Losing Fur

pud

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Hi

My cat (8 years old) is losing fur quite rapidly. Everyday I find tufts of it on the carpet. He does a lot of grooming which seems to contribute to the lumps of fur I find.

He is nearly bald on the underside of his belly, and this summer he seems to be thinning on one side of his belly.

I have taken him to the vets and he gave him some tablets to help him ‘chill outâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]. He said it could be a ‘mental thingâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]. He found no fleas or ticks and generally said he was a healthy cat. These tablets didnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t seem to work and nearly a year later he still has the same condition. I think itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s a waste of time and money going back for more tablets.

He doesnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t seem to have any serious problems with other cats in the area and is well looked after. He eats well, and generally does as he pleases.

I am at a loss of what the problem can be. Does anyone have any advice on this subject or a link to a similar problem? It would be much appreciated.
 

hell603

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Found this on another site and might be appropriate for your baby.

"A general blood chemistry panel and complete blood cell count should be done, to try to rule out systemic illness such as liver disease contributing to skin disease. It may be a good idea to check for feline immunodeficiency virus, as well. It may be reasonable to test for the hormonal diseases as well. In cats, a low dose dexamethasone suppression test may detect hyperadrenocorticism. As an alternative, it is reasonable to biopsy the skin and see if the pathologist detects signs of endocrine related hair loss and then try to figure out which hormonal skin disease might be present.

In your situation it would be a really good idea to ask for referral to a veterinary dermatologist or to at ask your vet about doing skin biopsies and sending them to a pathologist with an interest in skin disease.

It is not unusual at all for a cat with no visible fleas, in an environment with no visible fleas, to get MUCH better with flea treatment. I would strongly consider using one of the new flea control products (Frontline (tm), Advantage (tm) or Program (tm)) even though you are certain fleas are not the problem. Cats are exceptionally good at removing all evidence of fleas from their bodies.

Cats do get mite infections and these will often show up on skin scrapings or skin biopsies. Cats get other allergies besides fleas."

Good Luck!
 

cat-tech

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In addition to a full blood profile, include thyroid function testing (T3 and T4) to rule out hyperthyroid or hypothyroid....one of the most common symptoms is fur loss in specific areas (usually hind legs, abdomen).

If your vet prescribed medications in the anti-depressant class, see a new vet. Any vet worth his weight in gold would preform a full geriatric blood profile first to rule out common illness in a senior cat....................Traci
 
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pud

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Cheers people, I think I will take him to another vet. It would appear from reading your posts that the original vet didn't really investigate his problem as much as he should have.
 
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