He keeps biting himself; is he going mad?

My cat Hammie has just started this real weird thing; he will be sitting there all calm, then turn around & bite himself on the butt. Then he'll go for his tail. Then he'll bite his own shoulder or paw. He will bite himself pretty furiously, then just take off running like someone *else* did it!

He plays a whole lot with his toys, plays with us humans, and also with his catmates in the house. This cat is NOT BORED! He has a really great personality (he's a greeter & follower & always on top of the world).

We held him down last night and checked for fleas, which I knew he didn't have, cuz he is indoor-only; and well the other cats do not bite themselves.

When Hammie takes off running after biting himself all over the place, he acts like he is seeing things; he will stare around wildly, like he's seeing insects or something?

We have no infestation at the house. He is still very affectionate & healthy. No other problems. I am afraid he might be losing his wee mind or developing some disorder.

Do I need to take him to the vet for a mental evaluation?

Or is it normal for a happy cat to get weird & see things & bite himself?

I would really look into Feline Hyperesthisia if I were you. There are websites about cats with these symptoms and most vets don't recognize this disease at all. If you flea-treat your cat safely on a monthly basis and this behavior continues, that is where I would look-

Here is an article I wrote based on one of my cats that was battling this disease-

Feline Hyperesthesia

Oh that makes me sad. I'll get him to the Vet. Should I offer this up to the Vet? Ask her to do these tests & give her the name of the disease???

OR would I be insulting her "Vet intelligence" if I say "Please check on this"???

Hammie came from a cattery... a multi-cat home (21 or so cats) 3 yrs ago. He had fleas, worms & mites when I first brought him home but he was cured of all that.

Is it contagious or congenital???

Feline Hyperesthesia, to the best of my knowledge, is not contagious, but is a neurological-type condition that develops, and no one knows why.
I don't think you'd be insulting your vet to bring in the article and ask her to consider FH as a possibility--most vets appreciate owners who come in having already done their own research.

Maybe you could even try to get a videotape of him exhibiting the behavior that you could play for your vet to try and nail down the diagnosis a bit more?

Good luck and keep us posted.

how is this different from the running around and scaring themselves? Bella every once in a whle will dash around the house like someone is chasing her --diving into corners, zipping into rooms and w/ eyes big will come look at me like 'did you see that?' ... when its just me sitting there and nothing else. Its seems like she is just running off energy tho...? no circles or rippling skin or angry behavior, but will sometimes furiously lick/bite herself -- paws, back or whatever and then go back to sleep. hmmm

Hi!
My kitten that is 3-4 months old is exactly like that too. We just got him for a few days ago and he's acted like this these past days. He's exactly like your cat, he's sweet and all but did you take him to the vet or what did you do? I really wanna know.

Deena Summers said:

Hi!
My kitten that is 3-4 months old is exactly like that too. We just got him for a few days ago and he's acted like this these past days. He's exactly like your cat, he's sweet and all but did you take him to the vet or what did you do? I really wanna know.

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The thread you are trying to get an answer from has been dormant for 8 years. Why don't you start a new thread and tell us the problem with your cat.