Cat With Dermatitis… Can’t find fix :(

snsmith2000

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Hi all. I’m new here and was excited to find this site.

I’m currently a distressed cat mom because my beautiful 2 year old Tortie has developed a small patch of dermatitis. I will say, I have not taken her to a vet. She has extreme anxiety and had to be sedated while she was sheltered to be treated. Before I adopted her, she was going to be put down because of how untreatable she was. Since adoption, she’s become very comfortable with me, but not strangers and she refuses to do anything new/unfamiliar with her.

Because of this, I have not scheduled a vet appointment and instead have been trying to figure out what’s causing the dermatitis and fix it at home. I can’t drive, and trying to wrangle her into a carrier and find an Uber that’ll take us would be hard. I’ve had three mobile vets deny to come and see her because of her anxiety (I can’t hold her). I’ve put her on hypoallergenic food, dust free litter, kept my apartment clean, treated her for fleas, applied relievers to the spot, given her immune boosting vitamins, and bathe her occasionally.

The spot continues to go from good to bad and back again. The hair she groomed off is growing back, but she keeps reopening/worsening the scabs and I’m worried about infection. A few people have suggested going to a dermatitis, but the mobile vets said it would likely not be very helpful as cats tend to test positive to multiple different allergens and dermatology testing/treatment for pets is expensive.

I’m at my wits end and don’t know what to do. Does anyone have any advice?
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snsmith2000

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The spot has only been there for a month. I’ve been watching it since I first noticed the hair was thinning and started trying to treat it immediately.
 

Antonio65

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Does she have itch on that spot? Any dandruff or flaky skin? Do you think she's grooming that spot too much?
Your vet is right, an allergy test would be really expensive and not lead to an answer.
A hypoallergenic food could show itself useful if used for long time, some say at least 6 weeks, if not longer.

If your cat has discomfort from itching or else, try to use black tea bathing of the area, this will soothe the itch or irritation.
You cuould also try some supplement, like I have just suggested in another thread. A supplement that helps skin issues, like Omega 3 and 6 drops, or natural cortisone tablets.

Ask your vet if they are fine with what I said.
 

fionasmom

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Welcome to The Cat Site! Can a vet prescribe something like gabapentin to be given to her before any exam, at your home or in an office? That would be the easiest solution to getting someone to come and look at her.
 
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snsmith2000

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Does she have itch on that spot? Any dandruff or flaky skin? Do you think she's grooming that spot too much?
Your vet is right, an allergy test would be really expensive and not lead to an answer.
A hypoallergenic food could show itself useful if used for long time, some say at least 6 weeks, if not longer.

If your cat has discomfort from itching or else, try to use black tea bathing of the area, this will soothe the itch or irritation.
You cuould also try some supplement, like I have just suggested in another thread. A supplement that helps skin issues, like Omega 3 and 6 drops, or natural cortisone tablets.

Ask your vet if they are fine with what I said.
Well, I’m glad that the allergy testing seems to be something pet owners agree on as being unhelpful. She’s clearly irritated by something and the skin is only flakey when she reopens the scabs, so I’m not sure if it’s the scabs that are bothering her or the spot itself. She did cause the spot to bald, along with a tiny spot on her front left paw, but the hair seems to be growing back. It’s just the scabs that are bothering me as she keeps reopening them.

I’m also glad to hear that hypoallergenic food takes time to work. She’s been on it for about two weeks now. She is still eating poultry (Turkey/Duck) but other than that, she’s eating very little ingredients (no chicken and very little fish). I’m going to pick her up some collagen or fish oil and see if that helps, but she’s currently taking a liquid supplement that’s supposed to be reducing her allergy symptoms along with an over the counter liquid antihistamine, but is still bothering the spot.
 
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snsmith2000

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Welcome to The Cat Site! Can a vet prescribe something like gabapentin to be given to her before any exam, at your home or in an office? That would be the easiest solution to getting someone to come and look at her.
I’m not sure. The vets I spoke to were disinterested in seeing her because she can’t be held. None of them offered to prescribe a sedative before seeing her first. I believe you can buy gabapentin without a prescription but it is very expensive and she’s super picky about what and when she eats. I can’t get her to take anything in pill form either.
 

Antonio65

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I’m also glad to hear that hypoallergenic food takes time to work. She’s been on it for about two weeks now. She is still eating poultry (Turkey/Duck) but other than that, she’s eating very little ingredients (no chicken and very little fish). I’m going to pick her up some collagen or fish oil and see if that helps, but she’s currently taking a liquid supplement that’s supposed to be reducing her allergy symptoms along with an over the counter liquid antihistamine, but is still bothering the spot.
You should stick to a single protein, better off a novel protein, rather than mixing poultry and fish, even if in small amounts.
I know that your cat is finicky and could not accept a new diet, but this is the way to go for fixing possible food allregies.
That liquid antihistamine might do its job. Also, as I said above, try to soothe the spot with camomile tea or black tea.
 

di and bob

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I've got a cat that has the same thing and has all her life. No amount of food changes etc. seems to help. She has large areas in several spots and licks almost continuously. After trying MANY allergy medicines, etc. I may have finally found something that did not cure yet but seems to have helped. I give her 4 drops of Bach's Rescue Remedy twice a day and a dose of Pet Wellbeing Itch Support Gold. while it has not been a complete cure it has reduced her licking tremendously. I have some treats with omega oils and probioticscoming too. Please post if you ever find a cure, this is a problem with many cats
 
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snsmith2000

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I've got a cat that has the same thing and has all her life. No amount of food changes etc. seems to help. She has large areas in several spots and licks almost continuously. After trying MANY allergy medicines, etc. I may have finally found something that did not cure yet but seems to have helped. I give her 4 drops of Bach's Rescue Remedy twice a day and a dose of Pet Wellbeing Itch Support Gold. while it has not been a complete cure it has reduced her licking tremendously. I have some treats with omega oils and probioticscoming too. Please post if you ever find a cure, this is a problem with many cats
I’m glad to hear those are helping! I’m currently using the HomeoPet Skin & Itch relief, Vetflix Allergy & Immune Support, & Purina ProPlan Sensitive Stomach and Skin Food. I also recently got a Liquid Collagen & Vitamin C supplement but haven’t used it yet. Those three seemed to be working for about a week and then the spot got bad again.

I tried Colloidal Silver, but it didn’t seem to help. I also tried a Hydrocortisone Spray which made her gag/spit when she licked it. And she immediately licks off any coconut oil I’ve applied to her skin.

I finally found a mobile vet that’s coming to see her on Wednesday so hopefully we get her healed up!
 
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