My 17-year-old fluffy cat still vomits hairballs after special food?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Lilly. A longhaired cat should only produce 3-4 hairballs per year. Any more than that is considered abnormal. If her initial blood panel came back normal, I typically recommend a secondary panel that checks for pancreatitis, a disease known as pancreatic exocrine insufficiency as well as cobalamin and folate levels. This can reveal the cause of the vomiting or give some treatment options for her. Inflammatory bowel disease is common cause of chronic vomiting. This will typically result in a low cobalamin levels. It can not be diagnosed without intestinal biopsies, but those are very invasive. An abdominal ultrasound can give a lot of information and rule out other causes of vomiting. If I suspect this to be the case, I will treat the patient with a prescription hydrolyzed diet to help decrease inflammation and sometimes medication as well. I hope this information helps!

Hello. Of course, having your veterinarian check Annabelle would be the best , but if finances are tight, then you need to take a little more control over her grooming. Try to brush her every single day to try & minimize the amount of hair she ingests. If she does not like being brushed, start slow, maybe for a second or two, & reward her. Every day, try to do a little more. Take her off all fish based cat food, canned & dry, & treats. Switch her slowly to a poultry or meat based one. These are readily available, but you need to look at the ingredients ( Purina makes one ). You may need to try a diet dedicated for cats with sensitive stomachs. Hill's pet foods makes one, and you should be able to purchase this at any large pet retailer like Petco. Making these changes may not eliminate all vomiting, but should help. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

While vomiting hair occasionally is normal for some cats the increased frequency you have described is concerning. It is possible at Midnight is grooming more due to a seasonal coat shedding or she may have some underlying intestinal irritation contributing to the vomiting. Cats that hunt are at higher risk for parasites and this can also contribute to vomiting. If the increased frequency of vomiting continues or if you notice any other signs such as decreased appetite, lethargy or weight loss, I would recommend that you have her seen by your veterinarian. They may recommend checking a stool sample for parasites and possibly blood work to rule out other potential causes for vomiting such as kidney disease or thyroid problems.

She is obviously grooming a lot and therefore ingesting a lot of hairs. It is good for her to either poop out the hair or even regurgitate the hair balls. I think you are doing everything right and I would not change her food regimen. You can help her a bit by combing or brushing her coat and removing loose hair. This would reduce hair ingested. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. Please take the time to mark this question as helpful or not as it helps us to improve on the quality of our answers to other pet owners. Thank you kindly!

Poor guy. It sounds like Simba could very well have inflammatory bowel disease if he is vomiting this much. The next best step here though to ensure we have not missed anything is some baseline bloodwork (check organ function and clues) and an abdominal ultrasound to look at the intestines for signs of inflammation. If inflammatory bowel disease is the most likely cause, then Simba will need to go on a prescription diet for best results. Some good options to consider are: Royal Canin Hypoallergenic Hydrolyzed protein, Hlil's Z/D Ultra or Royal Canin Selected protein PR. A short course of steroids should also be considered to help calm things down. Here is more information on inflammatory bowel disease in cats and the treatment options in detail --> https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=7393377 Another possible causes here is a hairball obstruction, so it is important to get Simba to your vet for radiographs of his stomach and look into this possible cause. If a hairball trichobezoar (hairball mass) is the cause, then it may need surgical removal. If it is not a severe case then your vet likely will try some stool softeners and hairball formula to see if this can resolve the issue. I hope that Simba does well moving forward and that you get a handle on her frequent vomiting episodes. Best of luck and take care.

Hello! Hyperthyroidism can cause obsessive behaviors (ie. overgrooming), as well as vomiting. You should see a decrease in her vomiting over the next few months as the medication levels stabilize. I would recommend adding a hairball supplement to her diet in the mean time though. It usually comes in a stinky paste form that they love and helps lubricate the hair to move it along. If she lets you, brushing her regularly can reduce the amount of hair she's able to ingest. The Furminator brand brush is a lifesaver for serious shedders. I hope this is helpful! Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! :)

Hello, thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Poor Molly, that looks uncomfortable. Molly may be having some type of allergic reaction that has become infected. Make sure you are using a good flea product, not just a cheap one from WalMart. If Molly will let you, you can try bathing her in a medicated shampoo that has Benzoyl Peroxide. If not, please have her seen by your veterinarian. She may need to be treated with a steroid injection &/or antibiotics to clear this up, or to get to the source of the irritation. Take care.