cat loosing whiskers/ vomiting almost once daily

Question
i have had my cat now for 2 years. now and got her from someone else, who picked her up from a shelter. she has had all her shots, been spayed, and declawed so she is solely an indoor cat. her age I'm not specific on because i was not the one that took her to get all that done. my question is since this last December, i lost my job and had to travel back and forth from TN. to KY., for approximately three months and had my room mate watched and took care of her and he kept reporting that she was vomiting daily and i would notice her whiskers laying on the bed or something when i got back home. I have finally moved and been where I'm at now for about a month and she is still losing her whiskers and vomiting,(mostly after drinking water) and thought all this was just because of the unstable environment and me missing so much. now I'm starting to get very concerned and don't know what to do. i am still out of work and don't have any income to be able to take her the vet. Help me, please.

Answer
Hi Vanessa,

Losing several whiskers is normal but excess amount could be a sign or ill health. Is there discharge from any orifice, losing weight? if so, she would need to be seen by a vet. I understand you are unable to afford one now.
It sounds like lots of change and stress for her and often declawed kitties can be even more sensitive since they have been rendered defenseless.
Some diseases of the whiskers could be pyoderma, mange, hair follicle dysplasia.
I am sorry it is impossible to know if the two symptoms are directly related without assessing your entire kitty. I do not like that she vomits daily, this needs to be addressed asap, reasons for vomiting are many. Some reasons for vomiting could be things from hairballs from itchiness or excessive grooming, to stress, to food allergies, to eating to fast, to poor quality commercial food, to blockage, to irritable bowel syndrome, to stomach tumor to cancer.
Something as simple as a hairballs can be resolved with 1 tsp of butter daily until dislodged. Does she overgroom? Is she very itchy? Itching from fleas? Itching from allergies?
This would be the easiest case scenario but to be honest the daily vomiting is alarming and really requires a good holistic consultation.
is she losing weight? acting differently?
When she was vomitting with your roommate was it bile? Food? Undigested food? Digested food?
How is her energy, appetite, activity, stool?
The last cat I treated vomited water, lost weight, and couldn't keep anything down, but this was due to an aggressive lymphoma and it happened all in two weeks time.
There could be many possibilities for emesis and this really needs to be further investigated. Does she seem like a stressed cat?
I would try to raise funds to have her seen by a holistic vet and I would also consider her diet.
I always prefer natural prepared feline diet, if you are unable to do that, then brands like Eagle Packk, Wellness, Avoderm, Prairie, Instinct, BFF, Halo are decent cat foods. Wet is better than dry.  For kitty recipes consult Dr Pitcairn's Natural Healing for Cats and Dogs.
Poor diets are the cause of many diseases as well as over-vaccinating.
Stay away from Fancy Feast, Whiskas and Friskies, Purina, lousy nutrition with tons of irritating additives that hurt the digestive tract and could cause allergies and very poor health.
I wish you and your kitty the best and I hope you are able to resolve it and have it addressed asap!
Shanti