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Queen of My Heart

Are Hairballs normal?

The first time you see or hear your cat bring up a hairball can be scary if you’ve never witnessed it before.  They seem to be putting their whole body into these spasms while you stand there feeling pretty helpless. I don’t know why, but it seems to happen in the worse place and at the very worse time! I think those rascals plan it that way.

So what are these “hairballs” all about anyway?  Consider the cat; it’s the nature of a cat to be constantly grooming itself, they are famous for this. This could be traced back to a time back in history when their ancestors were trying to hide their scent from predators. Whatever the reason, cats are very fastidious in their grooming. Herein lies the problem. A cats tongue is very rough and by licking their fur, they remove lose hair or fur. They then swallow the hair and over time it becomes clumped in their stomachs and intestines. It is actually a good thing that they bring it up. The hairballs would other wise cause a serious medical problem for them.

We need to accept that hairballs are a natural occurrence in cats, however it’s best to either eliminate them or keep them down to a minimum. Here are three ways that you can use to help your cats deal with them:

• Prevention - Help your cat remove that lose hair by routinely brushing him or her. It’s the undercoat that is causing the problem so be sure to get a brush that can get down into that undercoat. How often you brush depends on the type of hair or fur you cat has and whether it’s long or short. Certain seasons of the year where you live may also affect hair growth. Start brushing when they are young so that they’ll get used to it.

• Food - Read the labels on your cat food, nowadays many of them, wet and dry will say “Helps Prevent Hairballs“. This is great, but make sure that the food is also nutritious. You’ll then have the best of both worlds coming from one place.
• Hairball Lubricants – These come in the form of gels, usually in tubes. We carry several in our eBay store, they are made especially to help your cat safely bring up the hairball. Some cats will just lick it straight from the tube, others you may need to use their habit of cleaning themselves and put a small amount on their paw for them to lick off. I’ve used both methods on my cats and they both work. Read the directions for how much and how often you need to give it to them.

Be sure to watch your cat for signs that something is wrong. Cats are notorious for hiding it when they don’t feel well, again this goes back to their ancestors. This could be vomiting several times a week and not bringing up a hairball. Lack of appetite and/or lethargy are also indications that you need to see your Veterinarian right away just to be sure what’s going on before the situation gets out of control.