Dandruff?

Cosette's coat has always had a fair amount of dandruff, ever since I first got her. I chalked it up at first to a poor diet and stress from being in a shelter. I asked my vet about it at her initial exam, and she agreed with my conclusion. She said diet played the biggest role in the condition of a cat's coat.

Well, it has been nearly a month since I took Cosette home, and her dandruff has not subsided. I have checked her coat for any fleas, but she's totally clean. She eats 1/2 cup of Blue Buffalo dry indoor adult formula each day, 1/4 cup twice per day. She also drinks a good amount of water.

I'm very puzzled as to why she is still producing dandruff. She does seem to groom herself far more often than McGee does, and his coat is perfectly fine. Cosette is technically a shorthair, although her individual hairs are much longer than McGee's. Any thoughts?

Has she been treated for worms? Worm infestation is a common cause of dry skin and dandruff. I would get her dewormed to be on the safe side. If possible I'd use Profender which, in addition to treating round and hook worms, will also treat for tapeworm which is very common among shelter cats that have had fleas in the past. Roundworm is the worm that will usually cause skin problems though.

You can also add some fish oil to her food which will help her skin and coat. You can get capsules in any vitamin section and add one a day to her food. Just poke a hole in it and sprinkle it on top of the food. Most cats like it. If she won't eat it you can squeeze it out in a cup, draw it up with a syringe and give it to her directly in her mouth.

Another thing you may want to do is to give her some canned food daily. If she eats only dry food and doesn't drink enough water it can give her dry skin.
It's only been a month though and it may take a while longer than that.

Some cats just have dandruff and there isn't much you can do about it. One of my girls still has some dandruff despite fish oil and wet food. It has gotten better though but the vet says it's just one of those things and nothing to worry about. A little bit of dandruff can be normal.

She was dewormed with Profender at the shelter. It's part of their routine medical care.

I have another thread in nutrition asking for opinions about starting to feed canned food, so with your suggestion, I think that will definitely start being in the diet repertoire. I'll also try the fish oil, but the syringe might not work. I had to medicate her for a kitty cold with a syringe and eye drops, and it was a huge circus act, complete with lots of scratches for me. Clipping her claws and applying Soft Paws is the same deal. But I suppose that's a topic for another thread.

Thanks for your suggestions. I'll definitely give them a try today and report back.

Give a couple months of canned only with fish oil drizzled on top and you should see a vast improvement.