Hairball Question

[arouetta]

So one of my cats, I'm not sure which one, threw up a huge hairball.

Spoiler: Really gross hairball picture

I promise you, these are ordinary cats with ordinary size cat stomachs.

So here's the questions - Do I have to worry about a medical issue? Should I figure out which cat barfed it up? Or is this unusual but harmless? And finally, how does a cat fit that much fur in his stomach?

Because of where the cats primarily choose to be I don't often get a chance to see one of the boys eat, but he did come downstairs and ate some food in front of me either yesterday or the day before. The other cat could pass for Garfield and has been planted in front of the food dish pretty regularly.

Other than where I cut out a huge mat, neither of the boys has a thin or bald patch on their fur.

 

[himawari]

I don't think it's something to worry about unless your cats are acting unusual (like lethargic/not eating/drinking/playing/etc). It would probably be best to figure out which cat did it, so you know if it's a one time thing or not. I'd also suggest maybe combing/brushing bot cats to lessen the amount of hair they comb themselves.

 

[Furballsmom]

Can you start adding a hairball gel, like nutrivet hairball paw-gel to their regimen?

 

[dustydiamond1]

So one of my cats, I'm not sure which one, threw up a huge hairball.

Spoiler: Really gross hairball picture

View attachment 242814

I promise you, these are ordinary cats with ordinary size cat stomachs.

So here's the questions - Do I have to worry about a medical issue? Should I figure out which cat barfed it up? Or is this unusual but harmless? And finally, how does a cat fit that much fur in his stomach?

Because of where the cats primarily choose to be I don't often get a chance to see one of the boys eat, but he did come downstairs and ate some food in front of me either yesterday or the day before. The other cat could pass for Garfield and has been planted in front of the food dish pretty regularly.

Other than where I cut out a huge mat, neither of the boys has a thin or bald patch on their fur.

OMG are you SURE which end of a cat that came out of??
Seriously, could you send the photo to your vet to see what they think? Keep us updated ok?

 

[Alicia88]

I've heard that putting a few drops of olive oil on their paws - so they lick it off - can help with hairballs. Not sure if it's true or not.

 

[arouetta]

OMG are you SURE which end of a cat that came out of??
Seriously, could you send the photo to your vet to see what they think? Keep us updated ok?

This is probably grosser than the picture but I had the same thought so I sniffed it to be sure.

 

[arouetta]

I've heard that putting a few drops of olive oil on their paws - so they lick it off - can help with hairballs. Not sure if it's true or not.

I'll try anything to avoid that again. Wonder if canola oil is good enough.

 

[Alicia88]

No idea. I've also heard coconut oil so maybe any kind of oil will work.

 

[Furballsmom]

Should You Add Coconut Oil To Your Cat's Food?
Be sure and scroll through the comments too

 

[xcourtney3]

Petromalt works for my kitties

 

[misterwhiskers]

Oh my god, I’m glad your cat didn’t choke on that thing. Seriously, if you can try a hairball formula cat food, do so. My cat threw up hairballs until I was able to get him on ONE hairball formula and incredibly, it works better than the stuff in the tube.

That is some crazy hair there. Maybe brush a little more? Or buy a deshedder tool, they really do work.

 

[dustydiamond1]

This is probably grosser than the picture but I had the same thought so I sniffed it to be sure.

Great minds think alike. Did you show your vet? We feed Purina One hairball formula dry and FF gravy lovers wet.
Lots of brushing and Iams hairball treats

 

[Alicia88]

We use Purina One hairball formula, too.

 

[arouetta]

Dumb question. For nearly a week one of the cats, the short haired one, has been yowling non-stop to go outside. When outside all he does is eat grass, and usually he pukes it back up once inside. While there's no grass in that glob, he has not been yowling to go outside at all today. Could the frantic desire to go outside repeatedly to eat grass have been him trying to move that hairball? Can a short haired cat create a hairball of that size?

 

[dustydiamond1]

Dumb question. For nearly a week one of the cats, the short haired one, has been yowling non-stop to go outside. When outside all he does is eat grass, and usually he pukes it back up once inside. While there's no grass in that glob, he has not been yowling to go outside at all today. Could the frantic desire to go outside repeatedly to eat grass have been him trying to move that hairball? Can a short haired cat create a hairball of that size?

I've no experience with hairballs hardly at all but it seems to make sense since there isn't the yowling to go outside. Is grass available inside? Poor guy, I think you should post some pictures of him, actually all your furbabys...we love pictures. (even the gross ones )

 

[Alicia88]

Murphy is medium haired, but he sheds even more than long haired Mickey. I pull way more hair out of the brush after brushing Murphy than Mickey and Connor combined. And he threw up an enormous hairball on my kitchen table the other day.