Kitten biting his own tail

[Deleted User] · 19/12/09 - 12:09

Hi there,

I have 2 male kittens (Charles & Desmond) who are approx 4mths old that I got from a farm. I noticed a couple of days ago that the tip of Desmond's tail was missing hair and looked a little scratched - I decided to keep an eye on it to see whether he was doing it himself (I hadn't noticed him previously paying much attention to it apart from the occasional tail chasing) or whether it was his brother as they do like to play rough from time to time. I now have just checked it because I saw him playing with it and it seems that the bald bit that was there has been bitten off and now he has a little bloody scab at the very tip! :eek:

I think he must be doing it himself in play as I don't see him licking it obsessively or anything like that. They did recently have fleas as our friend brought her dog round who passed them on (grrr!) so I thought maybe he was irritated by this?

I've been reading this forum for a while and have seen some really good advice given so just wondered if anyone has experienced this before and what I should be doing next.

Lippincote · 19/12/09 - 12:59

You say he 'recently had fleas' - what anti-flea product did you use to get rid of them, and how long ago did you apply it? It could be that it was not effective and he is still being troubled by fleas, that would be the first thing to rule out.

molliepops · 19/12/09 - 13:07

Or could be flea allergy which can need treatment after all the fleas have gone.

[Deleted User] · 19/12/09 - 13:08

I used the Bob Martin tablets that kill them within 24 hours. I haven't seen a flea since we treated them and I used it on Tuesday.

[Deleted User] · 19/12/09 - 13:09

Wouldn't a flea allergy be more of an all over condition, rather than just localised to the tip of his tail though?

molliepops · 19/12/09 - 13:10

Just my personal opinion but I have never found pet shop remedies like Bob Martins to work very well, better to use vet prescribed anti flea treatments.

stud u like · 19/12/09 - 13:10

FaeryFireFly wrote: »

I used the Bob Martin tablets that kill them within 24 hours. I haven't seen a flea since we treated them and I used it on Tuesday.

Bob Martins give cats fits. I would get Advocate.

molliepops · 19/12/09 - 13:11

FaeryFireFly wrote: »

Wouldn't a flea allergy be more of an all over condition, rather than just localised to the tip of his tail though?

Not necessarily our late Rosie dog used to rub the side of her face raw but never worried any other area of her body.

[Deleted User] · 19/12/09 - 13:16

Just my personal opinion but I have never found pet shop remedies like Bob Martins to work very well, better to use vet prescribed anti flea treatments.

Bob Martins give cats fits. I would get Advocate

.

OK, thanks for this advice. The fleas seem to have gone and there haven't been any fits (thank god!). I'll bear this in mind the next time I have to treat them.

[Deleted User] · 19/12/09 - 13:19

molliepops wrote: »

Not necessarily our late Rosie dog used to rub the side of her face raw but never worried any other area of her body.

Ahh OK. It just seems with my Des that it is more of a behavioural problem as it doesn't seem to irritate him when I check his tail. Maybe it is a flea allergy though - are there any other symptoms?

curmy · 19/12/09 - 13:31

Perhaps it would be a good idea if you had him checked out at the vets before Christmas.

Lippincote · 19/12/09 - 13:35

When you say 'next time I need to treat them' - that will be now.

Bob Martins, or any other treatment you get from a petshop is not effective, waste of your money. You need flea treatment from the vet - Advocate is the current best. They almost certainly both still have fleas, its just that the other kitten is not as sensitive to them, that happens with mine too, one very affected and the other two much less. Please get them treated asap or you will have an infestation.

Don't worry about whether it is a flea allergy, just get them both treated with Advocate and if that doesn't deal with the problem you can think about that then (with you vet's help).

[Deleted User] · 19/12/09 - 13:56

Perhaps it would be a good idea if you had him checked out at the vets before Christmas.

When you say 'next time I need to treat them' - that will be now.

Bob Martins, or any other treatment you get from a petshop is not effective, waste of your money. You need flea treatment from the vet - Advocate is the current best. They almost certainly both still have fleas, its just that the other kitten is not as sensitive to them, that happens with mine too, one very affected and the other two much less. Please get them treated asap or you will have an infestation.

Don't worry about whether it is a flea allergy, just get them both treated with Advocate and if that doesn't deal with the problem you can think about that then (with you vet's help).

Thanks again. I'll get onto the vets and get them booked in. Do you have any idea how much Advocate costs?

molliepops · 19/12/09 - 14:24

Lippincote wrote: »

When you say 'next time I need to treat them' - that will be now.

Bob Martins, or any other treatment you get from a petshop is not effective, waste of your money. You need flea treatment from the vet - Advocate is the current best. They almost certainly both still have fleas, its just that the other kitten is not as sensitive to them, that happens with mine too, one very affected and the other two much less. Please get them treated asap or you will have an infestation.

Don't worry about whether it is a flea allergy, just get them both treated with Advocate and if that doesn't deal with the problem you can think about that then (with you vet's help).

Yes I wouldn't have mentioned flea allergy if I had known it was Bob Martins that had been used

Lippincote · 19/12/09 - 14:26

Advocate is quite expensive, I can't remember the exact price though. It comes in packs of 3 or 6 and the bigger pack is better value if you can afford it. And it's a lot better value than something that doesn't work! It is a combined flea and worming treatment, so it is two products in one.

Stronghold (fleas only) seems to be effective too, depends which your vet prefers. Frontline Combo which used to be very widely used is falling out of favour because fleas are becoming resistant to it.

[Deleted User] · 19/12/09 - 16:34

Lippincote wrote: »

Advocate is quite expensive, I can't remember the exact price though. It comes in packs of 3 or 6 and the bigger pack is better value if you can afford it. And it's a lot better value than something that doesn't work! It is a combined flea and worming treatment, so it is two products in one.

Stronghold (fleas only) seems to be effective too, depends which your vet prefers. Frontline Combo which used to be very widely used is falling out of favour because fleas are becoming resistant to it.

Yes, the dog that brought the fleas to our house has been frontlined twice in so many months so I'm pretty sure is complete toot now. :rolleyes:

[Deleted User] · 19/12/09 - 20:49

I would never use bob martin though i did use it as an emergency wormer about 5 wks ago it has at the side one of my cats fur fall out and caused a realy nasty spot. My all my cats are frontlined combo regular as the other spot on's only work with cats upto 6kgs one of mine is 9kgs. he as a realy bad alergy as well requirying vet care. I also did my house out with indirex flea treatment only from the vets and re did it about 3wks later we have not seen any since it also kills flies off as well. I have myself 4 17wk old kittens and they love chasing there tails and biting them but they have been to the vets and there is nothing wrong

Lippincote · 19/12/09 - 22:05

From what you say about the dog OP, another indication that Frontline is not working, happened to me too, my cat went for a checkup and the vet found fleas on him despite having Frontlined him a week previously - that was when we changed to Advocate.

Maisey Moo wrote: »

I My all my cats are frontlined combo regular as the other spot on's only work with cats upto 6kgs one of mine is 9kgs.

just to mention that Advocate 'large cat' version works for cats 4-8 kilos. The 'small cat' version is for cats under 4 kilos.

[Deleted User] · 19/12/09 - 23:38

I was going to use advocate on him but i think he is way over 9kgs. He has a bladder problem that caused him to put on weight not from over feeding him he eats like a mouse.

[Deleted User] · 20/12/09 - 18:45

stud u like wrote: »

Bob Martins give cats fits. I would get Advocate.

Absolutely! Bob Martins is toxic and can leave kittens with all sorts of problems including strokes and asthma - according to my Vet. I have always used Stronghold on them.

If it is tail-chasing and not fleas, this is normal. They will do this for a couple of months until they realise it hurts!

Hey there!

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Kitten biting his own tail

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