Leo's having problems with hair balls now. Not just little ones but huge cigar rolls. I can't help thinking it may be due to the diet change to all canned. Any ideas? Not sure about pumpkin as it kind of gave him the runs at one time-maybe due to his IBD. Most fiber supplements I've seen are carbs.
Fiber supplement suitable for a sugar kitty?
- Thread starter Lillie
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Yong & Maury GA
Member Since 2017
Was it 100% pumpkin without additives, fillers, spices, or sugar? Also, how much did you give? If you give too much it can cause diarrhea because it is a natural laxative. Adult cats: 1/2 teaspoon - 1 teaspoon pumpkin daily. So a flat 1/4-1/2 teaspoon in breakfast and same in dinner.
I wrote this for a couple other members whose kitties had hairballs: Once a day, smear a 1/4 teaspoon of petroleum jelly (Vaseline) on her paw and see if she licks it away
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What state are you in? We are entering shedding season and some of us North-eastern people got a flux of warm weathers. Confused all of nature lol
I wrote this for a couple other members whose kitties had hairballs: Once a day, smear a 1/4 teaspoon of petroleum jelly (Vaseline) on her paw and see if she licks it away
.What state are you in? We are entering shedding season and some of us North-eastern people got a flux of warm weathers. Confused all of nature lol
I thought I had seen this somewhere on the forum but couldn't remember where. Do you think the dosage is the same for large cats? Leo is a pretty big boy. I can't remember about the pumpkin I gave him. It was a long time ago but I know I have to be careful since his IBD can be activated. He's been grooming himself an awful lot lately and he is long haired. It could be stress also from going back and forth to the vets, shots, testing, etc. When he get nervous he grooms a lot. I need to start early with the combing and brushing this year. Thanks for the info.
katiesmom
Member Since 2013
You can try a little psyllium husk powder. Psyllium has also been used to help regulate/lower blood sugar levels in people with diabetes and many say with cats too.
I have using Yerba Prima Psyllium Husk Powder for years. It's available at amazon, vitamin shoppe, almost all online vitamin sites. I have seen it in the drugstore and grocery store too.
I make my girls' food (raw diet) and add it to their food when making and give a little bit extra in one meal a day. Absolutely no sugar or anything else added, just psyllium. I would assume it's basically tasteless, they dont seem put off by it at all.
I have using Yerba Prima Psyllium Husk Powder for years. It's available at amazon, vitamin shoppe, almost all online vitamin sites. I have seen it in the drugstore and grocery store too.
I make my girls' food (raw diet) and add it to their food when making and give a little bit extra in one meal a day. Absolutely no sugar or anything else added, just psyllium. I would assume it's basically tasteless, they dont seem put off by it at all.
How much of the psyllium husk powder do you use? Does it depend on the size of the cat? Leo has thrown up massive hair balls two nights in a row now. He's never done that before and I don't think I've ever seen so many hair balls come out of a cat ever. I can't help but think it may be due to the reduced amount of fiber now because he's only on grain free canned wet food. His BM's are normal and he doesn't seem ill and still wants to eat after he gets rid of the hair balls. My carpet can't take any more!!
Sieden
Member Since 2016
I buy my psyllium husk powder in the capsules and I would suggest just 1 capsule, open it up and sprinkle it in the food. Adding a little bit of water to the food wouldn't hurt either as the powder will absorb it. Brushing your cat will also help tremendously. I have a long haired cat and he used to puke up hair cigars too but now that I brush him twice a week he almost never does and I don't even need to give him fiber.
Thanks. I'm afraid I have sluffed off on the daily brushing since his diabetes started since there seems to be so much to attend to with this and his IBD, etc. Not a good idea since he can have trouble assimilating the fur he takes in due to the IBD. In the past I have had him shaved (mostly just on his under neath hair and his butt area) for the summer but it seems the shedding has come early this year. It has been worse since he has been on his grain free canned food so I'm hoping it's just that he needs more fiber. I'll try the psyllium powder in his food. Thanks again.
Annie&Charlie
Member Since 2017
Hi Lillie,
I've not had any luck with giving pumpkin or psyllium for my three cats. They seem to not like it, and won't touch it. And I have tried many times. Did water down plain pumpkin and put it in a small feeding syringe daily for my fiv cat, and it seemed to work somewhat for him. Think it was the scent of the psyllium that caused them to run away from the food bowl
A vet recommended a generic brand of human laxative called lax a day, it's a polyethelene glycol powder that you mix with water for occasional use in humans/felines if constipation becomes a recurring issue. It worked with my fiv cat, as his stools became drier than they should have been. He was constantly straining, so the lax a day became a help as it softens stools. It's known as an osmotic laxative and causes water to be retained in the stool. The dosage was 1/8 of a teas dissolved in a tablespoon of water and administered with a small needless syringe a little at a time behind the canines. Don't know if this will work, although it did with george.
Think some owners also put a little olive oil or coconut oil in their cat's food to aid in hairball control once or twice a week. One of mine really likes coconut oil so I'll give it once a week. Brushing is good but it's not always easy to do it everyday and all my cats are in the midst of a seasonal spring shed that I may or may not survive
I've not had any luck with giving pumpkin or psyllium for my three cats. They seem to not like it, and won't touch it. And I have tried many times. Did water down plain pumpkin and put it in a small feeding syringe daily for my fiv cat, and it seemed to work somewhat for him. Think it was the scent of the psyllium that caused them to run away from the food bowl
A vet recommended a generic brand of human laxative called lax a day, it's a polyethelene glycol powder that you mix with water for occasional use in humans/felines if constipation becomes a recurring issue. It worked with my fiv cat, as his stools became drier than they should have been. He was constantly straining, so the lax a day became a help as it softens stools. It's known as an osmotic laxative and causes water to be retained in the stool. The dosage was 1/8 of a teas dissolved in a tablespoon of water and administered with a small needless syringe a little at a time behind the canines. Don't know if this will work, although it did with george.
Think some owners also put a little olive oil or coconut oil in their cat's food to aid in hairball control once or twice a week. One of mine really likes coconut oil so I'll give it once a week. Brushing is good but it's not always easy to do it everyday and all my cats are in the midst of a seasonal spring shed that I may or may not survive
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It sounds like the brand Miralax because those are the exact ingredients. It does work really well for constipation but my kitty Leo leans toward loose stools to begin with so I'm not sure what to use right now. From what I've read the stool softners only work on the intestines so if his hair balls are concentrated and stuck in the stomach area it may not work. Other than added fiber I may try the petromalt(flavored petroleum jelly) stuff. I tried putting some on his paws one time and he just flung it off across the room. One of my previous cats loved the taste of it and ate it off a spoon! You never know with cats.
Annie&Charlie
Member Since 2017
Agree, I use the stuff too. But it's a mess to get off the carpet and furniture and it sticks and its brown! They hate it, and although I've used it for years off and on, they run whenever I open the tube as they can smell it. So I have to hold them. Sometimes I give them fish oil but they only are attracted to it once in awhile. Olive oil is about the only constant for hairballs that works with my cats.
So I'm guessing that they can't taste the olive oil or coconut oil in food? I'm laughing at them running when you open the tube! They don't miss a thing do they? They always know when the pill bottle comes out, the cat carrier is moved, the gluco meter is being set up, etc.
Annie&Charlie
Member Since 2017
Everyone bolts when the cat carrier comes out
Who's going to be tortured at the Vet's this time? I don't put the oil in their food. They can smell it and will refuse the food. What I do is leave it in a old black iron pan on the stove.
They think they are discovering it and as cats are opportunistic, I leave it overnight and it's gone in the morning. I know they must walk on the kitchen counters at night, their little secret and mine as well.
Who's going to be tortured at the Vet's this time? I don't put the oil in their food. They can smell it and will refuse the food. What I do is leave it in a old black iron pan on the stove.They think they are discovering it and as cats are opportunistic, I leave it overnight and it's gone in the morning. I know they must walk on the kitchen counters at night, their little secret and mine as well.
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Annie&Charlie
Member Since 2017
The only problem with doing that is if you have more than one cat, you can't control who eats the oil. It may be one cat who is looking suspiciously fat in a short time, but so far, no one is looking too portly.
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