Hairballs every 2 days

This week my cat has started having hairballs every two days for the past 7 days. No food is thrown up. Just a quick hairball add that is it. All other behavior has been normal. My cat is 12 years old, in diabetic remission so he eats a low carbs diet of D/M although currently is eating Fancy Feast Classic because he refused to eat and almost died last month. The vet told me he most likely had Triad Disease and after a week or intense pills he started refusing to eat. He then went into heart failure from the pred he was on. I rescued him by stopping all medication except lasix injections once a day and probiotics. He healed and started eating again. This whole ordeal was a 2 month struggle. He now is as normal as he can be with IBD. Regular bowel movements and urine. Recently, I noticed he drinks less water. BG is normal so I know it's not diabetes. He may be drinking less because he is off the laser now and on heart pills. He also gets water mixed into his food. My question is how can I stop or decrease the hairballs without causing more digestive issues? Since his stool is normal, I'm afraid to try much. I just bought salmon oil. Would that be safe to start adding to his food? Should I try changing his diet again? I have to call the vet tomorrow and I'm just worried they will put him back on metronidazole which started the stress for him since he hates pilling.

Perhaps combing the cat more often.

My cat does not like salmon oil.  

[if !mso]><style>v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}.shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);}</style><![endif][if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <wunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <wontGrowAutofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument></xml><![endif][if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="156"> </w:LatentStyles></xml><![endif][if gte mso 10]><style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;mso-style-noshow:yes;mso-style-parent:"";mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;mso-para-margin:0in;mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;mso-pagination:widow-orphan;font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-ansi-language:#0400;mso-fareast-language:#0400;mso-bidi-language:#0400;}</style><![endif]

[if !mso]><style>v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}.shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);}</style><![endif][if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <wunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <wontGrowAutofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument></xml><![endif][if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="156"> </w:LatentStyles></xml><![endif][if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id=ieooui></object><style>st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) }</style><![endif][if gte mso 10]><style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;mso-style-noshow:yes;mso-style-parent:"";mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;mso-para-margin:0in;mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;mso-pagination:widow-orphan;font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-ansi-language:#0400;mso-fareast-language:#0400;mso-bidi-language:#0400;}</style><![endif]

of 19

2 weeks, 3 days ago

• 

• babiesmom5
• 
•  
• online

• 38 Posts. Joined 1/2017
•  
• Purraise: 12

I urge you to get a handle on the hairball issue ASAP. Hairballs are an extreme irritant to a cat's digestive tract.  Over time this irritation can lead to IBD (Inflammatory Bowel Disease).

I speak from sad experience.  I adopted a beautiful male kitten who threw up hairballs frequently.  He was a shorthair and had a plush coat.  I brushed him often as he would let me, which in hindsight was not enough.  All through his adult life, he threw hairballs frequently which I now know were alarm bells.  Fast forward 14 years, he began losing weight and throwing up food.  Vet exam followed by Ultrasound and Endoscopy confirmed severe IBD.  I was shocked to learn that his small intestines actually had scarring and fibrosis!  The Vet said that it is only recently that the insidious nature of hairballs has been recognized.  Even in Vet school, hairballs were considered just a thing cats do.  Now there is much more emphasis on hairball prevention or a least infrequent occurrence.  Here are some proactive steps you can take.

1.  Feed cat high quality wet food only.  More liquid helps hair move through intestinal tract faster.

2. Do not "free feed" as hair is last thing to leave the digestive tract.

3.  Brush, Brush Brush!  Every day!  I found a wonderful brush on classycatdishes.com site.  It is the "Philocomb" from Japan.  The teeth are not metal or plastic, but are engineered polyamide polyacetal resin.  The teeth are flexible and won't scratch the cat's skin like other combs.  Even cats who do not like to be brushed like this.  It has a very comfortable handle, curved like a claw, but not sharp.  It removes enormous amounts of hair other combs leave behind.  I would recommend a #3 comb for your longhair cat.  I only wish I had discovered this comb years ago in my cat's kittenhood.  He may still be alive today if I had.

4.  You might also consider having him shaved during the summer (all except for head and tail).

5. Make sure your cat does not pick or chew at fabrics, blankets, carpets or other undigestible things.  This only worsens the problem.

Hopefully, these suggestions will help make "throwing hairballs" a very infrequent occurrence...and lead your kitty to a long healthy life!

Thank you so much for the great advice.  The vet was not helpful in giving me anything to try.  Just told me to call if he got worse.  I increased the water I was adding to his food and started using the furminator I had in the bottom of my drawer EVERYDAY, sometimes twice a day.  I started giving him a small amount of salmon oil because I figured it couldnt make things worse.  His hairballs decreased to two times in one week, then hairball free for the past 10 days.  Crossing my fingers that this is caused from the spring shedding season and his poor intestines being so beat up.  If I only I knew back then what I know now!  I appreciate you sharing your story. I am going to look into that other comb you mentioned as well.  It's going to be