High Strung Girl Has A Lot Of Missing Fur?

[desktop]

My girl Coda has a lot of missing fur. Her belly is almost completely bald, fur missing on the back of her legs and haunches. The vet said this is caused by stress and that seems possible since Coda is a very high strung kitty. We moved from a house where it was always quiet and just the three of us to a basement room where there's more people in the house and noise from walking, thumping above our heads, tramping down the stairs, etc.

Her last vet visit they said she's lost 4 lbs, which was since her first vet visit about a month ago. Vet really doesn't know what it could be other than stress. We've been here now for almost six months or more, but she's never recovered or gotten over whatever is causing it.

Her brother (Butch) has his own issues. Vet said it's allergies with something in the basement/environment, causes strange patches of missing fur on his face as if his sister pulled out a patch of fur or he did by scratching it. His rear belly is missing some fur and he has small spots on his rear legs that are bare down to the skin. It's weird.

Both cats are on Revolution. I keep everything vacuumed, sanitized and bedding/clothes washed. I've gotten various answers to the missing fur thing, including dry air and "it's just the season". I was just wondering if anyone else had similar issues with their cats and what you may have done to remedy it?

 

[stephanietx]

Have you tried any calming agents such as Feliway to help reduce stress? Have you changed food or litter recently?

 

[desktop]

Thanks for the reply. I'll check with some places locally about Feliway. I changed their litter to a different one they recommended at Chowhound. It has no scents or chemicals and clumps really good. They are still eating the Orijen Red dry food, but I've also been including wet food (some Fancy Feast flavors, Sheba, etc.) Coda turns up her nose at almost all of it, but Butch will chow it down. The only wet food I can get her to eat is one of the fish varieties from Iams.

 

[stephanietx]

Try changing back to their old litter and see if that helps. Sounds like an allergy to the litter, especially since it's on the areas closest to the dust and litter box (tummy, feet, bum)

 

[desktop]

Good idea. I'll pick some of their old litter up and give that a try and see what happens. Cheaper than another vet visit. Thanks.

 

[stephanietx]

Did the vet give you anything like prednisone to help stop the itching? You might not need it if it calms down, but they both seem to be having negative side effects and maybe the prednisone will help temporarily to get them over the hump.

 

[desktop]

He gave me a bottle of that for Butch, but I've had a rough time getting the medicine in him. I tried holding him and putting it in his mouth and that only worked one time. After that he won't open his mouth anymore. I tried crushing it up and putting it in his food and that only worked a couple times. I've wasted more of the medicine than I've used.

 

[desktop]

Concerning the litter, I just realized that even with their old litter they still had the same issues they have now.

 

[desktop]

Butch now has a tuft of fur missing from behind his left ear. As always this is down to the skin and there's a couple scratch marks with a little blood. I believe he's doing this to himself by scratching at his head. The cats never had any issues like this when we lived at the house; all of these problems occurred when we moved into this house/basement. They are on Revolution and I don't want to keep taking them back to that same vet, because all he says is allergies to something and gives him a Depo shot. I don't think this is really addressing the problem. Kind of like a doctor prescribing you medication even though they don't know what's wrong with you.

I'm kind of at my wits end with this whole situation.

 

[Sarthur2]

I really think you need to give both of them prednisone. If you can't get the tablets into them, go to a vet who will give them cortisone shots. It lasts for about a month.

You definitely need to plug in a Feliway diffuser as well. It emits calming pheromones.

Beyond that, is there any chance of changing your living situation anytime in the near future? This seems to be at the root of the problem, based on the other thread you posted recently.

 

[abyeb]

I really think you need to give both of them prednisone. If you can't get the tablets into them, go to a vet who will give them cortisone shots. It lasts for about a month.

You definitely need to plug in a Feliway diffuser as well. It emits calming pheromones.

Beyond that, is there any chance of changing your living situation anytime in the near future? This seems to be at the root of the problem, based on the other thread you posted recently.

These are all excellent points. I just wanted be to add that if the Feliway doesn't work, you could ask your vet for a prescription anti-anxiety, like kitty Prozac.

 

[desktop]

Bought two Feliway (Comfort Zone) diffusers this morning. Plugged one in my room and the other one out in the basement where the litter boxes and cat tree are (and where they usually hang out when I'm not home). The prenisone and other stuff mentioned will have to wait. I can't afford all these things at this time.

I have been thinking about living somewhere else, but my situation doesn't offer a whole lot of options. I will be looking for something and praying I find another place (preferably not in a basement). Until then I have to make the best of what I currently have.

 

[Sarthur2]

I know it's not easy. Please let us know if the diffusers help.

 

[desktop]

My poor boy, trying to get some sleep.

 

[desktop]

This morning I had my buddy's wife hold Butch so we could get a Prednisone tablet in him. He swallowed it, but not without a struggle. He's giving me dirty looks now, lol. I have ten of the Prednisone left, but I'm going to hold off on giving him any more because we came up with another plan.

To figure out what he's breaking out from we thought of eliminating some things, but we won't know if any of these things are making a change while he's taking the Prednisone. He may be breaking out from the Revolution. So I'm going to let him go without his monthly dose of Revolution just to see if that makes a difference.

They've been eating Orijen dry for a while now and I'm not sure if that's causing any reactions, either. I've also been giving him wet food, although a bunch of different varieties because he's so finicky. There is one that they both seem to like really well and that's BFF Tuna & Beef Baby Cakes Recipe. Not sure which one I should stop giving them or stick with both? Trying to figure out what he's breaking out from is a real pain, but I'm definitely doing the month free from Revolution just to see if that's what's causing him issues.

 

[desktop]

I've been combing my cats with a Furminator and using a Norwex pet mitt and that seems to also be helping them.

 

[mizzely]

My Jasmine has been diagnosed with a food allergy and has the same pattern of hairloss on her as your Coda. She alao experienced a weight loss around the same time as this started.

For the pills, I have to give a half pill everyday and have had good luck putting them into a size 4 capsule and using a pill gun. Both on Amazon. The capsule helps the pill gun hold onto it better, and the gun I use lets me draw up water also so the pill ia washed down the throat. Makes it a much easier process!

Kruuse Buster Pet Pill/Tablet Syringe with Soft Tip

 

[valentine319]

Stupid question but you're not spending a lot on the prednisone are you? Some vets charge more filling it there when you can fill it at a pharmacy. Prednisone shouldn't cost that much.

 

[desktop]

My Jasmine has been diagnosed with a food allergy and has the same pattern of hairloss on her as your Coda. She alao experienced a weight loss around the same time as this started.

For the pills, I have to give a half pill everyday and have had good luck putting them into a size 4 capsule and using a pill gun. Both on Amazon. The capsule helps the pill gun hold onto it better, and the gun I use lets me draw up water also so the pill ia washed down the throat. Makes it a much easier process!

Half a pill of what? Prednisone?

 

[desktop]

Stupid question but you're not spending a lot on the prednisone are you? Some vets charge more filling it there when you can fill it at a pharmacy. Prednisone shouldn't cost that much.

He gave me 30 tablets for $15.