Cat hairballs are not a pretty sight. I’m sorry about the picture to the right but I thought it was necessary to show what one actually looked like. As you can see it is not a perfect ball and is shaped more like a hair sausage. For my personal cat’s, hairballs become more of an issue during the heavy shedding months of spring and fall.
Depending on your breed of cat this could be an issue all year long. What spurred me to write this article is that we have ran out of the treatment that I use for this condition. We use this stuff called Cat Lax that I will explain further below. I didn’t realize how well this stuff worked until we ran out of it and were besieged with lots of vomiting and hairballs.
Cat Hairball Treatments
Cat Lax is for the prevention of hairballs in cats. One way to administer it is to place a small dab on the cat’s front paw and let them lick it off. Most felines (mine anyway) think it has a pleasant taste. My wife likes to put a dab on the back of her hand and let them lick it off that way.
It is recommended on the packaging that treatment for average weight adult cats, to administer once daily. For smaller pets, vary the amount accordingly. To prevent hairballs from forming, try administering two or three times per week. Your veterinarian may give different and more specific directions for treatment, in which case always follow the Veterinarian’s instructions.
In case your interested the contents are to follow. Cod liver oil, caramel, lecithin, malt syrup, white petrolatum, 0.1% sodium benzoate (preservative), vitamin E (dl-alpha tocopheryl acetate equivalent to 0.033 mg/g d-alpha tocopherol) (antioxidant), and purified water.
According to my vet, hairballs are one of the leading causes for felines to vomit. For one it’s not good for my carpet.
If you don’t get to the vomit right away the stomach acid that is mixed in can cause damage and discoloration to carpets and take the finish off of hardwood floors. The second issue for me is that my cats seem to get very upset after they cough up their hairballs. In most cases the hairballs are quite large. It takes lots of effort to expel. Sometimes they retch but nothing comes out forcing them to make several attempts.
This process usually takes several minutes and can be very upsetting to your feline friend and the whole family. The treatment for cat hairballs I explained above helps dissolve the hairs and therefore lets your cat digest it. Much better than collecting in a giant lump in their stomach. The cat lax that we purchase has a tuna or fishy flavor that my pets truly enjoy.
However, in my mind the biggest benefit is they don’t have to suffer with hacking up the giant hairballs. Have you ever gone over a friends house and seen that cat trying to vomit. Have you ever seen the unsightly hairball? Share this page with a friend or cat lover.
Cat-health-behavior.com › Feline health › Cats and hair balls
For more information on what else can cause stomach issues in felines visit my page about a cat not eating.