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What is a more economical home remedy for hairballs for 3 year old cats?

I read that pumpkin can be a home remedy for hairballs? How do you prepare it? I have two cats. One likes petromalt, the other doesn't. However, they may want the pumpkin which will be more economical for me. How about Crisco or vegetable oil added to their good? I caught the picky one eat crisco when I wasn't looking. Not sure of it's effects, I am more careful now when I leave it around when I am baking. Otherwise, what other alternate home remedies can I use? I need your advice.

Thanks.

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Best Answer

You really shouldn't give a cat anything for hairballs daily as it can screw up their digestion. Pumpkin is good for constipation as well as hairballs. But, use only pure canned pumpkin, NOT pumpkin pie mix. Give about a tablespoon or so. If you notice that your cats are hacking up hairballs daily, a trip to the vet might be in order. Other than that, you can give a bit of melted butter, which cats usually take to right away, or a little Vaseline on your finger (which takes a little convincing). Call your vet and ask about a higher fiber diet as that will call the hairballs to pass thru the other end. Daily brushing to remove dead hair is also helpful to prevent excessive hairballs..

Izadore (Izzie) answered on Aug 20th.

Answers

For the pumpkin, you need to use canned PURE pumpkin, not the pie filling. Allie won't eat it and she's my only hairball sufferer. But you can also feed them a food with a higher fiber content to help hairballs. I was feeding Innova which had only 3% fiber and Allie was hacking up several hairballs a week. I switched to Wellness Indoor with 5% fiber and now her hairballs are far fewer. In fact, I can't remember when the last one happened.

Allie answered on 8/20/09. Helpful? / 0

The other posters advice is good. The other thing you can do to help hairballs is daily brushing to remove loose fur. This won't completely stop them swallowing fur when they groom but it can significantly reduce the amount.

Freckles (1993-2011) answered on 8/20/09. Helpful? / 0

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