...who happens to love chicken or turkey food but snubs her nose at anything else. No meat, no fish except once she like mackerel for a bit and rabbit for a long time but that all changed.
Problem: Norma-Jean scratches like crazy and brings scabs to above her eyes right under her ears. She licks her belly at some places where it is all pink.
I suspect she is allergic to fowl. So I tried the Vet recommended Z/D "junk" (both the dried kibble and that clay substance they call food). She hated them.
I transferred her from straight Merrick turkey pate which she liked the best, to Blue Basic limited ingredient pate turkey and potato which she now eats a 3 oz can for breakfast and dinner. (not my favorite choice but I've been through all the biggies like Ziwipeak, Tikicat, Weruva.)
Her weight is steady. I admit to giving her 8 chicken flavored Greenies as a bedtime treat and thought maybe I should cut that out.
But right now I am stymied.
Do I allow her to eat what she loves and let her scratch to kingdom come, because otherwise she seems happy, or go through the harrowing process at her age (14) to specialists who are far and she has to be tortured driving in a car for so long etc.
We tried her on Apoquel and she actually freaked out. We were so hoping this would be the answer. We tried spraying a Vet recommended med in her food and she promptly smelled it, looked up with disdain and scrambled out of the room -- fast!
The vet examined her for mites or other creatures and she was free of those.
Frankly, we hate the thought of disrupting her life. Though she's the light of our lives, she happens to be a very skittish cat (she was feral and obviously someone must have done some terrible thing to her when she was born).
When I can grab her (not often -- she is fast!) I have been able to smooth some itch cream near her ears which she actually let's me do calmly because she likes the feeling -- it's the grabbing her at first that she hates (even to weigh her, which she never minds once she knows she is on the scale.)
Any magic suggestions are welcome and at the very least some commiserating would help. (Me -- not her!)
Thanks for listening. Your couch was comfortable but I think I used up your whole box of kleenex.
Problem: Norma-Jean scratches like crazy and brings scabs to above her eyes right under her ears. She licks her belly at some places where it is all pink.
I suspect she is allergic to fowl. So I tried the Vet recommended Z/D "junk" (both the dried kibble and that clay substance they call food). She hated them.
I transferred her from straight Merrick turkey pate which she liked the best, to Blue Basic limited ingredient pate turkey and potato which she now eats a 3 oz can for breakfast and dinner. (not my favorite choice but I've been through all the biggies like Ziwipeak, Tikicat, Weruva.)
Her weight is steady. I admit to giving her 8 chicken flavored Greenies as a bedtime treat and thought maybe I should cut that out.
But right now I am stymied.
Do I allow her to eat what she loves and let her scratch to kingdom come, because otherwise she seems happy, or go through the harrowing process at her age (14) to specialists who are far and she has to be tortured driving in a car for so long etc.
We tried her on Apoquel and she actually freaked out. We were so hoping this would be the answer. We tried spraying a Vet recommended med in her food and she promptly smelled it, looked up with disdain and scrambled out of the room -- fast!
The vet examined her for mites or other creatures and she was free of those.
Frankly, we hate the thought of disrupting her life. Though she's the light of our lives, she happens to be a very skittish cat (she was feral and obviously someone must have done some terrible thing to her when she was born).
When I can grab her (not often -- she is fast!) I have been able to smooth some itch cream near her ears which she actually let's me do calmly because she likes the feeling -- it's the grabbing her at first that she hates (even to weigh her, which she never minds once she knows she is on the scale.)
Any magic suggestions are welcome and at the very least some commiserating would help. (Me -- not her!)
Thanks for listening. Your couch was comfortable but I think I used up your whole box of kleenex.
