Hairballs are common in cats, who are fastidious
groomers. Loose and dead hair is swallowed and normally passes through the
digestive tract. Some cat hair may collect in the stomach, especially if
your cat has long hair. The hair irritates the sensitive lining of the
stomach, and the cat will almost certainly regurgitate it while following
the cat rule: back up while doing so, so the mess is as long as the human
foot.
Hacking up a hairball once or twice a month or so is normal, but if it
happens more often than that a visit to the vet may be in order. Hair may
come up when the cat vomits, but you shouldn’t automatically assume
that the hairball is the cause of the vomiting. If your cat is coughing
while expelling a hairball, or your cat coughs with no resulting
hairball, these can be signs of a more serious cat health condition
that may need veterinary attention.
You can help your cat avoid hairball retching by combing her fur daily.
Brushes are not as effective in removing loose hair; they simply smooth the
surface of your cat's coat. Use a flea comb or fine toothed comb on a
short-haired cat, or a wide-toothed comb on a fluffy cat. A “petting glove,”
which looks like a mitten with a nubby rubber surface on the palm, also
works well to remove loose hair.
A time-honored cat hairball remedy is to feed your cat a small amount
of petroleum jelly regularly to help the hair slide through the digestive
system. Smear a small amount on the cat’s paw, on the leg behind the elbow,
or any other place she will find easy to lick off. Hairball treats
work on the same principle but use mineral oil instead of petroleum jelly,
and may have a laxative effect. Edible oils such as fish oil or flax seed
oil will be absorbed by the intestines and may not do the job as
effectively.
Adding fiber to your cat’s diet may also help push hair through the
digestive tract, but cats do not require a lot of fiber in their diet and
this remedy will add bulk to the cat’s stool, increasing the litter box
mess.
Your cat may vomit if she has eaten something that didn’t agree with her,
eaten too much or too quickly, eaten grass, rodents, lizards or other
foreign substances, ingested a toxic substance, or have a gastrointestinal
illness or other underlying disease. If your cat or kitten vomits
once and then goes about her business as usual, eating, playing, and with
regular toilet habits, there is probably no cause for alarm.
Vomiting in cats is cause for concern if it is chronic, or begins
suddenly and is accompanied by blood in the vomit, diarrhea, lethargy,
dehydration, loss of appetite, or any other unusual changes in her activity
level or behavior. Your cat may have a feline gastrointestinal disorder, or
the vomiting may be a secondary symptom of a more serious disease such as
cancer, infectious disease, kidney failure, or diabetes. Consult a
veterinarian who will give your cat a thorough physical examination,
consider her medical history, and may order lab tests to determine the
condition of your cat’s health and order any necessary treatments.
