Cone, maybe her first time

[njg55]

My cat is 12 (I've had her since she was 5) and this is the first time I remember her having to wear a cone. It should only be for a few days. She has a condition called feline hyperesthesia and has been itching and pulling fur out of the end of her tail. The idea is to keep her from doing this for a few days while medication is beginning to work. She had been on prednisolone for two weeks but that didn't help (before the vet reached the current diagnosis), and she'll continue on that while also doing a two-week course of gabapentin. She's having a terrible time with the cone, which is understandable, bumping into things, not being able to settle down. It's only been on for a few hours, so I assume she needs more time to get used to it even though I'm sure she'll never like having it on. I took it off to let her eat, and later to give her medication. I'm thinking about leaving it off overnight because I can't watch out for her while I'm sleeping. I'm worried that she might wander off and get stuck somewhere. She already managed to get behind a couch, and the cone came off. I've since moved it closer to the wall so she can't get back there. I've had other cats in cones but don't remember that I wanted to take it off for an extended time. But with this kitty, I feel it might be necessary, at least the first night or if I have to leave the house and no one else can keep an eye on her. Since the reason for the cone is not an injury or incision but a behavioral issue, possibly stress-related (I adopted her and her daughter together, and the younger cat unexpectedly died a few months ago) she can't really do any harm if the cone is off for a while. The idea is just to help her get out of a cycle. What do you think?

 

[Mamanyt1953]

If she has been really insistent on pulling out that fur, you might undo anything that the medication has done in one night. Leave it on. She'll be unhappy, but she will almost certainly adjust. Also, check Chewy and Amazon for the Elizabethan collars for pets. She might do better with that.

 

[imaginewizard]

Yeah if the vet has suggested the cone, the idea is for it to prevent the cat from doing harmful actions when you’re not able to supervise them. Would defeat the point therefore to only have it on with supervision. But there are come-alternatives which may be better, although you say she only needs it for a few days, it might just be worth pushing through.

 

[njg55]

I left it off last night but will leave it on tonight. She has managed to get it off at least three times today. It ties with a plastic cord, so we've tightened it a bit each time we put it back on. Sneaky girl. Somehow she managed to get under the bed by her usual route of going between the mattress and the headboard without getting hung up by the cone (the sides and lower section of the bedframe are barricaded so that cats can't hide under there when they need medication or a vet visit; that's how we know she got under it by the headboard). It's that kind of thing that worries me. At least at this point she's made it over 24 hours, so one day out of four.

 

[Meowmee]

I left it off last night but will leave it on tonight. She has managed to get it off at least three times today. It ties with a plastic cord, so we've tightened it a bit each time we put it back on. Sneaky girl. Somehow she managed to get under the bed by her usual route of going between the mattress and the headboard without getting hung up by the cone (the sides and lower section of the bedframe are barricaded so that cats can't hide under there when they need medication or a vet visit; that's how we know she got under it by the headboard). It's that kind of thing that worries me. At least at this point she's made it over 24 hours, so one day out of four.

I would not leave a cone on a cat who is removing it herself. My cats have never tolerated them and did not need them for the reasons given. Maybe try a more comfy soft donut cone that she can move around in easily? Hopefully the gaba will help her to calm down and stop the behavior and the pred will stop the itching.