Scratching neck like crazy

theperseph · Mar 5, 2015

My poor little Persephone will be fine for a majority of the winter months, but once spring and summer come around, she scratches her neck until the hair is all gone and the skin is raw and bright pink (sometimes the sores are open). I took her to the vet about it last fall, but he insisted that she was allergic to fleas biting her and gave me flea medication. While at the vet office he used a flea comb, but failed to find any fleas (she is strictly indoor). I am convinced it's allergies, but I am a grad student and cannot afford getting her tested. The vet said it would cost well over $300 to find out if she was allergic to anything. He also gave me some hypoallergenic food for her to try, but she refused to eat it. Eventually she stopped scratching over the colder months, but now that it's warming up again she's at it again. I am in the process of switching her from dry food (Science Diet) to the Nutro Natural Choice, which she absolutely loves. Does anybody have any suggestions for relief from her itchy neck?

zoocat · Mar 5, 2015

Since it appears to be seasonal, it's probably not a food allergy. If she gets the flea medication, you see no indication/evidence of fleas and she still has the itching, it's probably not fleas. Sounds like a probable environmental allergy. I'm not sure getting the expensive testing is necessary at this point....try everything you can before spending that kind of money. I suggest your first thing to try is antihistamines. I know there are posts somewhere about using over the counter antihistamines....you might search for those posts to get recommended safe dosage and type....make SURE you don't ever use the kind that have pain killers in them...they should clearly state "non-drozie" on the label. I, however, recommend talking to your vet about prescription antihistamines. My cat with unknown allergies is now taking this (I don't remember the name...Will look it up and post later if you want) ...my vet sent the prescription to a local compounding pharmacy that put it in gel form and I rub it in his ear twice a day...No pill hassle! It seems to be working really well and no side effects like there were with Atopica (don't use that unless there are no other choices and it's really bad sores). Antihistamine works best on environmental allergies for sure, so see what the vet says. Mine was not terribly expensive.. $45 for a month supply (including the finger cots).

mnm · Mar 5, 2015

zyrtec may help...although you should prolly ask your vet. Target has an "off brand" of it that's cheaper... I smash a half pill in Mikki's wet food and she doesn't seem to notice.

theperseph · Mar 5, 2015

Zoocat said:
Since it appears to be seasonal, it's probably not a food allergy. If she gets the flea medication, you see no indication/evidence of fleas and she still has the itching, it's probably not fleas. Sounds like a probable environmental allergy. I'm not sure getting the expensive testing is necessary at this point....try everything you can before spending that kind of money. I suggest your first thing to try is antihistamines. I know there are posts somewhere about using over the counter antihistamines....you might search for those posts to get recommended safe dosage and type....make SURE you don't ever use the kind that have pain killers in them...they should clearly state "non-drozie" on the label. I, however, recommend talking to your vet about prescription antihistamines. My cat with unknown allergies is now taking this (I don't remember the name...Will look it up and post later if you want) ...my vet sent the prescription to a local compounding pharmacy that put it in gel form and I rub it in his ear twice a day...No pill hassle! It seems to be working really well and no side effects like there were with Atopica (don't use that unless there are no other choices and it's really bad sores). Antihistamine works best on environmental allergies for sure, so see what the vet says. Mine was not terribly expensive.. $45 for a month supply (including the finger cots).

Thanks! I'll definitely look into it and search for the posts in the forum. Unfortunately I can't administer topical medicines because she gets an allergic reaction to those, so not sure if rubbing allergy medicine into her ear would help.

mspurr · Mar 7, 2015

Maybe an anti itch shampoo, that's anti fungal or antimicrobial would help, I have an itchy cat and have used shampoos to help relieve itching, but I have to shampoo once a week when the itching is really bad.

dinkster · Mar 8, 2015

I had a pure white cat that had horrible skin sensitivity, I used to make chamomile tea (large pot) and keep it in the fridge. When she got itchy I would soak a wash cloth and apply it to her. Always worked.

Scratching neck like crazy

theperseph

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zoocat

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mnm

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theperseph

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mspurr

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dinkster

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