cat with allergies

My Siamese girl Kotton has licked or chewed all the hair off her belly. She itches terribly. She has had frontline put on her for 2 months now and I DID see 3 fleas 2 alive (temporairly!) and one dead.

I flea comb her almost every day and THIS is the first time I have EVER seen fleas on her.

What can I do to take away her itching. Vet says it could be flea allergy or food allergy and I cannot afford over $200.00 to do testing.

What can I give her or put on her to stop her itching? Does anyone know?

Firstly, I would try Advantage or Revolution.

If that doesn't resolve the itching, switch your cat onto a limited ingredient diet, a good, holisitc [no preservatives to be allergic to] food would be Addiction's Unagi and Seaweed, or Brushtail and Veggies. The only ingredients your cat could have been exposed to and be allergic to would be the vegetables. My cat is allergic to peas, so he can't eat that.

Anyways, other limited diets are Duck & Pea, Venison and Pea, Natural Balance has one, IVD/Royal Canin has one.

But hopefully it's just a flea thing.

The site you describe is not typical for flea allergies. This is usually on the back at the base of the tail. However, I'm not suggesting a flea allergy may not exist and since you have found fleas, she should be treated for this right away. I'm not familar with frontline as it isn't available here in Canada, but if it is like Advantage which kills both adults and larvae it should be fine.

There may also be psychological reason for the hair loss, this however can only be diagnosised until all other factors are taken of.

Skin problems with food allergies are most noteby around the head and face, but this isn't always the case. However, the only way to test this is to do a elimination diet trial. This takes 6-8 weeks and after that time the animal is then given its old food back and observed if the itchness returns.

If I was your vet, I would hold off on doing the diet test right now. First you need to take control of the fleas, I would also likely give a corticosteroid for the time being to deal with the itchness. Once the fleas are out of the way, Kotton can then be reexamined and see if there is another issue going on here, i.e. the food or a psychological problem of overgrooming.

A medicated bath every other week might help. This has worked for me on 2 different cats in the past.

I have the same problem with 3 of my indoor cats. I have to take them to vet every 6 weeks or so to get a shot. It is not very expensive to do this and it sure helps the cats feel SO MUCH better

Originally Posted by Libby

I have the same problem with 3 of my indoor cats. I have to take them to vet every 6 weeks or so to get a shot. It is not very expensive to do this and it sure helps the cats feel SO MUCH better

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What kind of shots do they get? Are there any long term concerns from getting the shots so often?

The shots are DEPOMEDROL and they are cortisone shots. They have been known to cause diabetes - especially in overweight cats like Kotton.

Vet called and told me to put her and Panther (who is itching too but no sign of fleas) on cortisone PILLS for a bit and see if THAT stops the itching.

They are all 4 on Frontline for the 2nd month in a row as the 3rd month back I put them on advantage and it did not do anything.

Thanks so much for replying! I kept at the Vet till he called back!

Your best bet is to stay with your vet and let him prescribe the proper treatment. Medicated baths are fine IF your vet is the one who is telling you to do this and giving you the stuff to use.


Pulling hair out can also be a stress reaction, if the household stressful for this cat? It can also be a response to pain. I wouldn't rule out a pain response and would even suggest an x-ray just to be sure that she isn't having a problem internally-

Originally Posted by hissy

Your best bet is to stay with your vet and let him prescribe the proper treatment. Medicated baths are fine IF your vet is the one who is telling you to do this and giving you the stuff to use.

Pulling hair out can also be a stress reaction, if the household stressful for this cat? It can also be a response to pain. I wouldn't rule out a pain response and would even suggest an x-ray just to be sure that she isn't having a problem internally-

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Thanks, Mary Anne. I KNOW she itches as when I groom her back and sides she bites at herself real fast (like a dog scratches when you scratch him in that certain place). She just goes nuts. Vet says the frontline makes the fleas show themselves as ( i think) it gets their nervous system. Before, the fleas seemed to either hide or bite and jump off. Her hair from the middle of her back to the tail part was very greasy and did not look good but suddenly (thanks to someone that I cannot remember who!) she has learned to like being flea combed and now her hair is so much softer and nicer looking and even shiny!

He has her and Panther on Triamcinalone every other day for awhile. He says IF it is just flea allergy it may take a couple of months before they all die and then she should be OK.

With Panther, I have not seen even ONE flea (did with Ben, Missy and Kotton) so I cannot figure out why HE keeps licking himself or chasing his tail. I spoil him rotton. Anything he wants he gets - EXCEPT to go out front. I keep wondering if the ant spray and powder is causing this in him or if he too is allergic to fleas and even one bite gets to him

Sometimes I wonder if they are just allergic to me! <sigh>