredients Recommended For: Adult; kitten; senior |
4.5 of 5 | Check price |
| 9 |  Blue Buffalo BasicsCheck price |
Meat: Turkey Benefits: Specially formulated to help meet the unique needs of senior cats Recommended For: Senior |
4.4 of 5 | Check price |
| 10 |  Royal Canin Feline GastrointestinalCheck price |
Ingredients: Chicken Benefits: Ingredients to nourish intestinal microflora in your cat Recommended For: Senior |
4.3 of 5 | Check price |
Hill’s Science Diet - Best Cat Food to Prevent Vomiting
Not only does it help with digestion, it also helps maintain healthy skin and coat for your cat. While not recommended for kittens or pregnant and/or nursing female cats, this dry food is well received by most.
The team of veterinarians and nutritionists who created this recipe truly focused on infusing the ingredients with the necessary vitamins and fats to promote a healthy blend of digestive health and skin care.
Blue Buffalo Sensitive Stomach - Best Cat Food for Sensitive Stomach
These pieces contain extra vitamins and nutrients needed for optimal health. They also add variety to the kibble and encourage consumption.
Halo Natural Dry Cat Food - Best Cat Food for Older Cats that Vomit
It is made with real, whole chicken and does not use any ‘meat meal’ in the ingredients. All animal products are derived from non-factory-farmed animals who were not given antibiotics. This ensures a healthy food blend for your aging cat.
The lack of magnesium is quite helpful in preventing UT blockages which helps your cat process food naturally and decreases the risk of throwing up.
Royal Canin Feline Health - Best for Cats That Throw Up
Royal Canin Feline Health works to promote intestinal flora by incorporating fermentable fibers into their recipe. This promotes digestion all around and decrease the risk of vomiting.
Purina ONE Sensitive Systems - Best for Sensitive Stomachs
Purina ONE has a number of blends but this Sensitive Systems works to ensure your cat has healthy digestion. As a bonus, the hard kibble works to reduce plaque buildup and whiten your cats’ teeth.
Royal Canin Feline Health Nutrition Indoor Intense Hairball - Best for Hairball Control
Additionally, this blend helps reduce inflammation which is great for those with older cats. Lastly, the unique, triangular shape of the kibble helps reduce plaque buildup and whiten teeth.
Instinct Original Grain Free Recipe - Best Cat Food for Digestion
Comprised of 81% real animal ingredients, this blend is made with cage free chicken while being grain free. Recommended for both kittens and adult cats alike. This cat food comes with a high protein, low carb balance.
Made without grain, potato, corn, wheat, soy, by-product meals, artificial colors or preservatives.
Wellness Signature - Best Wet Cat Food to Prevent Vomiting
The recipes are made with ingredients that promote digestive health, eyes, and teeth and gum health. The food combinations are also designed to promote water intake and increase overall energy.
Wellness Signature is a good go-to for soft food that gently works with sensitive stomachs without using too many different ingredients.
Blue Buffalo Basics - Natural Indoor Mature Dry Cat Food
For cats who are not able to eat much chicken, this is an excellent option as it features turkey as the key meat. Additionally, it contains pumpkin – not often found in cat food – which is a natural ingredient that promotes gentle digestion.
The natural ingredients work best with the feline’s system and promotes healthy living.
Royal Canin Feline Gastrointestinal - Good Wet Food for Cats With Sensitive Stomachs
By fortifying the digestive track, hair is allowed to pass through more efficiently and is less likely to be built up.
The two Omega fatty acids included also work to promote healthy skin and fur for your cat.
How to Stop a Cat from Throwing Up?
Some of the quickest fixes to tummy troubles are also the simplest. Frequent vomiting can be a sign of dehydration, so make sure your kitty has plenty water to drink at all times of the day. If the problem lies in your cat’s other bowl, finding the right food is crucial. Food for cats with sensitive stomach issues can be found at most major pet stores, and avoiding rich treats and snacks will go a long way towards making sure your cat finds it easy to digest cat food. If the problem persists, even after the transition to a sensitive stomach cat food, it may be time to arrange a visit to your veterinarian’s office, but in most cases, simply switching from rich foods and off-the-shelf standard brands to a highly digestible cat food that is designed with your cat’s dietary needs in mind will help eliminate the root of the matter and get your pet feeling better in no time at all.
What Causes Vomiting in Cats? Buyer’s Guide for Cat Food to Prevent Vomiting
When looking for the perfect food for your cat, there are a few key features to keep in mind that will make sure your kitty is getting the care it deserves. Whether you choose wet or dry food depends on your cat’s individual preferences, but a variety of brands keep their sensitive cat food dry, while others promote moist cat food for sensitive stomachs, so you’re sure to have a wide range of choices either way. Overall, the six most important aspects to consider when food shopping are your cat’s nature, hairball routine, food allergies or sensitivities, changes in diet, activity level, and eating habits. With these factors in mind, here are some of our favorite products on the market, specifically chosen to address and treat each separate area of concern.
- Nature:
This is probably the single simplest reason your cat may be vomiting too much – they’ve eaten something they don’t like. Vomiting is a natural way of purging toxins, poisons, or irritants from an animal’s body, and cats are clearly no exception. Take a careful look at the ingredients in your cat’s food, and make sure there’s nothing there that could be hurting them.
- Carefully formulated for sensitive stomachs
Limited ingredients – includes chicken and chickpeas for carbohydrates that can be easily broken down and makes for a food that will appeal to picky eaters
“No grain”, doesn’t include any potatoes, corn, or gluten
Simple formula makes this the best cat food for cats that vomit from overly processed food or unnatural ingredients
High-protein formula provides the energy your cat needs to keep moving throughout the day.
- Hairballs:
Because cats groom themselves all day, it’s only natural they end up swallowing some of the shed hair, and the resulting hairballs are no cause for concern. However, if your cat is vomiting more than usual, or if it seems to be coughing up more hairballs than you’re used to, it may be time to look for a new brand of sensitive stomach cat food.
Lean chicken is the base of this formula making it perfect for sensitive stomachs
Omega-3 and fatty acids help promote healthy skin and fur, which can deter hairball formation and make vomiting less common
Like the previous example, minimalist formula is great for allergies or sensitive diets
Packed with probiotics to aid in digestion and breakdown fibers, minimizing the risk of hairball vomiting at an unusual rate
- Food Allergies/Sensitivities
Just like humans, allergies can be a serious cause of stomach issues in cats. The most common allergens for cats are various meats – including beef, eggs, chicken, and fish. While cats can be allergic to grains, these allergies are rarer, and therefore more likely to go unnoticed until it’s too late.
Grain-free recipe makes sure none of your cat’s potential allergies are acting up
Duck meat is a rarer form of protein, so your cat doesn’t run the risk of overexposure and allergy development to more common chicken or beef.
Also promotes healthy skin and fur, for a sleek, glossy coat and strong skin.
- Diet Change
Like most humans, cats aren’t the biggest fans of sudden changes. When switching from regular cat food to a sensitive digestive cat food, it may be best to phase the new food in over a period of time, rather than switching all at once.
Classic dry style allows you to mix old and new food easily for a smooth transition
Vitamins and antioxidants work together to promote a healthy immune system
Made with rice and eggs for a high-protein, easy digestible diet
- Activity
Just as our own mothers have always seemed to warn us, too much activity after eating can cause an upset stomach for all those energetic cats who seem to always be up for a bit of fun. Encouraging your cat to wait a while before playtime can drastically cut down the amount of unwanted vomiting.
– Wet format keeps cats from eating too quickly, making this a good choice for cats that throw up due to physical activity
– Fiber-high formula gives cats something to digest
– Insoluble fibers help maintain intestinal integrity
- Poor Quality Food/Eating Habits
While poor eating habits, usually eating too fast, without pausing to properly break down food can be easily thwarted by using a different bowl, or placing a golf ball in the middle of your kitty’s bowl, pay careful attention to the quality of your cat’s food as poor ingredients can wreak havoc on a sensitive cat stomach.
Made with locally sourced, organically-grown ingredients to make sure your cat’s health is in good hands
Packed with vitamins and minerals with no GMOs or artificial ingredients
Seeing your cat in pain for any reason can be scary, but armed with the proper knowledge – something as simple as a change in diet can go a long way towards stopping a vomiting kitty and keeping your cat healthy and happy!
Answers You Need When Your Cat Starts to Vomit
For even the most seasoned cat owners, it can still be disconcerting when your sweet cat starts throwing up after eating. This can be triggered by a variety of things and if it tends to be a one-off case there is less cause for concern. If it increases in frequency however, there are certain things you can do to help bring your cat back to normal. Here are two of the most common questions and the answers that can best serve you and your cat.
1. Why is my cat throwing up dry food?
There are a number of reasons your cat may not be able to stomach his/her dry food. Three of the most common reasons are:
- The recipe of your go-to cat food has changed
Unfortunately, this happens more often than you would like. To save costs, cat food companies – even the well-known ones – will trade out ingredients. Even a slight change, such as the addition of peas to the recipe, can throw off your cat and cause him/her to vomit. - Your cat is over-eating
If you have a relatively new cat, or have undergone a change (such as a move or the addition of a new pet), it can cause your cat to gorge themselves. This will generally result in them throwing up the ‘extra’ food later on as they were really not able to process as much as they ate at the time. - Something is off-balance in their intestines
The third cause of vomiting may be something off in the intestines of your cat. If nothing in your food or environment has changed, consult with your vet to ensure your cat is okay. If there is a virus, or infection your vet can provide additional direction.
2. What To Do When Your Cat is Throwing Up?
If your cat consistently is getting sick it may be time to change their food. It takes about 14 days to adjust to new food. Be patient as you introduce the new food and watch for any positive (or negative changes). You can also try different portion controls if you suspect your cat is over-eating.
If you have ruled out ingredients as a cause of vomit and are sure it isn’t another, more natural cause (e.g. they ingested too much hair that can’t come out), it is worth a consultation with your vet. Often, vomiting can be as sign of something more off-balance inside of your cat. Your veterinarian will be able to help identify why your cat is throwing up. They will also provide insight into the steps you can take and/or the medications you can use to help alleviate this symptom for your cat.
What is the best cat food to prevent vomiting?
By far, the best cat food to prevent vomiting is one with the most natural ingredients. If possible, look for ones that are grain free as well. The Blue Buffalo Sensitive Stomach or Hill’s Science Diet are one of the best when it comes to cats with digestive challenges. It’s a counterpart, Blue Buffalo Basics is also just as good and it doesn’t contain chicken for those cats who can’t handle chicken protein. These two products are by far the best as they have natural ingredients that benefit your cat(s) the best.
It is worth noting, however, that the rest of the cat foods on this top 10 list are equally good in their own ways. These include Halo Holistic, Royal Canin Feline Health, Purina ONE Sensitive Systems Adult Dry Cat Food, Hill’s Science Diet, Royal Canin Feline Health Nutrition, Instinct Original Grain Free, Wellness Signature and Royal Canin Feline Gastrointestinal. For more details check out the other products and make sure to pick the best one for you and your cat!
(10 votes, average: 4.20 out of 5)
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