However there are no signs of illness or stress. The bottom half (the reachable licking parts) are now bald with minimal hair there, however the skin looks healthy and is not crusty or scabby.

I doubt it's parasites as the cat is constantly in touch with humans and none of us have seen any or been infected.

There is a fox that frequently comes in the garden that has bald spots at the top of its tail.

Any ideas?

Go to the vet.

Over grooming IS the sign of illness or stress. It's a particularly obvious sign too. Vets ASAP.

Could be fleas!

My youngest (who isn't the smartest in the bunch) over grooms himself when his flea drops run out and is a habit he picked up as a very young kitten (vet says nothing to worry about and just to try and catch him when he 1st starts doing it).

I made a note on another thread. It won't go to the vets as it won't go into the cat basket

If it was ill it wouldn't move or appetite would be gone no?

Have you checked for fleas InTheLoop? Could be what mine has, an allergic reaction to the flea saliva. (they can suddenly become allergic as well so can pop up at any time)

Thanks, I never thought of that, but no I don't think so as she is friendly with us (not strangers) and due to the close contact we would surely have got them too.

Not at all, mine get them every now and then they never go on me as they prefer cats!

So your kitty may have them and you may not even know it.
Have you a flea comb orvery fine comb? You can check for fleas as their bedding might have little dark spots on their favourite sleeping place or in their fur/ skin where they haven't licked it off. (flea poo)

One of ours sometimes overgrooms to the extent that she makes her belly and legs bald. When she starts to do it we take her to the vets as we found out that it is sometimes caused by irritation from having impacted anal glands - she has her bum squeezed to drain them and she stops doing it!

Bizarre but it might be an explanation - when she does it, there is no skin redness or irritation evident and she is well in herself.

Despite the difficulties in getting your cat in the basket, a vet visit would be recommended....

My cat had this. He was a stray and when I met him he was practically bald down the middle of his back. It changed over the years to his groin and base of tail. Tried the glands thing, had every test imaginable and no cause could be found.
I read alot on it and seems to be more common in males and could be related to a trauma. He was abandoned so definitely had that.
He had a charmed life once he met me. Was spoilt rotten and loved to pieces so it wasn't stress.
If u have insurance see if u can get skin scrape tests.

I'm afraid you'll have to get her in a basket and get her to the vet. Even if its just a flea allergy she is still suffering from it (she wouldn't be licking it constantly otherwise), if its not medical then you need to know that in order to be able to work out what might be stressing her.

It's illegal not to see appropriate medical attention for an animal in your care, so the 'wont go in a cat basket' line isn't really worth anything, you have to make her get in the basket.

my kitten hates the cat basket however he loves my big bag i use for laundry. When i took him to the vets i carried him in that. I made sure he was comftable , put blankets in for him , left zip partly open so he didn't get too hot and he could see what was going on and he was as happy as can be.
Also i kept my hand in the bag with him as re-assurance.
I checked with vet to make sure it was ok ofcourse and they said many people do it that way as long as the cat is happy and comftable then it's fine.
It may be worth trying that op.

It could be an allergy. Mine is currently wearing an Elizabethan collar(or a bucket ) to stop her from licking her bald spots as she has made her self scabby and just won't leave them alone to heal and keeps licking the cream off. I would try and take it to the vets some how and they can then treat it and tell you whether it's fleas or not. I was told by our vet that over grooming on the back and near the tail is more likely to be a flea allergy, over grooming on the belly is likely to be an allergy to something else.

My cat is a nightmare to get into the cat carrier. If I miss the first time, she'll run away and hide. When I recently had a long weekend abroad booked, I had the first attempt at 10am and she struggled so much she slipped out of my hands and ran off. When I finally got her in on the second attempt at around midday, to go to the cattery, I was almost in a panic. It wouldn't have been so bad if it was for the vets, as I could have rebooked, but when you have to catch a plane the next morning it's a different matter!

If I am sitting down, she will come and settle on me, so I wait until she's half asleep, then firmly take hold of her and take her to the carrier which I have ready at table-top height and the back against a wall so it doesn't move as I push her in.

The moral is, you have to persevere!

its a cat not an alligator it will go in the basket you may get scratched bitten or lose some blood but in the main if you hold it by the scruff of its neck it will go in the basket

Get some gardening gloves and get her in the basket and take her to the vet. Nobody can tell you definitively what may be wrong with her here. She will need a thorough examination by someone qualified. Over grooming can be a symptom of many things, some that need attention and some that don't.

One of my cats has this. Go to Vet, steroid injection should stop the problem.

how do you get it to the vet for its jabs then?

if you have foxes coming into your garden then it could catch something from it like fleas or mange (possible but very rare) it could eczema or an allergy or a number of different things...it could be stress, either way you really need to see a vet...which i know isnt easy but personally i think its the only option.

Can i just add not all ill cats lose their appetites, when i got my newest addition he was really sick but was eating everything he could...

Im sure as another poster has said, its a flea allegy. Two of mine have had the same thing. My cats had to go on steroids for a while which did help a lot. You may not see the fleas, but you can bet your bottom dollar that they ARE there. Perhaps you could get a little sedative for your cat so that you can get it to the surgery as I don't know if the vet will give you steroids without seeing the animal first. Good luck!