Lovely long haired cat

Every time I write a blog I learn a little more about cats….

I asked my neighbour (the veterinary nurse) yesterday for her advice on fur ball treatment.   I haven’t had this particular problem with my own cats lately thank goodness, but remember it vividly from the past.  Its so horrid to hear a beloved cat choking pathetically unable to cough up the ball of fur. 

The very best method for fur ball treatment is of course preventative – grooming regularly - which is especially important with long haired breeds.  If the cat doesn’t like to be groomed, my neighbour advises an alternative, which is to wear a pair of lightly moistened rubber gloves and then sweep your hands over the cats body from head to tail with long smooth strokes.  This removes a lot of the hair that your cat would otherwise consume while grooming.  Only do this for a few minutes, or the gloves will build up static electricity and your cat will get a shock, which will certainly put him or her off any further glove grooming sessions.

I’d heard that Castor Oil is a good remedy for fur balls and yes, my neighbour agrees as the oil helps to break up the ball enabling it to pass through the cat’s system. As a preventative measure give your cat a teaspoon of the oil, she says,  not more than once a week, otherwise too much Castor Oil could build up in your cats system and poison him or her. 

I’ve used Castor Oil very effectively in the past when my one of my own cats was trying unsuccessfully to cough up a fur ball. I gave her one teaspoonful and that did the trick.  So in my opinion, it would seem to be best to use Castor Oil  as a treatment if your cat has a fur ball and groom your cat regularly as a preventative measure, to stop the fur building up in the first place.