Ginormous hairball or something else?

~~My big boy Rufus has been hacking (that dry, hacking hairball cough) for ages. Have fed him half a tube of hb treatment in the last week and a half,  and was rewarded the other day with a nasty 3 inch long (!!!!) specimen. However, the hacking and hard swallowing continue, indicating (to me, anyway) that there's more where that came from. Taking him to the vet this afternoon to get him checked out, make sure there's nothing more going on, and try to figure out how to get that crap out of him. He seems to be the official hair stylist for the rest of the clan so who knows what's going on in his gut?   Everything else about his behavior is normal, which is another reason I want the vet to check him.  He's always been a hairball hacker, but this just seems excessive and has me worried.  For the life of me, I can't figure out how he managed to expel that huge hairball.  It was easily the size of my little finger, then had another inch long piece attached to it by (what else?) a couple of long hairs.

Has anyone had this kind of hairball problem?  I've done my online research, and became really concerned after reading about a cat needing surgery to remove a giant hairball.  Do vets use enemas for this sort of thing?  I'm scaring myself thinking of the different scenarios.

Any vibes that can be sent to my baby boy would be deeply appreciated!

he should be fine and the vet will help.  There are some people here who are very knowledgeable about hairballs and I expect they will comment.  There is a good discussion here about egg yolk lecithin to dissolve and prevent them.  I suggest you print it out anf bring it to the vet to discuss.

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/266178/...using-egg-yolk-lecithin-to-dissolve-hairballs

Good luck and try not to worry!

Stephen

Here's an article written by a vet that I found very educational. http://consciouscat.net/2010/04/28/some-startling-new-thoughts-on-cats-and-hairballs/

Hairball blockages can happen, and some members have found that a lion cut really helps for some long haired cats.

Interesting reading on both links; thanks!

My Cat Simone....well let's just say despite my thorough brushing, when springtime comes she is donating monthly hairballs that look just like a large, full sized tampon.....always amazes me that she can have this thing sitting in her throat, but continue to eat and drink fine, until it grows large enough for her to deposit it out next to my bed, a gift for me strategically placed so that when I hop out of bed during the night to use the bathroom I manage to step right smack on it.

Thank you so much my little lovebug 

I switched my cats to canned food only and have minimized hairballs to once or twice a month instead of three or four times a week. 

The vet diagnosed Rufus with IBD which, from what I've read online, can be the result of almost anything associated with the GI tract.  My boy was given a steroid injection, I was told to keep giving him the hairball treatment, and to make a gradual switch to a food for sensitive stomachs.  We go for a recheck in 3 weeks, and if the hairballs are still an issue, we'll do xrays.  The vet wasn't too concerned at this point because the hairballs truly are the only sign of anything wrong; Rufus is his old normal self in every other way.  He has, however, always been a "nervous" cat---hates people, hates noise, hates change.  We had our furnace ducts cleaned about a month before this flare up began, and I wonder if his nervous stomach brought all this to a head.  I forgot to mention that to the vet the other day, but am going to bring it up next time we see him.

Catwoman707, your reference to a hairball that looked like a full size tampon was spot on;  I still can't believe something that large could come out of my cat's throat.