Pet Thread

9 years ago

Do cats eat grass like dogs do for tummy aches? My cat seems to be puny, bringing up hair balls. I don't have any grass in the house (indoor cat). I've heard feed them butter. Any other suggestions? Normally she's on food for hairball control, but the last time the store was out of her regular food.

Featured Answer

Okiedawn OK Zone 7

9 years ago

Yes, they do eat grass when their stomach feels queasy and such. Our cats prefer rye grass, but in the summer when there's no rye grass, they'll eat any clumping grass that has tender, green young blades....but not bermuda grass and not tough, wiry types of grass.

Any sort of oil added to her food would help. Whenever I open a can of human food packed in oil (sardines, tuna, salmon), I drain off the oil and pour it over the cats' dry food. I don't do this often---maybe twice a month, but it seems to help prevent hairballs in the same way that butter does. I generally only buy tuna packed in water for us, but make a point to buy a can or two a month packed in oil so I can drain the oil onto the cat food. You could add a small amount of cooking oil to her food and see if that helps her. Stirring a small amount of canned pumpkin into cat food (probably easier to hide it in canned cat food than in dry cat food) also adds fiber to it.

I find it easier to prevent hair balls than to fix them after the cat has them. We have a cat brush called a Furminator and it removes tons and tons of hair from the cat. The first time you brush with the Furminator, you'll wonder if the cat will have any hair left when you're done, but after that, regular brushing isn't so bad. The furminator must feel good to the cat---when one cats sees me brushing the hair of another cat, it comes and sits there waiting for it to be his or her turn.

There's also an actual hairball remedy sold on the pet aisles at stores. It comes in a tube, and I think it mostly contains some sort of oily substance that helps pass the hair through their digestive tract. Some cats will lick it off their paw if you squeeze it onto the paw, but others won't.

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Comments (9)

Rebecca (7a)
9 years ago
I had to use the tube hairball stuff with a previous cat, she was the Queen of all Hairballs. She loved the taste and it worked like a dream. Haven't had to use it with a cat since then, as neither of them have had those problems.

The suggestions that Dawn gave are the same ones my vet gave me. I grow oat grass for Audrey now. I don't know if it does something for her digestive system or not, but she loves it, and I know it's good for her. She is on a grain free diet otherwise (dry kibble and wet).
AmyinOwasso/zone 6b thanked Rebecca (7a)
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hazelinok
9 years ago
Someone told me to put a tiny bit of vasoline in their nose and they will clean it off. This goes along with the oily substance suggestions.
AmyinOwasso/zone 6b
Original Author
9 years ago
I put a little cooking oil on her kibble. She sniffed it like what crap have you put on this, but I noticed she ate it.
Okiedawn OK Zone 7
9 years ago
lol. When we have a cat that is acting sickly and has a poor appetite, I put a little bacon grease on their kibble and they wolf it down and meow for more. Whatever is ailing them seems to correct itself with just a small amount of bacon grease added to their diet.
AmyinOwasso/zone 6b
Original Author
9 years ago
DH has a box of bacon grease in the fridge, I'll give her that today. She still seems lethargic, but I haven't seen any more hairballs.
chickencoupe
9 years ago
Bacon grease is really good stuff. I can't keep enough of it on hand and I don't have cats. I use it on the cast iron and any chance I get for cooking so many things. My mother used it for the animals a lot.
Eileen S
9 years ago
Wow, I didn't know grease helps! I just kept changing cat food until she stopped throwing up hairballs. I can't wait to grow some rye grass or oat grass for my cat. She will probably like it since she even chews on the Christmas tree. lol
AmyinOwasso/zone 6b
Original Author
9 years ago
My cat seems to be back to normal. I did buy a can of tuna in oil to have on hand. And we got her regular food. Today the granddogs are here, so she's pissed about that. She refuses to let them keep her from her normal activity. She IS the queen of the house.