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My cat has allergies!


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Old 31-01-2012, 14:20
BonnieJoDouglas
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But we don't know to what!

It started off being small scabby marks around his neck. We assumed it was down to him fighting with his sister. The vet thoguht that too.

Since then, the scabby spots have got worse. There was one on his "snout", one by his ear, one on his neck and a HUGE one on his back. They were all bloody and looked like the skin had been peeled off. It was horrible.

I took him to the vet as they just appeared one day and was told that it looks like dermatitis caused by an allergy - not fighting.

So, we have no idea what he is allergic to! It could be anything. To do a skin/blood test will cost £1000 and we just haven't got that money to hand right now.

We've changed his food bowl from plastic to ceramic, we've stopped giving him any diary and we've stopped using the kitchen cleaner as we read that all of these could cause allergies. The scabs seem to have cleared up (the vet gave him a steroid jab) but he keeps scratching the one on his back and the scab falls off, causing it to bleed again. I feel so sorry for the little guy.

Has anyone else experienced this?
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Old 31-01-2012, 17:40
xdow
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does he wear a collar?

different, but our old dog lost all the fur under her chin and around her muzzle and got quite scabby under her chin

we found out she had an allergy to the metal on her collar & tag and we were feeding her out of a metal bowl, swapped her collar and got plastic bowls and it was sorted after a course of tablets and a jab.
she had other allergies too though, but we never found out what to - one year she scratched the side of her face so much, she took most of the skin off it & we had no idea of the cause
it was awful, just a huge scabby area the size of three of my fingers - thankfully she only ever did this once.
it seemed to flare up as the seasons changed, so she was on steroids and antihistamines on and off through her life
we didn't have a blood test done though as the vet never stressed to have one, as her itching was manageable
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Old 31-01-2012, 18:31
BonnieJoDouglas
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does he wear a collar?

different, but our old dog lost all the fur under her chin and around her muzzle and got quite scabby under her chin

we found out she had an allergy to the metal on her collar & tag and we were feeding her out of a metal bowl, swapped her collar and got plastic bowls and it was sorted after a course of tablets and a jab.
she had other allergies too though, but we never found out what to - one year she scratched the side of her face so much, she took most of the skin off it & we had no idea of the cause
it was awful, just a huge scabby area the size of three of my fingers - thankfully she only ever did this once.
it seemed to flare up as the seasons changed, so she was on steroids and antihistamines on and off through her life
we didn't have a blood test done though as the vet never stressed to have one, as her itching was manageable
Hiya

No he doesn't wear one. He's only 6 months old and only just been "snipped" so he's a house cat at the mo.

X
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Old 31-01-2012, 19:26
cats_five
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The commonest cause of skin allergies in cats is fleas... I had a cat who had that, and I had to keep right on top of flea control for all my cats. Just one bite can set them off, you may well not see fleas or flea dirt.
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Old 01-02-2012, 00:47
Snow_Leopard
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It could be a food allergy.
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Old 01-02-2012, 11:30
BonnieJoDouglas
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The vet did a flea test and both kittens were clear - but when we first got them, they did have them. It could be a bad reaction to them, I suppose.

It's just so frustrating that it could be ANYTHING! Washing powder, food, the crunchies he eats, air freshner, my perfume - ANYTHING!

We're stopping things one at a time to see if any of them work!

Sigh...
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Old 01-02-2012, 12:35
sahalouise
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Since then, the scabby spots have got worse. There was one on his "snout", one by his ear, one on his neck and a HUGE one on his back. They were all bloody and looked like the skin had been peeled off. It was horrible.

I took him to the vet as they just appeared one day and was told that it looks like dermatitis caused by an allergy - not fighting.

Has anyone else experienced this?
This sounds alot like my cat Hugo; turns out he was allergic to fleas. Could this be something? Hugo had scabby marks all on his body which the vet first thought was dermatitis, gave him a shot and let us get on our way, but he was like this for 3 months before another vet said he's allergic to fleas and one bite is enough to bring him out. Since then, we've given him flea treatment every 4 weeks and kept him in the house and now he's fine.
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Old 01-02-2012, 12:43
cats_five
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Well... The poor chap is obviously suffering. If it was me, given the potential cost, I think I'd treat the whole house against fleas with a good product, and also this cat and any other cats and dogs you have. This should help:
http://www.fabcats.org/owners/fleas/info.html

So should this:
http://www.fabcats.org/owners/skin/index.php
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Old 03-02-2012, 11:14
Patchoui
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I'm going through a similar problem with my cat and believe it is a food allergy.

Many brands of cat foods, wet and dry, are full of cereals gluten additives and the sort of ingredients their ancestors would never have consumed and can cause allergic sensitivities in many different ways including skin itching.

I switched to hypoallergenic brands which are unfortunatey more expensive and continue to feed wet and dry, and have noticed an improvement in the allergic reaction. However, it is still a fine tuning process to adapt the right diet specifically to my cat's needs and I have had to consult my vet to make sure I am doing the right thing.

OP I would advise you to discuss your cat's diet with your vet along with the other measures you are taking. Also remember that anyone who strokes your cat may transfer perfume and hand creams etc onto their fur which they will then ingest when grooming.
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Old 03-02-2012, 11:54
RAINBOWGIRL22
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£1000 for a skin test

Sorry OP - I'd try another vet if I were you?
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Old 03-02-2012, 12:04
elliecat
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My cat is allergic to dust mites, food mites in dry food so we can't feed her dry food at all otherwise she goes into overdrive and starts licking, scratching, pulling her fur out until she bleeds. The vet did all the tests a few years and that is what they came up with but she is still doing it so there must be other things that she is allergic to.

We changed her cat litter as she started to doing it at the bottom of her back and her tail(as well as her belly) that didn't help. She doesn't have fleas. Some days she is actually soaking from all the licking and when she pulls her fur out it is with such agression it looks painful. The vet gave us some cream (we now have it on repeat perscription)which we put on her spots/scabs/sores but that is just curing not preventing. She also has to go for quite regular seteroid injections(she's going tonight actually) which stop her for a bit but then she starts again. I'm trying a process of elimination, changing her food, cat litter etc otherwise she is either allergic to us or herself.
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Old 03-02-2012, 12:20
cats_five
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Can dust mites live in a litter tray?
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Old 03-02-2012, 12:30
elliecat
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Can dust mites live in a litter tray?
I have no idea I just thought I would see what happens if we changed her to the silica gel stuff
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Old 03-02-2012, 14:26
sarahj1986
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my cat has hayfever...shame as he loves to lie in the grass. Makes his eyes all red and ichy, stupid cat he wont learn!
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