what should you do if your cat is coughing up a hair ball? slap its back? shake it over the toilet?

Question

my cat is coughing up hairballs! it doesnt seem to be enjoying itself. what should I do!

Answer 1

Thats what cats do, you can give them hair ball stuff that helps. Brush their fur will help too...

Answer 2

Cats prize themselves as being clean. There are few animals that clean themselves as much and completely as cat do. Always licking their coat, assuming positions that are almost painful to watch. Every time kitty awakens, and just before sleep, the ritual begins again. Even the paws fall prey to the cats precise cleaning. Well, it's not just a cleaning going on. Kitty is trying to remove loose hair. The tongue of a cat has tiny barbs that pull loose hair from it's coat. This hair is ingested by the cat and in small quantities it will pass through the cats digestive system with no problems. Sometimes, too much is ingested making kitty sick. The end result is a cat heaving and making strange noises through its nose and throat, almost like a muted cough or sneeze. Within a few minutes, a hairball is born. This is very discomforting to the cat, so much that kitty has to begin cleaning itself again, usually with the same results. There are over the counter remedies for this, or you can use a simple "old way" to deal with it. Vaseline. A little bit smeared on top of the front paws will do the trick. Of course, your cat will look at you like you have violated all cat honor, but will just as quickly get it off, first by trying to shake it off, then by licking it off. The Vaseline helps keep the hairball confined to a small ball and lubricates it so it will pass easily.
This treatment is for the occasional hairball and not recommended for daily use.
If the condition persists, and over the counter remedies don't work, or it appears to be hurting the cat, a vet trip may be highly recommended. These severe "attacks" can be very painful and may even cause the digestive track to stop working. To help prevent hairballs, brush your cat often. Cats really enjoy this. If your cat has long hair, it may be recommended to give kitty
a cat cut, especially in the spring when shedding occurs most.
Some vets are recommending feeding cats a small amount of grass or cat nip every other day.
Grass and cat nip are a rich source of fiber and can help in minimizing formations of hairballs.
Wheat, barley, oats or rye type grasses work well. All can be grown indoors for your cat.
A few pinches every other day should be enough.


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Answer 3

What my wife and I do is keep old newspapers close at hand. When one of the cats starts hacking, we grab a piece of newspaper and dive after the cat. It's easier to throw away barfed-upon newspaper than to clean the carpet, and the cats don't mind barfing on newspaper at all.

Get some Petromalt or similar hairball medication so the hairballs will come out the other end. Petromalt is just Vaseline with flavoring added. We have one cat who likes plain Vaseline, go figure.

Slapping or picking up your cat will only interfere with its coughing up the hairball. Better out than in, as Shrek would say.

Answer 4

Nothing let it be. Nature will take care of itself. If the animal has a lot of hairballs you can get hairball food and give it dry like a quarter of cup a day, or they have hairball paste. Thay actually like it just follow the directions. I put it in the cats bowl once a week or whatever the directions say and they gobble it down.

Answer 5

While the cat is actively trying to get rid of the hairball, you should leave it alone. Slapping its' back, shaking, or any other assistance you think you should give will only cause more distress. Specially formulated foods, brushing, or medicine made for reducing/relieving hairballs should help prevent the situation in the future.

Answer 6

I hope your not a fireman that would be kind of scary Lol. Anyways just let the cat cough them up,you don't need to shake it or anything else.I have three cats two of them have long fur. I have tried several different hair ball control foods.After trying several of them i finally found one that works great.It is called IAMS hairball control.My cats went to having hair balls all the time to now barely ever.

Answer 7

Just let your kitty hack it up. He'll work it out. You might want to look for this hairball treatment that's sold just about anywhere you can buy cat food. It comes in a tube and is basically petroleum jelly (flavored in some way that your cat will want to eat it). Just follow the directions on the tube. The petroleum jelly lube up their insides and the hair they eat and keeps it from gathering into a ball in their stomachs. Then they just pass it naturally.

Answer 8

leave the cat alone! coughing up a hair ball is not fun. the thing i can reccomend (I have a 9 yr. old long hair cat.) they have hair ball medications at petco... or... you can place some butter in a bowl near their bowl... the cat will lick the butter, making the butter as a lubricate... and then the hair balls will pass. you can also shave the cat. If you choose the shave idea... i would still suggest giving hair ball medication or butter... cats clean and pull hair out all the time. they are clean animals.

Answer 9

A good hairball remedy is Laxatone. You can buy it at any pet store. All you have to do is apply a small dab to your cats paw.

You could also try hairball remedy dry food.

Answer 10

You wouldn't enjoy someone shaking you when you're throwing up, so don't do it to the cat either.

Just let them do it themselves. They're the ones upchucking and nothing is going to make it easier or better. The back slapping doesn't work on a cat, and barely works on people who are choking, so that's useless too.

Answer 11

When my long hair cat does his thing with hair balls I just sit by him and hold him to comfort him. I don't try to pick him up. I just hold him. I brush him frequently. He loves it, but he still gets one every once in a while . The grooming is a good bonding experience.