Q: When a cat regurgitates, is that the same thing as vomiting? I often see the two terms used interchangeably.
Patsy Van der Meer
Huntsville, Alabama
Dear Ms. Van der Meer,
A: Regurgitation and vomiting are two different things. Regurgitation is about expelling undigested food from the esophagus, which is part of the throat that extends down just past the mouth. It’s a passive process that often occurs soon after eating or drinking. A cat leans forward, puts her head down, and the contents reverse direction and come out of the mouth.
Vomiting, on the other hand, is the forceful expulsion of contents that have made their way past the esophagus and into the stomach. During vomiting, contractions of the stomach are clearly visible as they send partially digested contents upward. Vomiting is sometimes accompanied by drooling and an expression of concern or consternation in the cat.
Any cat may regurgitate or vomit from time to time. For instance, if a cat occasionally vomits up a hair ball that made it to the stomach but could not be further broken down to enter the small intestine, it’s not a big deal. But if the regurgitation or vomiting persists over the course of more than a couple of days or simply occurs frequently, some diagnostics may be in order.
A cat who keeps regurgitating may have megaesophagus, a condition in which the esophagus is weak and cannot propel food from the mouth to the stomach. She may also have an esophageal stricture resulting from cancer of the esophagus. In some cases she may have swallowed a foreign body that has become stuck in her esophagus and is causing her to keep salivating in an effort to regurgitate.
Chronic vomiting can result from any number of disorders, including but not limited to inflammatory bowel disease, a food allergy, kidney or liver disease, a cancerous mass in the stomach, hyperthyroidism, or an infection. The underlying cause must be found and addressed, and the vomiting itself must be treated because if left unchecked, a cat can become dangerously dehydrated.
