FURRY FACTS ABOUT HAIRBALLS
Cat’s care for their coats by grooming. Cats tongues have a number of tiny barbs all pointing in one direction and when they groom the barbs dislodge loose hair.
It is very difficult for a cat to spit the hair out so it has to be swallowed. In most cases the hair passes through the digestive tract in small amounts that never causes any problems. However, sometimes the hair remains in the stomach and gradually accumulates to form a hairball.
The easiest and quickest means of ejection is to vomit the hair back up the gullet. This can be upsetting for owners to see their pet producing a hairball but be reassured that this is a normal event for a significant number of cats so it’s nothing to get unduly concerned about. The hairball is linear in shape and not rounded as the name suggests.
Hairballs are a normal part of most cats’ lives but frequent grooming, which reduces the amount of loose hair, coupled with regular use of a hairball remedy can help prevent the build-up of hairballs.