Cat ate feathers from toy – what to do next

This should be a warning to never let your cat play with a feather toy without supervision. There are certain health risks that may come with a cat that swallows a feather from a cat toy. Here’s what you should do next.

Check how many feathers the cat swallowed

While it’s natural for wild cats to swallow bird feathers, the feather from a cat toy is most likely made of synthetic materials so it will be more difficult to pass through the cat’s digestive tract. The more feather the cat swallowed, the greater the likelihood of a blockage occurring in the cat’s body. We recommend calling the vet straight away if you suspect your cat swallowed many pieces of feather or if the cat swallowed a large piece of feather without it being chewed into smaller pieces.

Help the feather move along

A visit to the vet may not be necessary if your cat is not showing any signs of concern. You may want to just monitor your cat for the time being if it is not showing any loss of appetite and not showing signs of gastrointestinal symptoms like vomiting and diarrhea.

There are certain steps you can take to make it easier for the feather to move along the cat’s gastrointestinal tract. You could, for example, give your cat some hairball treats or hairball remedies like Katalax or Laxatone paste.

Add fiber to the cat’s meal

Temporarily adding more fiber to the cat’s diet can help push things along in the cat’s gut. You could, for example, mix in a bit of unsweetened pumpkin puree to the cat’s wet food. Please contact the vet straight away if your cat is not showing any signs of passing feces or showing signs of abdominal pain.

If all goes to plan then you should hopefully see the cat pass the feathers within a few days. Make sure the cat doesn’t cause further trouble by storing the cat toys in a secure storage basket.