persistent fur balls

I am new here, and desperate. My 4 year old Maine Coon, has just had to have her 2nd operation in 6 months for lodged furballs in her intestines......they are quite large, about 3 inches.
I am trying to find out what is good to either, prevent large furballs or disperse them before they get too big. She is currently on Hills ZD feed which is for her problem with bowels, but has now settled down for the last 12/18months, and has been quite well in herself, she also has wet food, which shes does well on. My other cat, also MC, does not have problems, but his coat is quite silky as opposed to Bella which is quite dense. I brush her every day, and am now even thinking of having her shaved, especially around the belly which is very dense. So if there is anybody out there that has a similar problem, please help. As the vet said although it quite rare to have to operate to remove furballs, doing it once was bad, but now twice, and the likely of it happening again has increased, and if so, then we might have no option to put her to sleep, as she can't keep having operations. PLEASE HELP

Hi there, so sorry to hear you are having this problem.
I have never heard of such a severe case of fur balls. Most cats are able to bring up fur balls eventually - I've had a couple of enormous ones from my coonies.

Has the vet recommended any kind of malt paste which is supposed to help them bring the fur up?
I have used Katalax before:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Katalax/dp/B...9866439&sr=8-1

I don't really know of any other remedy, other than frequent brushing which you are already doing.
Or is there anything you could do in terms of diet?
I hope more knowledgeable members may be able to suggest something.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Howlinbob

Hi there, so sorry to hear you are having this problem.
I have never heard of such a severe case of fur balls. Most cats are able to bring up fur balls eventually - I've had a couple of enormous ones from my coonies.

Has the vet recommended any kind of malt paste which is supposed to help them bring the fur up?
I have used Katalax before:

Katalax: Amazon.co.uk: Kitchen & Home

I don't really know of any other remedy, other than frequent brushing which you are already doing.
Or is there anything you could do in terms of diet?
I hope more knowledgeable members may be able to suggest something.

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Bella has had Katalax before, our vet suggested she have a one dose a day, and also looking into anti furball kibbles from hills, but finding out first if it is suitable to mix with ZD, some one also suggested putting a bit of oil into her feed as well....

I've done a bit of asking around, and so far someone has recommended this anti- fur ball paste:

Beaphar Hairball Paste for Cats 2 in 1 100 g (Pack of 2): Amazon.co.uk: Grocery

As for diet, I don't think that diet itself will solve the fur ball problem, but I would say that anti-furball kibble will not help. In fact kibble is the worst possible food you could feed your cat, no matter what the Hills fancy marketing and the vet tell you. It's great that Bella is doing well on wet food. What is her bowel problem? Some bowel problems can be eased by cutting out dry food altogether.

Hi again Stella, just wanted to add that a lady I know who now feeds her cats a 100% raw diet including whole prey, says that her cats don't shed hair nearly as much as when they were on kibble. Previously there would be a fur ball every 2-3 weeks, and now there's hardly any. She says that shedding has reduced by 80% on the raw diet. It might be worth re-thinking what you are feeding Bella.

I was talking to a girl in the pet store a few weeks ago about this,she was buying RC Indoor Longhair,said it cured her cat!!!