Cat licked his leg bald. Hotspot?

[hannahe01]

I’m pretty sure my cat has a hotspot. He’s occasionally has had these before, spots where he will lick until it’s naked and pink. They usually clear up on their own without an issue however this one is large. It looked better this morning because he’d been leaving it alone for a day but this afternoon he’s back to licking it once again and it’s definitely pink and soon to be bald if he doesn’t stop.

my vet recommended a low dosage of Zyrtec to try and I also bought the anti-itch hot spot MX spray from petsmart as well. I’m not sure what’s causing it (I don’t think it’s food allergies.) they only ever appear on his feet or legs. It may be regular old allergies as I notice them more in spring/fall. I don’t see them in the winter time. He also seems a bit itchy. (Scratching his ears and what not.) I don’t think it’s stress as he doesn’t really show any other signs of high stress. He plays, he eats and drinks and uses his box, he doesn’t hide.

Should I dab some hydrocortisone cream on the spot and then bandage it so he’ll leave it alone? I do not want to take yet another trip to the vet as it’s expensive and extremely stressful. I have to drug him and they sedate him because he gets extremely stressed at the vet. The vet is an absolute last resort and he was just there to have a cyst removed a week ago. What should I do? Pic for reference.

 

[catsknowme]

If you have coconut oil (cold-pressed is said to work best), apply a thin layer over the bald spot prior to using the hydrocortisone cream which is likely to burn at first.

 

[tnl]

He might still be stressed from the vet a week ago. Cat's will groom themselves for comfort and over groom when they are stressed. Maybe you could try a cat calming diffuser like Feliway or Comfort Zone? I have a 14 year old who "plucks" himself. His belly is mostly bald. He recently went partially blind and started plucking more. Then his cat buddy recently died - he was a mess (plucking his sides too) but he is improving. It's been a bad year for us!

 

[hannahe01]

He might still be stressed from the vet a week ago. Cat's will groom themselves for comfort and over groom when they are stressed. Maybe you could try a cat calming diffuser like Feliway or Comfort Zone? I have a 14 year old who "plucks" himself. His belly is mostly bald. He recently went partially blind and started plucking more. Then his cat buddy recently died - he was a mess (plucking his sides too) but he is improving. It's been a bad year for us!

It’s possible however I don’t know if that’s it. Like i said he’s done this before. Never has had one quite this large but he’s done it in the past! He just doesn’t seem very stressed to me, usually when cats are stressed other signs read their ugly head

 

[hannahe01]

He might still be stressed from the vet a week ago. Cat's will groom themselves for comfort and over groom when they are stressed. Maybe you could try a cat calming diffuser like Feliway or Comfort Zone? I have a 14 year old who "plucks" himself. His belly is mostly bald. He recently went partially blind and started plucking more. Then his cat buddy recently died - he was a mess (plucking his sides too) but he is improving. It's been a bad year for us!

Also I’ve been using feliway for months, not sure if it actually does anything but I always keep them handy

 

[tnl]

Did he have an IV when he had his surgery? Maybe it's a sore spot from that?!

 

[hannahe01]

Did he have an IV when he had his surgery? Maybe it's a sore spot from that?!

I am not sure! It’s possible as I only noticed this after the vet visit. Like two days after. I’m gonna continue to use the antibacterial wipes on it to keep it from getting icky. Hopefully he’ll leave it alone.