Best Cat Food For Sensitive Stomachs & Diarrhea, Stop Vomiting (Dry & Wet) | Buyer’s Guide

Updated: April 6, 2023 by CanCat Eat

A sensitive stomach is a big problem for you as an owner. With our research, we have made a list of the best sensitive stomach cat food and the best overall “Hill Science Sensitive stomach cat food”.

We all start worrying about our cats when she is not eating well. This is a common problem for us as cat owners. If you find your cat is suddenly being picky about her favorite cat food. This might be a sign of a sensitive tummy.

This is the time to explore different food options. Switching the cat diet to one of the best cat food for a sensitive stomach generally helps.

The cat food formula designed for sensitive stomachs normally contains fewer nutrients that cats struggle to digest. Normally cat food branded as “limited ingredient” or “Sensitive Stomach” are the best option.

With our research and experience with our cats, we have found Hill’s Science Stomach Cat Food to be the best sensitive stomach cat food.

Note: Cats’ sensitive stomachs can be caused by anything. Your cats may be allergic to grain or other excessive amounts of nutrient intake (like taurine).

If you’re not sure what is the reason for your cat’s sensitivity. We will cover it in detail below. But, we recommend regularly checking with your vet if you are concerned about your cat’s diet.

Below, we have mentioned our top picks for sensitive stomach cat food. These brand foods are tested and reviewed by many cat owners.

Best Cat Food for Sensitive Stomach

We will discuss some of the common causes of a sensitive stomach. But, before going to that, let’s look at our recommended list of sensitive stomach cat food. Each cat food we have listed for the different needs of your cats has its own little benefit.

Royal Canin Digest Sensitive Gravy

Royal Canin is a very well-known brand. This is a vet-recommended cat food brand loved by experts for its amazing formula. Royal Canin maintains its reputation by providing high-quality ingredients and nutrients in this food.

Why do we like this food?

This formula from Royal Canin is designed especially for the sensitive digestive system. It provides 100% complete and balanced nutrition. We prefer this food for its impressive protein content. It comes with a 7% minimum protein, which is very impressive.

This cat food is made with a unique blend between protein, fat, and carbohydrates for sensitive tummies. It features thin slices in gravy that is highly palatable and sometimes provides moderate calorie. Our cat loves this food.

We love Royal Canin because they maintain the quality almost in their food in any department.

This special formula helps to reduce stool odor and also supports the ideal weight.

Overall, this is the best wet cat food for a sensitive stomach. Reviewers noted this food is best for sensitive digestion. We have seen impressive results transitioning to this cat food.

Blue Buffalo Basics Limited Ingredient Grain-Free Indoor Turkey

Next, we have Blue Buffalo Basic Limited Ingredient canned food. This is one of our favorite food.

This is a limited-ingredient recipe that contains no grains. Protein rich turkey is the first ingredient. So, your cat gets a proper balance diet and high quality protein.

Limited ingredient recipes are good for sensitive stomachs. To minimize any potential sensitivity, it is made with single animal protein with pumpkin for gentle digestion.

This food is packed with essential omega fatty oil, taurine, and amino acid to provide all the health benefits. It also contains antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals for a healthy immune system.

We can’t highly recommend this for a sensitive stomach problem. But, this is another good wet food for sensitive digestion.

You can the success stories of other cat owners by clicking the button above.

Hill’s Science Diet Sensitive Stomach

Hill Science is a popular vet who recommends cat food. I am sure most peoples are aware of this brand. They provide excellent cat food for different health treatments and benefits.

This cat food is made our list. Because it provides all the nutrient that is important in a cat’s diet. It is made with an antioxidant and vitamin blend to provide a healthy immune system.

What else do we like about this food? It contains no artificial color flavor or preservatives. It is made with an exclusive blend of omega 6 and vitamins (Vitamin C and Vitamin E) to improve skin and coat and overall well-being.

This is not a grain free diet. So, if you think your cat is sensitive toward the grain. Then, you should choose a more suitable to gain free cat food.

Grain content is not bad in cat food. If your cat has certain sensitivity toward gains, choose the best option from above.

This cat food is made with a real chicken ingredient in the first ingredient. So, you are getting high quality protein from this food.

Reviewers noted their cat’s stool problem vomiting, and sensitive digestion was solved after Transitioning to this cat food. You can read it by clicking the button above.

We recommend you should try this food once (unless your cat is not allergic to grains). It provides wholesome nutrition and solves the problem effectively.

Purina One Sensitive Stomach

Purina One is the next brand on our list. This is a portion of excellent cat food for a sensitive stomachs. We recommend Purina because they provide 100% balanced nutrition and high quality protein content.

This is also one of our kitty’s favorites. This formula is specially designed for cats with a sensitive system. It provides balanced vitamins and minerals to help the digestive and immune systems.

Purina maintained its reputation as they provide high quality ingredients. You will find Omega fatty acid in this food which is an important nutrient. It helps to promote healthy skin and coat.

This is an antioxidant-rich well balanced cat food. If you prefer to feed dry cat food, this is the best option for you.

Reviews said many success stories of seeing their cat stop vomiting after transitioning to this cat food. It is not just one, many of the same stories. And, there is no doubt, your cat will enjoy this food as we already heard from many others.

Blue Buffalo Sensitive Stomach Dry

Blue buffalo is our cat’s favorite. We have reviewed this food many times before. Through our experience and reviews, this is one of the best cat food for a sensitive stomach. This is not a totally grain-free food. If your cat is sensitive toward grain. Then, you should choose a dry food option or a grain-free dry cat food instead.

Grains are not bad in any case. But, if your cat has a sensitive stomach or other sensitivity toward whole grains. Then, you are going to waste your money and time on this food.

Don’t get it wrong though. This is a good dry cat food for sensitive stomach. We have heard many reviews and many success stories from them with their cat.

You will find no by-product meal in this food. This food contains deboned chicken as the first ingredient. The lean chicken will help your cat to maintain strong muscle, and there is no soy, wheat, or corn in this food to minimize any stomach upset.

Blue Buffalo provides all the important ingredients and nutrients like omega oil, antioxidants in their food to maintain a healthy life. Each of them has a good blend of vitamins and minerals.

For Sensitive Stomachs, wet cat food is preferable to dry food. We recommend this food to a cat owner who prefers to feed dry food to their cats. Just provide a freshwater source or afford a water fountain for your cat to improve digestion.

Instinct by Nature’s Variety Limited Ingredient

This is an expensive option on our list. If you are highly concerned with your cat’s sensitive stomach. Then Instinct Limited ingredient is the best option. This food contains real turkey.

This food is made with only one animal meat and one vegetable source to minimize any potential sensitivity.

This is completely grain free and made with farm-raised animals. This kind of meat is very healthy, easy to digest, and provide all the essential amino acid. They have eliminated the ingredient from the food that can cause sensitivity in cats.

Their kibble is made with the real nutrition of the raw meal. You are not getting filler ingredients like grain, soy, or gluten in this food. Same time this food provides a real feeding experience, each kibble made with raw frozen meats and the finest ingredients.

Instinct made this food with natural omega (omega 3 and omega 6) fatty oil and antioxidants to promote healthy skin, coat, and immune health.

If you like to prefer a portion of wet cat food, they also provide wet food. You can check it out from the button above. With, dry food it is recommended to provide a freshwater source.

Why do we recommend this food? We like this food and this food has a really good review. There are many success stories we have heard from other cat owners.

Natural Balance L.I.D. Limited Ingredient

This is a healthy Natural Balanced canned food for cats with sensitive stomachs. It is a grain free diet. So, if you already know that your cat is sensitive to grains, then you go for this food.

Natural Balanced made this food with a single meat source and limited carbohydrate source for easy digestion.

This is a limited-ingredient diet, only containing a few ingredients like a single animal protein source (chicken). So, you will get to know what causes the sensitivity to your cat.

Natural Balance packed this food with vitamins, minerals, and a taurine blend for a healthy eye, heart, and overall health. This food also contains omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids for healthy skin and coat.

There is a good reason we love this food, it contains no grain or anything artificial. Also, provide enough moisture for your cat.

If you prefer feeding wet cat food to your cat. This is one of the best-wet cat food for sensitive stomachs.

Cat Chow Gentle Dry Cat Food

This is a dry food from Purina Cat Chow. Cat Chow made this formula, especially for gentle digestion.

This food contains 25 essential vitamins and minerals to benefit your cat’s overall health. It contains natural probiotics, high-quality protein, and contains no artificial colors. So, you are not compromising on good ingredients, same time taking care of your cat’s sensitive digestion.

This dry food is made with easily digestible protein for a cat’s sensitive tummy.

Purina is a well-reputed brand we can trust. Many cat owners noted that they are happy with the result. We have seen success stories.

But, this food contains cornmeal. It is not a 100% grain-free diet. If you are looking for grain-free cat food for sensitive stomachs. You can choose one of the suitable cat food from above.

Halo Holistic Seafood Sensitive Stomach

Last but not least, we have Halo Holistic Seafood Sensitive Stomach on our list. This food is made with real whitefish and salmon in the first two ingredients.

This food contains novel proteins and refined grains that are easy to digest for the cat’s sensitive stomach. It contains no by-product or meat meal to avoid sensitive stomach problems in cats.

Along with the quality of food, they have maintained a natural flavor to make this food-loving for cats. Your cat will get the total benefit of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients like taurine from this food.

So, we are taking care of her overall health. Your cat will be happy and healthy from inside and outside.

This food also contains cranberry which is a natural source of antioxidants.

We heard good stories from reviewers. According to many reviewers, this food worked for them very well. This food is not completely a grain-free option as it contains barley.

Overall, it is a good sensitive stomach food for cats.

Royal Canin Digest Sensitive Loaf Canned Food

This is another food from Royal Canin. This wet cat food is made with a chicken recipe with the loaf in the sauce.

Royal Canin Sensitive Loaf recipe provides 100% complete and healthy balanced nutrition for easy digestion and sensitivity. They made this food with a proper balance of protein, carbohydrates, and fat.

The Loaf in the sauce is formulated for odor reduction also loved by cats. This food provides all the ingredient your cat need and the taste your cat prefers.

This food has a limited calorie content. It means it is also good cat food to maintain a healthy weight.

A good quality sensitive stomach wet food provides good moisture and limited ingredient to avoid any sensitivity. As you figure out the real problem. You can start introducing other ingredients into your cat’s diet.

How to Tell If My Cat Has Sensitive Stomach?

Your cat can’t if they have any kind of problem. But, you can tell if your cat has some allergy or sensitive digestion problem.

A sensitive stomach can cause digestive issues. If your cat is getting sick or has frequent diarrhea. This could be the reason for intolerance of food. Excessive gut sounds or frequent bowel movement is the sign of an allergy. You may notice vomiting along with diarrhea.

If you notice skin irritation. This may happen from a food allergy. Your cat will often rub itself. It will build bald patches. You will notice skin redness, and swelling in the head or face.

Cats should eat a normal diet on a regular basis. Certain food can cause a sensitive stomach in cats. And, if your cat gets a digestive problem. Then, she will avoid eating food. This will lead to other health problems and weight loss.

It can also happen from an empty stomach or eating fast. There could be more depth health issues.  You may need to visit a vet to find out what causing the vomiting. If stomach upset happens once in a while it is fine. But, if it is happening every day or two. Then, you should take your cat to a vet for a checkup and diagnostic care.

Here are Some Common Sign May indicate a Sensitive Stomach in Cats

• Frequent Vomiting (Even after eating the meal)
• Diarrhea
• Gas
• Constipation
• Sudden change in their diet
• Avoid eating
• Skin Itchy ( Redness and Swollen)

It could happen from food allergies. Sometimes, it can develop in cats as they grow older.

You May Read: Best Soft Cat Food

How Can A Sensitive Stomach Cat Food Help My Cat?

Sensitive stomach cat foods are specially made to reduce sensitivity and vomiting. This kind of food formula does not contain by-product meat. You will find real protein sources like chicken, and turkey in sensitive stomach food.

This kind of formula does not contain cheap meat sources. It is best to choose high-quality cat food for sensitive stomach problems.

We recommend you choose a well-known brand for your cat’s health. Good quality cat food will treat sensitive digestive issues and be less aggressive in your cat’s stomach.

If your cat is sensitive toward grains, corn, gluten, and another grain ingredient. Then, you should choose a sensitive stomach food that contains no grains. Grains are not a bad thing for cats. But, they are a natural part of your diet.

If you know the grain is the reason for your cat’s sensitive stomach. Then, you can check our recommended list of suitable grain-free food above.

You should avoid too much carbohydrate content in cat food to minimize any sensitivity. Too much carbohydrate can lead to sensitivity.

A good sensitive stomach formula can help a cat with a sensitive stomach. This food is specially designed to reduce the sensitivity problem and helps to improve health.

How to Introduce a Sensitive Cat Food Diet

If your cat has a sensitive stomach, then you will need a smooth transition to the new cat food. A smooth transition will help to avoid further sensitivity.

A quick change in cat food for cats with sensitive stomachs will cause more damage. Their symptoms of diarrhea and vomiting may become even more savior. So, when you choose a healthy cat food for a sensitive stomach. You need to introduce the food gradually to your cat’s diet.

You can gradually mix the sensitive stomach food with your cat’s old cat food.  And slowly decrease the old food and increase the amount of new food. The normal transition period of cat foods is 1 week to 2 weeks. You can refer to the label of your cat food or the brand’s official site.

You should maintain your cat’s daily feeding time and feeding frequency. This will help to maintain the cat’s digestion and a healthy digestive system.

If you don’t notice any change to your cat’s sensitivity after (a week of) switching to this food. Then, you should take a trip to the vet. Generally, a sensitive stomach cat will help to ease your cat’s sensitive problem.

Too often vomiting or a sensitive stomach is not a good sign. In that, we will advise you to take your cat to a vet immediately.

You may read: Best High Protein Cat Food

Causes for Sensitive Stomach in Cats:

Food Intolerances or Allergies:

As mentioned earlier, food is the major culprit that causes stomach disorders and the stomach starts malfunctioning as it can’t handle the food in its stomach.

Indigestion and Inflammatory happen when food stored in the stomach is further indigested. Some breeds of cats are also allergic to certain protein food such as beef, meat, pork, and chicken.

Know your pet well and feed it whatever food that it really could enjoy eating and digesting at the end of the day.

Parasites:

Certain diseases in organs in the cat’s body such as the liver, and the kidney also result in improper absorption of food also ends up in cats as loose motions or watery stool. Hookworms, Tapeworms reside in a cat’s stomach and will also cause critical damage to a cat’s stomach. Avoiding your cat from eating rotten food may reduce the criticality of parasite symbiosis in the stomach.

Not Enough Hydration and Freshwater:

You can help your cat alongside vets’ suggestions by providing a good amount of fresh water. Good moisture food helps to avoid sensitive problems and provides your cat with a proper amount of water. This helps in digesting the food. Make your cat habituated to drinking water either in a bowl or using a tap. You can also invest in a cat water fountain if your cat does not seem to be interested in drinking water from their bowl.

Junk Eatables:

Don’t feed them with the eatables which humans consume. Treats that we enjoy may damage cat’s digestive system. Motivate them by putting a very small portion of treats in their plate but don’t fill the plates only with the treat.

Stressed Cats:

Stress may be another issue that impacts cats’ way of eating.  Why do they stress? Simple, cats habituated to one place to take food and water, if you change the location, they will be stressed-out. So, make their minds easy and let it enjoy the food at the same place every day.

Treats

Treats can be one of the reasons of stomach sensitivity. Cat treat should never be more than 10% of a cat’s daily calorie intake.

Too much treat is not good for cats. We have seen this before. Even with a sensitive stomach cat food, too much treat can upset your cat’s digestive system.

Cat treats not well balanced. They will not provide all the nutrition your cat needs on a daily basis. Also, it will interfere with your cat’s regular food.

What to avoid feeding a cat with a sensitive stomach?

Different cat has an individual sensitive problem. Sensitivity can be caused by many things. It can be from foods like dairy product also can be from other ingredients in cat food. Some cats may also get sensitive towards grains like wheat and soy.

Cat’s stomachs are sensitive towards artificial color, additive, and preservatives. It could be one of the reason for throwing up and sensitive stomach.

Cat sensitive can be very serious if it happening often. A good well maintained eating habit is good for sensitive stomach. If your cat’s sensitive araises, you should take your cat to the vet. They are the right people to guide you, discover the real problem and give your advice to solve the problem.

What else we can do for a sensitive stomach? The first thing to do is to avoid unnecessary ingredients from your cat’s diet.

Choose a sensitive stomach food that contains the limited ingredient. This food contains very limited ingredients like one protein source and one carbohydrates source.

This way you will get to know what causes the sensitivity. And, you can slowly reintroduce the ingredients to your cat’s diet that you removed before to discover the real cause. And, carbohydrate is not a part of a cat’s natural diet. So, it is best to minimize the amount of cat food.

How do I stop my cat vomiting after eating?

Sensitive stomach food help to avoid sensitivity and vomiting. Rushed eating also lead to vomiting.

You cat may love her food. We have seen this kind of behavior. Cat is eating too fast and so much. And, they immediately vomiting. This kind of behavior happen in street cats or young cats. Street cat is left outside for starving for days. So, once they get a good home and food. Still, they have the mindset, they are going starve if they don’t eat right now. They are not sure of their next meal time.

There are other kinds of cat. They love to eat their food. Here, the food also does not help either. Cat foods are made very delicious and nutritious.

In this case, you want to slow down your cat’s eating habit. So, cats can’t fill themselves fast and vomit. You can divide your cat meal in multiple small meal throughout the day. Small meal will help to avoid rushed eating and eating so much at once.  You also need to maintain your cat’s feeding routine time daily. So, consistence feeding habit (or meal time) is also important.

If your schedule does not allow you to plan a small meal for your cat. You can invest in an automatic cat feeder. You can program them to open up at certain times a day. This way you are in track, how much your kitty in each time.

Maintain the portion size is important. You can check the official manufacturer website to find out the exact portion size. Smaller portion with multiple will help to avoid rushed eating.

You can also try a cat treat ball. These cat toys you can find in any pet store or even online. It is a plastic ball with small holes. These small hole allow to fall only few small prices of food at a time. So, your cat has to roll the ball in order to work to get his food. For, indoor cats it is a good solution, physical and mental stimulation is important for our cats. Also solving too much eating very quickly.

Throwing up or vomiting can also happen from a hairball. In that case, you can look for cat food for hairball preventing. These food are specially made to control hairball. You can also groom your cat with cat brush to avoid hairball problem.

A smooth transition is important to avoid vomiting. You can mix 15% of cat’s new food with 85% of the cat’s old food. A gradual transition to a new cat food diet will help avoid sensitive problems.

If you suspect any food allergies from grains or other ingredients. You can switch the diet to a limited ingredient cat food. Does your kitty’s poop have an unpleasant smell? Check out wereallaboutpets.com for the best cat food for smelly poop.

Home Remedies for Sensitive Stomach Cat

There are certain things you can do to keep your cat’s system run smoothly. We have already talked about it in details. This checklist will help you to sort it out.

• Check for Hairball
• Be watchful to cat’s feeding portion
• Divide Mealtime to Smaller Meal
• Be in a consistence feeding routine
• Measure proper amount of food
• Feed your cat high quality food (nutritious)
• Encourage your cat drinking water
• Smooth Transition to need food
• Omega Fatty oil benefit your cat’s body
• Be Playful with your cat (Invent on cat toy)

Best cat food for diarrhea

FAQs

What Can I feed my cat with a Sensitive Stomach?

We have found Natural Balance L.I.D. Limited Ingredient Diets best for sensitive digestion. A reputed brand cat food is recommended for cats with a sensitive stomach. We recommend limited ingredient and sensitive stomach cat food. You can check our top list of cat food sensitive above to get a clear idea.

Cat sensitive stomach can depend on many factors. A limited ingredient cat food will help you to identify the core problem, what ingredient your cat is sensitive toward. These food contains limited of carbohydrate and one animal-source protein. So, you will find out the real culprit easily.

There are sensitive stomach food contains gain. If you already know your cat is sensitive toward grain, then avoid going for these foods.

What Can I Give My Cat to Settle Her Stomach?

We have some useful tips that can help to settle the cat’s stomach. First thing normal comes in our mind is cat food. Changing her diet to a sensitive stomach diet food generally help to cats with stomach upset.

Why is my cat vomiting undigested food?

It can be a cause of many things. If you notice your cat vomiting often. We recommend you to take your cat to a vet immediately. They are the right person to check your cat. And, can tell you the real problem.

Is Wet Food Better For Cats with Sensitive Stomach?

It totally depends on personal preference, and depend on what your cat prefers to eat. As wet food provides enough hydration. Wet cat food for sensitive stomach is better than a dry option.

If you prefer to feed your cat dry food, then you need to take care of her hydration.

Kristen Torres

Kristen is a cat parent. Love to keep my cats happy always and playful. Also, It became my passion to help another cat owner with caring tips for their cats and kittens. Stay tuned with my personal blog to know more caring tips, review of cat food and feeding guides. I’d love to know about your cat. If you something to share with about your cat. I will be happy to read.