{"id":41051,"date":"2023-09-25T10:07:11","date_gmt":"2023-09-25T10:07:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/?p=41051"},"modified":"2025-06-19T09:21:41","modified_gmt":"2025-06-19T09:21:41","slug":"how-can-i-prevent-my-cat-from-suffering-from-hairball-problems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/how-can-i-prevent-my-cat-from-suffering-from-hairball-problems\/","title":{"rendered":"\ud83e\udd14How can I prevent my cat from suffering from hairball problems?\ud83d\ude3f"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-99b9227844f58c15a7b45e3ec52bafbb\">Hairballs are a very common problem in cats basically because they are <strong>very hygienic animals<\/strong>. This permanent interest in grooming means that they spend a lot of time licking their bodies, with the consequent<strong> ingestion of a large amount of hair which, mixed with gastric secretions, takes on a fairly compact form<\/strong>, known as trichobezoar, although it is often referred to as a hairball.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-981206b09185809365760cf6b96f7fda\">This is not always a problem as they normally digest them without any problem, eliminating them in faeces or even vomiting them, which is considered normal if it is sporadic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-01a83af9e20269373d318412a1db46b4\">But something that is physiological <strong>can become a problem if they accumulate in excess<\/strong>, which can have two causes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-aef1b23e67c8aa7834ce45dbba036251\"><strong>Increased grooming<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0b06cfce8d80bbcbd461c147eeefa0bf\">The cat licks more and may lick compulsively. This may be caused by stress or a pathology that affects the skin and causes discomfort and itching, which increases licking, such as the presence of parasites, allergies, wounds or pain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c4f669584faf83bedf2c0da51f818c5c\">Excessive hair loss<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5dd5c3b8903e4298850d312c41e61424\">Usually during the moulting season, the amount of hair ingested will be excessive and can lead to digestive obstruction, which could pose a medical problem by affecting normal transit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-60d076749534819a86e00c47ab5c99df\">Not forgetting the possible presence of a disease or digestive disorder that prevents the correct expulsion of the hairballs, leading to their accumulation and possible obstruction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b68e5995cca592bafc3e97284e716183\">The symptomatology that would put us on alert to go to your Veterinarian would be:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Sadness, apathy and lack of appetite with consequent weight loss.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Sedentary lifestyle<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Nausea, regurgitation and\/or vomiting<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Constipation<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Dry cough<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0ce319d3fa85a02439f7f8d900d6b5bf\">But when it comes to hairballs, the most effective thing to do is to work on <strong>prevention.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Frequent brushing:<\/strong> this should be done daily during the moulting season or for long-haired breeds. Logically, if we remove as much hair as possible, we will prevent the dog from ingesting it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Malt:<\/strong> Derived from barley, it is generally a dense honey-coloured paste. It should only be given if necessary, not as a rule or in all cats. If it is necessary, it is important to pay attention to its composition and choose a quality one. Many owners take great care over their pet&#8217;s diet, looking for a top-of-the-range food, only to end up feeding a malt laden with by-products and fats on a daily basis.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Encourage water intake:<\/strong> this will encourage evacuation. Always have clean, fresh water available, including different drinking fountains scattered around the house. Cats tend to be particularly interested in running water; fountains or taps.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Adequate diet<\/strong>: as important as its fibre content is that it takes care of the health of the skin and coat, thus avoiding excessive shedding, and that it is digestible to favour transit.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ae746bc28a78a49ff0c7b58bbbfb7ade\">\ud83d\udc40<strong>Related products<\/strong>\ud83d\udc47<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-1 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:100%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-rounded\"><a href=\"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/cat\/light-sterilized\/\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"582\" height=\"834\" src=\"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Saco-y-cuenco-Lenda-Adult-LightSterilized-.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-41053\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Saco-y-cuenco-Lenda-Adult-LightSterilized-.jpg 582w, https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Saco-y-cuenco-Lenda-Adult-LightSterilized--209x300.jpg 209w, https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Saco-y-cuenco-Lenda-Adult-LightSterilized--480x688.jpg 480w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 582px) 100vw, 582px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-rounded\"><a href=\"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/cat\/sensitive-sterilized\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"582\" height=\"834\" src=\"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Saco-y-cuenco-Lenda-Sensitive-Sterilized-1-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-41054\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Saco-y-cuenco-Lenda-Sensitive-Sterilized-1-1.jpg 582w, https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Saco-y-cuenco-Lenda-Sensitive-Sterilized-1-1-209x300.jpg 209w, https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Saco-y-cuenco-Lenda-Sensitive-Sterilized-1-1-480x688.jpg 480w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 582px) 100vw, 582px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hairballs are a very common problem in cats basically because they are very hygienic animals. This permanent interest in grooming means that they spend a lot of time licking their bodies, with the consequent ingestion of a large amount of hair which, mixed with gastric secretions, takes on a fairly compact form, known as trichobezoar, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":41056,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15,12,14],"tags":[24,21,23],"class_list":["post-41051","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cats","category-health-and-hygiene-for-cat","category-pet","tag-care","tag-cats","tag-hairball"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41051"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41051"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41051\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43431,"href":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41051\/revisions\/43431"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41056"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41051"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41051"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lenda.net\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41051"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}