Please Help!

[noracatowner101]

i have a two yr old DSH, and he is constantly biting/ripping off sections of his hair. a couple months ago, my vet said he has no fleas or ticks and is just habit, but it is now growing. sometimes he will stop for a bit, but it is very noticable. is there anyway i can stop or slow down this? thank you
ps: there are some dried blood sections on his skin but they arent large

 

[Columbine]

You need to go back to your vet, or get a second opinion. This is not normal behaviour, and likely caused by an allergy, stress/anxiety or both. You need to find the root cause so you can treat this effectively.
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[mizzely]

My cat Jasmine has similar fur loss and vet says its an allergy (still trying to figure out what all exactly)

 

[GoldyCat]

My thought was allergies as well. The first indication I had that one of my kitties had developed allergies was that she licked all the fur off her belly and one side. She also had scabs all around her neck where she had scratched herself bloody.

My vet did think it was allergies and gave me medication to help with the itching. Then I started eliminating possible allergens by trial and error, changed litter and food without much improvement. I just couldn't stand seeing her so miserable so I eventually had a blood sample sent to a lab that test for allergies. Turns out she doesn't have food allergies, but she's allergic to a whole slew of things I would never have thought.

Whether you go to a different vet for a second opinion or go back to the same one you could ask about allergy testing.

 

[mizzely]

My thought was allergies as well. The first indication I had that one of my kitties had developed allergies was that she licked all the fur off her belly and one side. She also had scabs all around her neck where she had scratched herself bloody.

My vet did think it was allergies and gave me medication to help with the itching. Then I started eliminating possible allergens by trial and error, changed litter and food without much improvement. I just couldn't stand seeing her so miserable so I eventually had a blood sample sent to a lab that test for allergies. Turns out she doesn't have food allergies, but she's allergic to a whole slew of things I would never have thought.

Whether you go to a different vet for a second opinion or go back to the same one you could ask about allergy testing.

Can I ask how much that was? We've been trying elimimation diets also but no real improvement. The only relief she seems to get is from steroid injections. I'm beginning to think it has to be something other than food

 

[GoldyCat]

Can I ask how much that was? We've been trying elimimation diets also but no real improvement. The only relief she seems to get is from steroid injections. I'm beginning to think it has to be something other than food

Sorry, I don't have the breakdown of the costs immediately available. It's going to vary a lot depending on the lab and your vet. I moved from a small town to a larger city a couple of years ago and all my vet costs are more than double, including the cost of lab tests, shots, etc. You should be able to get a quote from your vet before you have any testing done.

My kitty's test showed she is allergic to a dozen or so different grasses, trees, shrubs, etc. She's also highly allergic to storage mites, which I think is what set off the allergic reaction. I'm assuming the mites were in the wheat based litter I started using. Things improved quite a bit when I got rid of the litter, but the mites were probably still in the carpet. Fortunately I moved into a house with tile throughout. So much easier to clean. She's still on medication to keep the skin issues under control, but so much happier and healthier.