Hairball Awareness

This week we celebrate hairball awareness!   We will learn preventative measures to help our furry friends through this rather unbecoming act. Routine grooming is ingrained in a cat’s daily routine from the day they are born.   While the occasional hairball is expected, due to their fastidious personal grooming, frequent hairballs could indicate a problem.

Tiny hook-like structures on the cat’s tongue allow them to catch loose and dead hair. While most of it passes all the way through the digestive tract, sometimes it stays in the stomach, forming a hairball. The only way to get rid of the hairball is for your cat to vomit.

One way to prevent the frequency of hairballs is to actively take part in their grooming regime. Consequently, combing or brushing your cat on a daily basis will minimize the amount of hair picked up by your cat’s personal grooming. For especially long haired cats, consider taking them to a groomer 2-3 times a year.

If your cats are anti-social and don’t like to be groomed by anyone but themselves, some veterinarians suggest giving them a specialized “hairball formula” cat food or hairball laxative. The formulated cat food contains high-fiber formulas that are designed to improve the health of your cat’s fur, minimizing the amount of shedding.   The mild laxative helps hairballs pass through the digestive tract instead of getting caught in the stomach. Please note that you should speak to your veterinarian directly prior to changing your pet’s diet or giving them laxatives.

Additionally, if you notice that your cat is producing an irregular quantity of hairballs or if you notice periods of vomiting, gagging, retching, or hacking without producing a hairball, contact your veterinarian immediately, as these symptoms could indicate a potentially life-threatening blockage.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Animal Health Center at (914) 941-4904.