How to Treat Those Pesky Hairballs

How to Treat Those Pesky Hairballs

If you have a longhaired cat, hairballs are almost certainly a fact of life.  While for some cats it is just a minor inconvenience, other cats may have a lot of digestive trouble and stomach upset when they get hairballs.  We had a cat that required hairball medicine for years because she would throw up constantly without it.  If you are faced with the dilemma of treating your cat for hairballs, the following solutions will help.

Daily Brushing
Hairballs are caused by loose fur being ingested when your cat cleans itself.  The first line of defense is to brush your cat’s fur every day to remove that loose hair before it goes down the chute.  You can buy special brushes for longhaired cats.  Some have blades within the teeth to help cut away mats, which can be a huge relief to your kitty.

Hairball Medicine
Oily, slimy stuff, hairball medicine coats the hairball to make it pass more easily.  This is the remedy we used for our cat, and as long as she had her daily dose she would be fine.  If they won’t lick it from your hand, wipe it on their paw and they will be forced to clean themselves.

Hairball Food
Food formulated to reduce hairballs and improve digestion can help with your cat’s hairball problem.  I don’t have personal experience with this and expect other methods may work better, but it’s a good option if your cat constantly fights hairball medicine.

Whichever method you choose, you and your cat will appreciate not dealing with rejected hairballs around the house.