For Cat Lovers Only XVIII - Post Pics, Ask Questions, Comments, Etc.

[anitram]

I have a question re: hairballs.

We are cat sitting Susu until Wednesday night, so only 3 more days. In the last 5 days she has coughed up 3 hair balls. They are disgusting...thank God her owners described them or I would have thought that she was pooping all over. Anyway, this seems like a lot. I think the main thing is that she is a maine coon and has really long hair and for the first 2 weeks that we had her there was NO WAY that she would let us brush her. She'd hiss and try to scratch if you got near her with the brush. So frankly we gave up on that idea. I'm assuming she's eaten a lot of hair while grooming herself in the last 3 weeks. She's let me give her a good brush twice in the last week.

Is this something I should be concerned about? She is still eating/drinking normally, using her litter normally, etc. She seems a bit more withdrawn, but otherwise doesn't seem ill.

 

[U217]

Saki was being super smooooshy the other day

I squealed when I saw this because 1) it's SO "girl and cat plot to take over world, possibly in diabolical manner" and 2) Morrissey in background.

 

[U2morrow]

Unless something really seems wrong, I wouldn't be concerned. In my experiences cats tend to throw up/have hairballs fairly frequently (which is all relative of course). Beyond the usual, I know several cats (mine included) that will always throw up when their owners go away because they are anxious, their schedule is disrupted, etc.

I have a question re: hairballs.

We are cat sitting Susu until Wednesday night, so only 3 more days. In the last 5 days she has coughed up 3 hair balls. They are disgusting...thank God her owners described them or I would have thought that she was pooping all over. Anyway, this seems like a lot. I think the main thing is that she is a maine coon and has really long hair and for the first 2 weeks that we had her there was NO WAY that she would let us brush her. She'd hiss and try to scratch if you got near her with the brush. So frankly we gave up on that idea. I'm assuming she's eaten a lot of hair while grooming herself in the last 3 weeks. She's let me give her a good brush twice in the last week.

Is this something I should be concerned about? She is still eating/drinking normally, using her litter normally, etc. She seems a bit more withdrawn, but otherwise doesn't seem ill.

 

[U217]

I have a question re: hairballs.

We are cat sitting Susu until Wednesday night, so only 3 more days. In the last 5 days she has coughed up 3 hair balls. They are disgusting...thank God her owners described them or I would have thought that she was pooping all over. Anyway, this seems like a lot. I think the main thing is that she is a maine coon and has really long hair and for the first 2 weeks that we had her there was NO WAY that she would let us brush her. She'd hiss and try to scratch if you got near her with the brush. So frankly we gave up on that idea. I'm assuming she's eaten a lot of hair while grooming herself in the last 3 weeks. She's let me give her a good brush twice in the last week.

Is this something I should be concerned about? She is still eating/drinking normally, using her litter normally, etc. She seems a bit more withdrawn, but otherwise doesn't seem ill.

There is some stuff called Petromalt (other brands as well) that you can get at any pet supply store. Cats will usually lick it off your finger but if not, you can smear it onto their paw and they'll lick it off that way, while giving you an exasperated look that you messed up their fur. (If you put it on them and it's in too big of a lump, sometimes they can shake it off and it's kind of a pain to clean off the carpet) It lubes them up on the inside so the hairballs go out...in a...better way.

 

[Sicy]

lol that is so cute! "Daddy's home yay!"

I have a question re: hairballs.

We are cat sitting Susu until Wednesday night, so only 3 more days. In the last 5 days she has coughed up 3 hair balls. They are disgusting...thank God her owners described them or I would have thought that she was pooping all over. Anyway, this seems like a lot. I think the main thing is that she is a maine coon and has really long hair and for the first 2 weeks that we had her there was NO WAY that she would let us brush her. She'd hiss and try to scratch if you got near her with the brush. So frankly we gave up on that idea. I'm assuming she's eaten a lot of hair while grooming herself in the last 3 weeks. She's let me give her a good brush twice in the last week.

Is this something I should be concerned about? She is still eating/drinking normally, using her litter normally, etc. She seems a bit more withdrawn, but otherwise doesn't seem ill.

As long as she's eating and drinking etc I wouldnt worry about it, especially since you only have 3 more days. Zoey gets hairballs pretty bad sometimes to the point where she will actually stop eating for a day. I'm sure it upsets her tummy.

I squealed when I saw this because 1) it's SO "girl and cat plot to take over world, possibly in diabolical manner" and 2) Morrissey in background.

Thanks (love Moz)

 

[Drowningman]

Anitram, About the hairballs, I would not worry about it. Especially since the cat is a Maine Coon. Keto has similar issues. All these long haired cats do ingest tons of their own hair and the result is very frequent hairballs.

I have friends who have short haired cats and they rarely throw up at all so when they see Keto throwing up as frequently as he does, they freak out too but its normal.


Awesome Pics Sicy, I really like the Black and White one.

 

[mobvok]

Bully Cat Stuffs Cat In Box - YouTube

 

[mobvok]

猫VSおれ - YouTube

 

[kellyahern]

^ lol, great videos

 

[cobl04]

 

[yolland]

Our 16-year-old Sammy has developed a recurrent self-biting habit where she chews away at her front pawpads until they're all raw, red and oozy. We've had to take her to the vet for this several times over the last year, and whenever we've asked about the possibility of an E-collar to prevent the biting, she says those just make cats depressed and recommends a cortisone shot instead. Which does work (at least, until the next time Sammy starts worrying away at it), but I hate to keep shooting her up with steroids. The vet says there's no sign of allergies, cysts or anything like that, so it appears to be strictly a nervous problem, though there haven't been any significant changes in the household or our cats' routine we can think of that might explain her being stressed out.

Now her paws are getting raw again and I'm really tempted to just ignore the vet's disdain for E-collars and give one a try for a few days, to see if that plus the topical spray we keep on hand (Vetericyn) might do the trick. Anyone else had this problem with one of their cats?

 

[cobl04]

I'm no expert but I'd go the cortisone shots. One of our old cats used to scratch itself red raw and we put an bucket collar on it, but a couple weeks after it heals and we took the bucket thing it just started doing it again.

 

[Sicy]

Saki licks the fur off of the inside of his front legs. He's been doing this ever since he had a super traumatic vet visit like almost a year ago. It's very frustrating. The fur will grow back and then he'll just lick it off again.

I dont think it would hurt to try an e-collar, though it might stress the cat out more. You could always try for a day or two and see how it goes. There's also a spray and plug in called Feliway that you can get that is supposed to let out vapors that calm the cat.

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

we had a cat, tasmania, who started eating all her fur off her legs too. it started once we got sunnie (the two of them really didn't get along). poor thing, we put her on prozac, gave her one of those sad elizabethan collars, etc. but nothing really did the trick. well the collar did but she just looked so sad with it i didn't have the heart to leave it on.

 

[cobl04]

well it was always gonna be pushing shit uphill after you named it that...

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

i saw it on my globe and liked the name. though when i was little i thought it was its own country, haha. but hey, better that than people in michigan naming their kid adelaide even though they couldn't find it on a map, right?

 

[kellyahern]

Wally continues his love affair with bags

rum cake boxes are okay too

 

[kellyahern]

But watching for lizards outside is the best!

 

[MsPurrl]

I Wally!

 

[arw]

But watching for lizards outside is the best!

so handsome! My guy has ducks, yours has lizards! What lucky boys

 

[Mrs. Garrison]

But watching for lizards outside is the best!

that should keep him going for hours

Boomer likes to sit atop the toilet

 

[Mrs. Garrison]

Boomer guards the house from the creatures of the night in his kitty window seat. The seat has a weight limit of 18 lbs, i think he might be pushing that a little bit

from his view in the window he watches birds drink from the bird bath, stray cats wander around the yard, and God only knows what else....

 

[MsPurrl]

Watch Boomer! Love the pic of him on the toilet tank.

 

[Mrs. Garrison]

Watch Boomer! Love the pic of him on the toilet tank.

thanks, he's a good boy, very protective

 

[Mrs. Garrison]

this morning, Boomer spots a little stray cat in the backyard, see if you can too....

Boomer, being the guard dog-cat ive always wanted, gets rather aggressive when the stray moves closer to the door. Seconds before i took this picture Boomer was standing on his hind legs smacking the glass. His tail was still swishing back and forth furiously and he was growling and hissing even as i took this picture...

 

[MsPurrl]

Awwwwwwwwww!

 

[The Sad Punk]

Just an update on Ben, who moved to the city from the country a couple months ago - she's doing splendidly. We honestly thought that she'd never recover from such a big shift, from several acres of land to a tiny apartment, but it was literally within days that she felt at home.

well it was always gonna be pushing shit uphill after you named it that...

Don't knock it 'til you go there...

 

[domo-kun]

Took some photo's of Galeonsgirls Cat Miep She's such a cutie, and a bit of a dork.
I'm usually lurking this thread since I have no cat but as soon as I move out I will


Hunting Crickets

Hunting Guppy's. (No Guppies where harmed)

Hope you like.

 

[kellyahern]

Boomer, being the guard dog-cat ive always wanted, gets rather aggressive when the stray moves closer to the door. Seconds before i took this picture Boomer was standing on his hind legs smacking the glass. His tail was still swishing back and forth furiously and he was growling and hissing even as i took this picture...

Worf used to do that. I made the mistake of approaching her from behind once when she was in guard cat mode. She turned around and bit me so hard it left a bruise .

The only cat she ever saw outside that she tolerated was this gray cat that roams the neighborhood - I think he belongs to someone a few streets down. We called that cat Worf's "boyfriend" because he was the only cat that she saw that she didn't want to kill .

Wally's gotten used to the gray cat too, but I haven't seen gray in a few weeks. I hope he's okay.

 

[Mrs. Garrison]

Worf used to do that. I made the mistake of approaching her from behind once when she was in guard cat mode. She turned around and bit me so hard it left a bruise .

The only cat she ever saw outside that she tolerated was this gray cat that roams the neighborhood - I think he belongs to someone a few streets down. We called that cat Worf's "boyfriend" because he was the only cat that she saw that she didn't want to kill .

Wally's gotten used to the gray cat too, but I haven't seen gray in a few weeks. I hope he's okay.

I know what you mean...worrying about the gray cat. When i dont see the stray or one of the neighbors cats i kick myself for not feeding it. Even though i know thats not good practice. I suspect they eat their fair share of rodents anyway. Though i do keep the bird baths filled up so they can get a drink when they want.