Balding.

[punkrckrryoki]

My youngest cat who is just over a year old has been chewing, scratching, licking his fur off.

I asked some people before about it and they told me, he could have a flea allergie, we have given him frontline to help with the fleas, but he is still doing it.

Could there be another thing to make him want to over groom himself? Or is it still just fleas?

I would take him to a vet but i'm taking another cat there today and dont have enough money to take both. Is there something i might be able to do at home to see if he might stop chewing his fur off?

 

[AbbysMom]

This really calls for a vet visit. It could be fleas, an allergic reaction to something, or even in response to pain. My cat pulls her fur out when she is anxious.

 

[solaritybengals]

It could also be mites, or some kind of fungus, or food allergy. Definitely worth a vets opinion especially if its gotten to the point where his fur is coming out.

I was planning on coming in here to tell you a bird was picking on him

. That would have been a nicer answer. Thats how my grandmothers cat went bald.

 

[sharky]

Time to go to the vet

 

[punkrckrryoki]

Originally Posted by AbbysMom

This really calls for a vet visit. It could be fleas, an allergic reaction to something, or even in response to pain. My cat pulls her fur out when she is anxious.

Could it be stress? he is a very skiddish cat.

 

[AbbysMom]

Yes, it could be, but it really is best to get a vet to rule out other problems first.

 

[stephenq]

It could also be alopecia, a type of obsessive compulsive over grooming. read more here http://www.petalia.com.au/Templates/...&story_no=1547

 

[gabby]

Originally Posted by PunkRckrRyoki

Could it be stress? he is a very skiddish cat.

When my cat Chloe was a baby she licked herself raw. I took her to the vet and vet said that she was anixous and stressed out because she was alone all the time.

I got another cat to keep her company and that helped.

I would definately take her to the doctor. It could be something medical.

 

[punkrckrryoki]

Originally Posted by Gabby

When my cat Chloe was a baby she licked herself raw. I took her to the vet and vet said that she was anixous and stressed out because she was alone all the time.

I got another cat to keep her company and that helped.

I would definately take her to the doctor. It could be something medical.

I know for sure he isnt feeling lonely since i have 5 other cats besides him.

But I went to the vet with another cat since he needed it more, but i asked about him and they said it probably was still flea allergies he just isnt getting better since all the other cats still have fleas.

So now i am wondering if i need to find him a new home, even thought i know it will be really hard for me to give my baby up.

 

[luvmy4cats]

Are you using flea preventatives on all of your cats? You can't just treat the one pet that's having problems. All pets in the house have to be treated. Also, the flea meds only kill fleas on the cats. You will still need to treat your house with flea bombs. You will also need to bomb your house again in 3 weeks to get any newly hatched flea. The flea preventative that I use and recommend is Frontline Plus. It kills fleas, flea eggs & ticks. You can buy it from either a vet's office or online (it comes in a 6 pack). You treat each cat once a month. I work at a veterinary clinic. I noticed that most of the cats (and dogs) that come in with signs of flea allergies are bald right at the base of their tail. If it is flea allergies it only takes one flea bite to make the animal lick/chew itself bald. It's actually something in the flea's saliva that they're allergic to.

 

[punkrckrryoki]

Originally Posted by luvmy4cats

Are you using flea preventatives on all of your cats? You can't just treat the one pet that's having problems. All pets in the house have to be treated. Also, the flea meds only kill fleas on the cats. You will still need to treat your house with flea bombs. You will also need to bomb your house again in 3 weeks to get any newly hatched flea. The flea preventative that I use and recommend is Frontline Plus. It kills fleas, flea eggs & ticks. You can buy it from either a vet's office or online (it comes in a 6 pack). You treat each cat once a month. I work at a veterinary clinic. I noticed that most of the cats (and dogs) that come in with signs of flea allergies are bald right at the base of their tail. If it is flea allergies it only takes one flea bite to make the animal lick/chew itself bald. It's actually something in the flea's saliva that they're allergic to.

We used Frontlineplus on him, but then after we did it realized we needed to do the other cats, but i just dont have any money right now to get more. I'm working on getting the house flea bombed and then all the cats on Frontline. But those are just the inside cats. We have an outside one who likes to try and come in the house (she is feral but had vacines when she was fixed) and then we have an inside/outside cat who brings them in the house.

So i dont think we are really going to get rid of the fleas. Unless we just dont let the other two in the house, but we like to (especially in winter).