[Impudent_rabbit]

This is probably a common question that's been answered numerous times, please bear with the newbie.

About a month ago, I adopted a med-long haired cat from my local shelter. I'm worried about her ingesting a lot of hair when she grooms. I've been brushing her every other day or so, especially her tail and withers where her hair is the longest. I'm hoping that will cut down on the loose hair, but I know she'll still swallow some. My previous cat (who passed in August at 16 years old) and all the cats from my childhood were shorthair, so this has never been a huge concern for me before. Also, I've always been able to get previous cats to take a bit of hairball paste off of my finger to help lube things up so to speak, but she will have nothing to do with it. Are there any other brands that are more palatable, or any other alternatives that finicky cats might accept? She's a total chow hound, so I'm kind of surprised she's turning up her nose like this.

 

[Lilly]

Hi rabbit, welcome to the forums!
I have a problem with hairballs sometimes as well. I always put a dab of vaseline on the paw of the cat who is haveing trouble. I know that hairball medicine is mostly vaseline with malt flavor. However, because you already have the hairball medicine I would say instead of trying to get your kitty to take it from your fingers just put a dab of it on his foot. He will lick it off belive me! :wink:
What kind of food are you feeding? Most foods have a hairball formula brand of food. I am going to buy this kind the next time I purchase cat food. It is supposed to help with the digestion of the hair.
I hope it all works out for you!

 

[queen of the nile]

I've had a lot of problems with this myself. My female cat will take the petromalt from my finger but not my other two. I've tried putting it on their paws, but Lucas will flick his paw until it flies off! He is such a brat :roll: ! (Or he'll figure out a way to wipe it on the sofa). He actually will not lick it off but wait until one of his feline friends does it for him. It winds up getting covered with litter from the box and dirt - and Yuck!

So now I feed the hairball remedy like a pill. I open their mouths and wipe it either on their tongue or on the roof of their mouth. Then I close their mouth and stroke their throats until I'm sure they've swallowed. I know it is more difficult to do it this way, but I just add it to their tooth-brushing routine.

 

[Jeanie]

I've done all the above. If you rub in the the fur really well, they can't shake it off. My mom used to put a dab of butter on their noses. I don't know which, but one of mine ate a stick of butter I left out! I learn the hard way sometimes. If I wanted them to eat butter they wouldn't!

 

[Wayne]

You may have to purchase (or get some samples) of various kinds of hairball medicine in dry catfood. I am thinking of Science Diet samplers, they are usually available from a vet who sells that product. When you find a brand that they like, buy a larger package of it, and feed them as much as they want to eat. Normally, hair balls becomes a more serious problem in the spring time of the year, because of them shedding their winter coat.