Cat Shedding a ton and throwing up hairballs

[LittleRiceBall]

Hey all! I know it's shedding season for our furbabies, but since this is my first one and I had a really big vet scare a month and a half ago due to gastrointestinal issues, I wanted to find out what was normal!

Henry has a VERY sensitive stomach and, by extension, very sensitive skin. Since spring is rolling in, he's been shedding a lot more. I can easily pull his fur out if I gently tug on him, and it's all over his cat tower. I think these things are normal, but I'm not sure.

What I don't think is normal is that he's developed a small bald spot on the back of one of his hind legs. He also threw up a pretty sizeable hairball this morning. What I'm wondering is if this could be related to some sort of allergy. We (the vet and I) have determined that he's allergic to something based off what happened, so I've switched his food to be one without poultry, which we think is the culprit. The only thing my picky guy likes to eat is Purina Pro Plan Beef and Cheese flavor. I've been told conflicting info about beef and how easy it is to digest, but since he's a big fan of it and needs to gain the weight, I've kept him on it.

Vet says to give him a full month on the new diet to see improvements, but I wanted to ask you all if his shedding and hairball throwing-up is something I should be taking him to the vet for or if it's somehow related to his new food. Thanks!

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi! While all cats are different in terms of the amount of hair they will shed, being able to pull fur out by a gentle tug seems a bit unusual/extreme. That, combined with the bald spot on the back of one of his hind legs, could be part of the allergy issue, as he might be incessantly licking/biting/scratching that area - wearing away the hair. I would call the vet and ask if they have heard of a food allergy causing the hair to come out so easily when gently tugged on. Is he getting bald spots anywhere else? You probably ought to mention the bald spot to the vet as well. The hairballs are likely just the result of overgrooming and whatever is causing excessive hair loss. When those issues are resolved, the hairballs will likely diminish.

Brushing and hairball treatments should probably become part of your daily/weekly regimen. You can try a dab of butter/margarine on his paw or from your finger for him to lick off to help with passing the hair through his digestive system - maybe daily for a day or so, and then perhaps a couple of times a week. There are other hairball remedies that other members will likely post for you too! I use Temptations Hairball Control treats, but there are probably better options out there. Feeby is short haired and gets frequent brushings, so I don't really know how effective her hairball treats are, but she does like them!!

 

[LuxBear]

I too have, well used to have, a chronic hairballer. I didn’t change his diet but I started giving him about an 1/2-1 inch of Catlax every other day and have had maybe two hairballs in the past year. You could try this treatment for your kit. It’s very inexpensive on amazon.

 

[LittleRiceBall]

Hi! While all cats are different in terms of the amount of hair they will shed, being able to pull fur out by a gentle tug seems a bit unusual/extreme. That, combined with the bald spot on the back of one of his hind legs, could be part of the allergy issue, as he might be incessantly licking/biting/scratching that area - wearing away the hair. I would call the vet and ask if they have heard of a food allergy causing the hair to come out so easily when gently tugged on. Is he getting bald spots anywhere else? You probably ought to mention the bald spot to the vet as well. The hairballs are likely just the result of overgrooming and whatever is causing excessive hair loss. When those issues are resolved, the hairballs will likely diminish.

Brushing and hairball treatments should probably become part of your daily/weekly regimen. You can try a dab of butter/margarine on his paw or from your finger for him to lick off to help with passing the hair through his digestive system - maybe daily for a day or so, and then perhaps a couple of times a week. There are other hairball remedies that other members will likely post for you too! I use Temptations Hairball Control treats, but there are probably better options out there. Feeby is short haired and gets frequent brushings, so I don't really know how effective her hairball treats are, but she does like them!!

Hey, thanks for the feedback! Henry isn't getting bald spots anywhere else, however his nails are very brittle and I initially called the vet because he was losing an unusual amount of whiskers. Sounds like I need to give the vet a call. I'll ring them on Monday. He also isn't gaining weight back as well as I'd like after his little vet incident, so I'd like to address that too. Ugh, I just want my little guy to be healthy! I'm glad I got pet insurance!

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi!

Henry isn't getting bald spots anywhere else, however his nails are very brittle

All this, -- brittle nails, losing whiskers and fur falling out doesn't sound to me like allergies as much as either a major nutritional lack, his digestive system isn't absorbing the nutrients he's eating or something else is going on healthwise.

Try and help him with lots of very gentle grooming (maybe a grooming glove-something really easy on the fur and skin, -- in other words not a furminator) so he's not ingesting so much hair.

Hang in there!! Let us know what the vet says

 

[FeebysOwner]

Oh! Totally agree with Furballsmom - the other things that you've now described that are going on with him would suggest something other than an allergy, or so it would seem to me anyway. Certainly, explain it ALL to the vet, so they can come up with a testing plan for enzyme/nutritional deficiencies!

 

[LittleRiceBall]

Hi!

All this, -- brittle nails, losing whiskers and fur falling out doesn't sound to me like allergies as much as either a major nutritional lack, his digestive system isn't absorbing the nutrients he's eating or something else is going on healthwise.

Try and help him with lots of very gentle grooming (maybe a grooming glove-something really easy on the fur and skin, -- in other words not a furminator) so he's not ingesting so much hair.

Hang in there!! Let us know what the vet says

Hi! Thanks so much for this info. This seems like it could be very possible. The vet noted that whisker loss was an unusual symptom of allergies, but since all his other symptoms (at the time) were consistent with an allergy, we decided to play it by ear.

What causes cats not to be able to absorb nutrients correctly? Is it a birth defect/enzyme imbalance?

 

[FeebysOwner]

The cause could be anything. When you say he has a sensitive stomach - is he prone to diarrhea? Sometimes, that will cause enzyme/nutritional imbalances. Some digestive tracts just don't work like others - probably somehow due to genetics. My husband has a mild form of Chron's which causes him to have to take Vitamin B12 shots monthly to help with nutritional absorption. All of your cat's symptoms could be allergy related, but it is certainly worth a discussion with your vet to see if they should be checking for other causes while working on the dietary aspect.

 

[LittleRiceBall]

The cause could be anything. When you say he has a sensitive stomach - is he prone to diarrhea? Sometimes, that will cause enzyme/nutritional imbalances. Some digestive tracts just don't work like others - probably somehow due to genetics. My husband has a mild form of Chron's which causes him to have to take Vitamin B12 shots monthly to help with nutritional absorption. All of your cat's symptoms could be allergy related, but it is certainly worth a discussion with your vet to see if they should be checking for other causes while working on the dietary aspect.

Yes, he had severe diarrhea and vomiting when he had his vet issue. The only thing that helped him (after being hospitalized) were antibiotics. It really does sound to me from what everyone is saying that it's worth getting an enzyme test or something of the sort from the vet to really figure out what's going on. Thanks so much for all your input and advice!

 

[FeebysOwner]

The only thing that helped him (after being hospitalized) were antibiotics.

Not sure what the antibiotics were for, but that might also warrant a fecal PCR test to see if that would identify, not only parasites but, certain bacterial/viral issues as well. Just add it to the list to talk to the vet about. And, don't worry too much, most of these issues, once identified, are treatable!!!!!