Hairballs are a common problem in cats. Although they rarely cause serious problems, they can cause the cat obvious discomfort. In addition, they cause messes that can be difficult and inconvenient for the cat owner to clean up. While long-haired cats appear to have more problems with hairballs, nearly all breeds of cats (with the exception of Sphinx cats) can develop them.
The act of grooming for cats involves ingesting significant quantities of loose hair. For the most part, this hair moves through the digestive tract and is excreted. Sometimes, however, the ingested hair forms a mass in the stomach too large to continue passage into the intestinal tract, especially in animals with longer hair, and is expelled orally as a hairball. Some cats show signs of distress during the process. Some cats may also vomit for several days prior to a hairball.
Frequent hairballs rarely present true health problems, but may cause major inconveniences to cat owners, and may occasionally be the cause of a cat being relinquished for adoption.