Allergies In Cats

[renee sanabria]

My cat seems to be over grooming himself. He's always been high anxiety and a bit of a picky groomer, but he seems to be more disturbed by something - showing irritation or aggravation and then quickly licking his back area. The vet gave me revolution in case it is fleas - I have looked him over and haven't spotted any though, and my other cat is not over grooming. Within the last couple of months though, I've noticed these beetles in our kitchen, and this week a caught a couple of small cockroaches. I keep my apartment very clean and the apartment complex sprays for pests, so it's very frustrating that this keeps coming up. Living in an apartment there's only so much you can do if you end up living next to a unit where a filthy person lives who brings these pets along.

Long story short, can insects like this possibly be causing an allergic reaction in him? It's the only new thing I've noticed within the past few months when he started grooming extra.

By the way - he's not grooming to the point of scarring himself, creating wounds, or pulling out fur.

 

[cat princesses]

I honestly think it's the weather right now. My cat has severe allergies to dust mites and storage mites. She was making wounds on her body before we had her diagnosed and she is now on atopica however I have noticed the past week since trees are blooming that she's licking a ton more.....ugh, I was hoping this wouldn't happen to her this spring.

 

[stephanietx]

Do you run Feliway diffusers to help him de-stress? What are you feeding him? It could very well be a food allergy.

 

[renee sanabria]

I've tried different types of stress-lowering products in the past: sprays, collars, diffusers; nothing has seemed to have any impact on him. I'm feeding him a mixture of Tiki Cat and Natural Balance (Salmon and Pea formula) - both recommended by my vet. I just started the Natural Balance yesterday though since I recently spoke with my vet. Hoping it'll work. I had been feeding him Purina One Dry Formula (recommended by previous vet) for years without knowing how terrible dry food is for pets - it is what I was feeding him when the issues first started. Within the last two weeks I've transitioned both my cats to an all wet diet and his symptoms have continued. We've done Tiki Cat, KOHA, and Wild Calling since transitioning.

 

[astrael]

Have you seen any flakey/dry skin? By the end of winter, even my ferals are prone to dry skin. It drives them crazy. Scutch had it really bad. We had to use conditioning wipes (Burt's Bees) on him every day for a week, then we could spread it out. We wipe him down when he anxiously grooms or twitches when we pet him now, once or twice a week. It helps a lot, and he's way calmer and more affectionate afterwards. (I know I'm irritable when I'm itchy and my skin hurts)

But cats can have seasonal allergies like humans. One feral, Judy, gets runny noses in spring. It's clear, aside from an occasional sneeze she acts fine. No coughing, eye mucus, lethargy or anything. Just drippy nose and sneezes. Sometimes a little itching. It clears up once the pollen eases up. Have you had windows open? If so, you could swap out the regular screen for fine pollen filter screens? Or perhaps create a clean air room with an air filter?

 

[stephanietx]

Some cats are allergic to fish flavored foods. That might be something to consider.

 

[desktop]

I'm going through this allergy thing with my cat Butch right now. Originally he was washing obsessively and had a lot of scabs on his back and haunches. Took him to the vet and he gave him a shot of Depo-Medrol. He healed up in a couple days and all his scabs are now gone. But after a month now he has these scabs on his head above his eye and there's a big chunk of fur missing out of his cheek. Took him to the vet again and he believes he did this to himself by scratching at his head. I don't know - to me it seems like his sister might of scratched his face up. Anyway, this time he gave me these pills (Prednisolone). I'm suppose to give him one a day for a week then cut down to half a pill a day for another week and see how he's doing. I have no experience giving a cat pills so I've been crushing them up and putting them in this package food with gravy. Not the best solution. It's a real brain drain dealing with all this.

The vet feels that he is having allergic reaction to his environment. We used to live in a house and he had no issues at all, but then I had to move into this basement room in a friend's house. I guess the basement environment could have all sorts of problems (dust mites, spores, dry air, etc.). He also gave me a new type of food to give him (Hill's Prescription Diet z/d, Hydrolized protein to help with adverse food reactions). Cats can have allergic reactions to all manner of things, especially in the Spring and Summer months. I got a room air purifier to see if that would help (both for me and the cats).

We can't move out of the basement anytime soon so until I can put us back above ground I have to deal with Butch's allergic/sensitive skin issues. Ugh/.......

 

[PatriciaSmith]

Is he an outside cat? With all of the plants starting to come up it could be some of the plants around the apartment complex. This article outlines a few toxic plants: Garden Plants Toxic To Outdoor Cats | Figo Pet Insurance

 

[KristenMilo]

This can be such a sad and frustrating situation. My six year old cat, Milo, has terrible allergies right now. He is licking along his spine and has raw and bald spots. We have had allergy testing, by dermatologist (skin prick tpye), for environmental allergies (he has 13 allergens) and he has had antigen injections once a week for a year and a half. It was working for a while, but I think pollen count is very high right now. We have replaced the screens with pollen reducing screens, kept the house shut and using air filters. We have to use Medrol, a steroid, at times which works but cannot be used often, and he is 3 weeks into his raw rabbit food diet. We were feeding him a Royal Cannin "allergy and bladder" dry food. We switched to raw in order to try to help his immune system and overall health. I really don't think he is allergic to rabbit. Also taking antihistimine, Chlortrimeton, at a high dose, three times a day. Poor Milo cannot seem to get any relief. We are thinking maybe a clean room, with a special filter to reduce all possible allergens. Does anybody have any other suggestions?

 

[Joe Kremyr]

Our poor cat was always scratching her ears and just above her eyes until they were raw...Vet prescribed "Atopica" 25 mg for dogs...We give her a pill every 2 days and no more probs..I no it sounds weird for dogs but have read others using this same treatment with great results...Hope this works for you...We have a great Vet...

 

[calico man]

I honestly think it's the weather right now. My cat has severe allergies to dust mites and storage mites. She was making wounds on her body before we had her diagnosed and she is now on atopica however I have noticed the past week since trees are blooming that she's licking a ton more.....ugh, I was hoping this wouldn't happen to her this spring.

Has the Atopica been working? My indoor/outdoor cat is doing the same thing-constant licking and biting. Vet found only a few bits of flea dirt but no fleas and gave me Atopica. Having a very hard time getting the liquid medication down her but hopefully it will work. Did your vet recommend anything else?

 

[Joe Kremyr]

The Atopica we give our cat is.....Atopica 25mg "PILL" for dogs...as stated every 2 days for our cat....no more problems for scratching,ears shedding hair etc...actually a lady I read said her vet. was a dermatoligest and she recommended this pill....can't imagine giving a cat the liquid...good luck