A cat spends a lot of time licking itself, especially if it has little or no opportunity to go out.
This grooming behaviour is caused by different necessities: to cool itself by humidifying the hair, to reduce stress and emotions, and to get rid of dead hair.
As the cat’s tongue is very raspy (it is covered with corneous papilla), it ingests a great quantity of dead hair when licking itself. Most of the time, ingested hair is eliminated by faecal route, but in some cases, hair tends to agglomerate in the oesophagus and in the stomach, forming balls that can induce digestive disorders. More than 60 % of cat breeders observe a relationship between hairballs and digestive troubles.
Actually, they can either: - be regurgitated by the cat: they are then called “trichobezoards”;- go along the digestive tract, inducing an alternation of constipation and diarrhoea.
Exceptionally, hairballs mixed with faecal matter can prevent the correct emptying of the colon. Then the transit is completely stopped: this is an intestinal occlusion.
This phenomenon is obviously particularly remarkable in long hair cats, especially during shedding periods (spring and autumn). Tangled hair and skin parasites (fleas) exacerbate the licking and increase the risk of hairball formation. Indoor cats are the most at risk because they cannot eat grass. Spontaneous grass consumption by cats is actually a way to stimulate the elimination of hairballs. In older cats that have a slower digestive transit, the risk of constipation is higher.
Grooming by the owner.
Regular brushing and combing (everyday for Persians), is indispensable to get rid of dead hair and to limit hair ingestion by the cat.
Hair Ball Transit System.
It is a special nutritional balance that is applied to specialized products, and aims at minimizing hairball-induced digestive troubles. It is characterized by a fibre enrichment (70 % more fibres compared to some other products), in order to limit hairball formation and to make their elimination easier.
In these specialized products, there is 11 % of dietary fibres, divided into: - non- fermentescible fibres: pea and corn fibres (bulk role);- fermentescible fibres: beet pulp (for the balance of the digestive flora and the integrity of the intestinal mucosa).
All fibres are micronized, i.e. grinded very finely (diameter: 250 micrometers), to increase the water absorption surface in the digestive tract, which in turn favours well-formed stools. Thanks to the very high quality of ingredients used in these products, fibre enrichment does not impair the total digestibility much. Seven breeders out of 10 reckon that the quantity of stools produced is even inferior to what they usually observe. The excellent quality of the stools (consistent, dry, compact, regular), probably influences this judgment.
The above mentioned products are highly efficient but some of the other products available present defects: - no acidification; not adapted to most adult cats.- low protein quality: poultry meal and corn gluten (low digestible), whereas the specialized products aforementioned associate poultry + fish + egg powder.
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