# what does a hair ball look like?



## vicky77 (Jul 29, 2004)

Hi there, I have a 3 month old kitten only had her 4 days, I went to see her in the room and found what look like vomit. My friend said it's probably a hair ball, it was like a pale brown, it didn't really smell. It was kinka chunky, sorry don't mean to be gross but need to know if I have to bring her to the vet. She's been sleeping the good portion of the day. I tried playing with her and she would not play. Help! Thanks.


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## RarePuss (Jun 16, 2004)

good point, my cat once threw up what looked like a brown ball... i didn't even look at it's consistency at the time.. but now this makes me think :?


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## Payge (May 12, 2004)

Hair balls usually have fur bits in them. If you just got your kitten and its just been spayed/neutered its very common for them to throw up for a few days after. I'd suggest giving your vet a call and asking them, they can usually tell you whether or not somthing needs to be looked at. Good luck!


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## kana (Apr 23, 2004)

I have never seen a hairball because I think the dog..........gets to them first. 8O 8O 8O 

I have my own question and hope you don't mind. What does it sound like when they are trying to cough one up? Is it a dry hacking sort of sound?


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## Gudewife (Jun 27, 2004)

Usually, you'll be able to find a small, usually brownish-grey oval-ish pellet (or more than one, sometimes) of hair in the vomit, which will often be recognizable pieces of partly digested food (the easiest way to explore cat vomit is either with latex gloves or by putting it into a ziploc baggie, sealing it, then using your fingers to kind of pull it apart while it's inside the bag, and you'll clearly see the strands of hair...can you tell that I have done this before? :roll: Don't even ask me about checking stools...). Also, this gives you a good way to transport the vomit to the vet if you decide to take the cat in for a check.

Assumpta's typical hairball hack is a very dry, hacking sort of wheeze-y noise, very similar to a cough. Occasionally, it'll just be one good hack, but more often it lasts for several minutes.

Assumpta usually is kind of aloof and standoffish when she has a hairball issue, stays close to the ground (instead of jumping up on the couch, for example), and doesn't really want to be touched (though she'll often climb up on me and sleep on my chest if she really feels poorly). I would keep a close eye on your kitten to make sure that she is eating, drinking, and using the litterbox as usual, and a phone call to the vet may be warranted if she seems overly lethargic or at all unwell. I always call the vet if I think that Assumpta is acting strangely or uncharacteristically.


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## Aonir (Aug 18, 2003)

I found 1 hairball in my life.. it was grayish clump of hair with runny stuff around it. When I picked it up to throw it away(not with my hands :lol: ) I could tell it was hair and definately not food.


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## Ianthe (Jun 7, 2004)

Well, it MIGHT be a hairball, but I don't think young kittens usually get them. ( I may be mistaken). Also, you said she didn't want to play and has been sleeping all day...that sounds like a sick kitten to me. And kittens can go downhill very fast. I don't want to scare you, but I think you should get her to the vet. Good Luck!!


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## artemisa (Mar 27, 2004)

That 'cough' sure sounds awful. I'm new to cats and mine was 'coughing' one day and it sounded like he was chocking. He didn't throw up right away either. It was kinda scary, but he didn't look particularly stressed so I didn't worry much


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## Kittys Mom (May 7, 2004)

Kitty's hairballs are usually more food than hair. She'll throw up a bunch of food with a little wad of hair mixed in.


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## Gudewife (Jun 27, 2004)

I've noticed a difference in Assumpta's hairballs since switching to wet food. On Hill's SciDiet Hairball Lite, I'd have to dig and find the hairball in a pile of undigested kibbles (I actually used to find whole pieces in there, and that food is pretty large chunks). On the wet food, her hairballs have been almost pure lumps of fur with very little food visible.


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