Proven Strategies to Prevent Hairballs in Cats

Hairballs can be a nightmare for a cat owner and they can lead to serious health issues for your cat.  Hairballs are caused when a cat grooms itself. There are tiny structures on the cat’s tongue that catches the loose hair and then it’s swallowed.  Most of the hair goes through the cat’s digestive system but, sometimes a small amount of hair may get caught in the stomach and form a hairball.

So how do you prevent hairballs?

1-Groom your cat daily. Regularly combing and brushing your cat will help minimize the chances of getting hairballs.  You should make sure that if you own a long haired cat take special care to groom them often or if the cat does not like grooming take them to a professional groomer..

2-Give them special nutrition for hairballs.  You can find on the market now, foods for hairball reduction.  These specialized cat foods contain high fiber and are designed to improve the overall health of the cat’s coat, minimize shedding and allows hairballs to pass through the digestive system.

3-If your cat does develop a hairball use a mild hairball laxative to help the hairball pass through the digestion system.

4-Discourage your cat from excessively grooming itself.  Why not give him/her a new toy?.