not used to hairballs... a little advice?

[aegisrose]

Hi Forum,

My boy Bean starting doing that weird little "hacking" that I'm assuming is a hairball. He's under 2 years and has only ever had one other time when he passed a hairball (and I wasn't there... my mom was cat sitting when it happened, and after the vomit episode, it was done).

His appetite is fine, and his energy level is fine. The only weird thing is the cough/hack, but no vomit yet. It's been 24 hours now.  He's not hacking constantly... just now and again.   Should the episode go this long? Should he have pushed something out by now?  

I consider myself a cat veteran, but not for hairballs. I was really lucky with my Gwen and Isis. They were short haired and they never-ever had hairballs (maybe 2 or 3 times in their long life span!).  Anywho--- I just want to make sure that I'm not neglecting something obvious.  Bean is short haired, but still kind of "fluffy". He eats Blue Buffalo Wilderness Weight Control Dry Kibbles, and Blue Buffalo Indoor Canned Food.    Maybe there's not enough fiber there?    Is using an over-the-counter hairball med ok?

 

[red top rescue]

It may not be a hairball at all.  He may actually have some small thing stuck in his throat, a viral throat irritation, or even an allergy.  If it persists, I would recommend taking him to a vet for a check up, let the vet look at his throat and make sure he doesn't have swollen glands, etc.