Hairballs are simply part of a cat’s life.  You may have noticed your cat would spend around 1/3 of their time awake “doing their hair”.  It’s definitely not vanity – what they are doing is pulling off loose hair with their tongue which is a bit like a micro grater!

Mostly the hair just comes out the other end, but if it doesn’t go out the back, then it needs to come up the front – that’s what we call a hair ball or fur ball.  It’s just a bunch of hair missed with mucous.  It’s tube shaped because it has to fit through the narrow esophagus on the way out.  Yup pretty revolting, but very normal for a cat.

As you would expect, long hair cats such as Persians and Maine Coons are more prone to hair balls.  This is because they shed more, and then tend to swallow a lot of hair.

It does help if you brush your cat regularly.  Most important though, if your cat coughs and doesn’t produce a hair ball it could be a sign of something more sinister – like a hairball blockage or a health problem ranging from asthma to heartworm disease.

So if your cat’s cough is unproductive for more than a few days, off to the vet right away!