A cat hairball may be eliminated through digestion or vomiting. When your cat is coughing up or vomiting a hair ball, he sometimes makes alarming sounds. Hairballs can gather in the cat’s stomach as ingests hair while grooming. Hairballs may be dangerous for the cat’s health, as the hair may block the air ways or the intestinal tract.
High Fiber Diet
Hair is not an easily digested “food”. Hair can mix with undigested food in the intestinal tract and cause an occlusion and possibly constipation.
High fiber diets may help your cat eliminate the hairballs easier. However, high fiber diets may be problematic for the digestive tract of your pet.
Opt for a diet that contains fibers but also a fat emulsifier that will facilitate the digestion.
Soy lecithin is an effective fat emulsifier that can be fed to cats.
Canned pumpkin contains a lot of fibers and it is also wet, so it can facilitate the digestion. Get canned pumpkin that doesn’t contain sugar.
Wet Food
Wet food can be a permanent diet for cats; however, if your cat has a diet that contains dry food, you should feed him some wet food once per week, to help the elimination of hairballs.
Gels or Granules
Another way to treat and prevent hairballs is a special gel which can be added to your cat’s food. This will lubricate the cat’s digestive tract, making the transition of food and hairballs easier.
Granules may also be found in health pet stores.
All these commercial hairball remedies contain mineral oil. Mineral oil must be administered with caution, as it will absorb the cat’s vitamin A deposits. Get some vitamin A supplements in conjunction with these gels or granules.
Hairball Formula Food
You may purchase special hairball formula food. There are numerous such formulas available, but it’s important that you find one that agrees with your cat. You must pay attention to the label and the contents of these foods. Your cat needs essential nutrients and depriving him from protein or fats may lead to other health problems.
Grass
Cats voluntarily eat grass to throw up hairballs. The grass has a special texture that will tickle the stomach lining of the cat and will induce vomiting.
Butter
Butter is a home remedy that can help the elimination of hairballs. Give your pet half a tablespoon of butter, but not more, as he may develop diarrhea.
Brushing and Grooming
Hairballs are formed in time, as a result of the cat’s grooming and ingesting his own loose hair. If you groom and brush your cat on a regular basis, you reduce the amount of loose hair that may be ingested by your pet. In this way, hairballs will not build up.
Groom your cat twice per week using proper supplies.
In severe cases, hairballs cause painful constipation or need to be surgically removed. However, you can prevent the build up of hairballs by applying proper treatment and groom your cat on a regular basis.