Hello All:

Last year, right around this time, we found a cat eating bird seed at
our bird feeder and trying to sleep under a small pine tree in our
backyard.   What's ironic is that he looked identical to our cat that
we had for 18 years that had just passed away 5 months earlier.

Anywho, we brought him in and fed him.  We put up posters and notified
the local police department and animal hospitals about the found cat.

Right away we knew he wasn't healthy, diarrhea and a cough.  

Long story short, no one claimed him and we still have him.  He's a
real lap cat but still has some problems.

He still coughs upon occasion, no it's not the same a hacking up a
hair ball, it's like someone with a cold and trying to clear their
throat.

Second, he vomits - a lot!  

We took him back to our old vet who took x-rays, blood work and all
sorts of other tests.  He has allergies.  He is on approximately 1/4
of a pill, every other day,  of something similar to Chlortrimeton
<sp>.

After trying every food under the sun we found that Science Diet ZD
suits him the best.  

Not wanting to always keep him on medication we have tried to see how
he would do without it but after the 3rd day he starts to graze on the
carpet looking for any loose fuzzy that he can eat (we have nicked
named him Hoover) and starts licking the baseboards!  We washed all
the baseboards and vacuum all the time but that doesn't deter him.
After a while of doing these thing he will vomit a bunch of food - no
hair balls (not to say he doesn't ralph up a hairball, no problems
with this).  He will go to eat again and then start to look for fuzzys
to inhale and the process repeats itself.  It's damn weird behavior
I'll tell ya.

If he takes the 1/4 pill every other day he doesn't do this (or very
little) but he is lethargic and as stated we hate to keep him on
pills.

I don't know if I'm looking for help or just venting <g>.

Any thoughts?

TIA.