Cat Itching and Back Twitching, Worried!

[natalbe19]

Hi, I'm a new member and am looking for some help. My six mo old cat just recently started itching. It seems to have gotten worse over the past few days. Her back starts twitching like crazy and then she tries to lick/bite herself. She'll run around like a crazy thing and she's now taken to hiding behind the couch, which she has NEVER done before. I've noticed her fur is a bit greasy and she's got bad breath as well (smells like her food). I just finished switching her over to Wellness Core Grain Free a week or so ago. I also feed her a 1/2 can of Fancy Feast pate (no fish flavors). I saw some stuff about FHS online, and I was wondering if this could be the issue? Or possibly a food allergy? Or even my e cig vapor (no nicotine)? I'm so worried about her. I have a vet appt Thurs afternoon, but maybe I should go sooner? Pls help, I'm so scared for her

 

[tulosai]

Does she go outside or is she an indoor only cat?

Unless this behavior/itching is constant, as long as she is eating, drinking, playing, and using the litterbox normally, I don't think it's enough of an emergency that it can't wait until Thursday.  However, you know your cat best.  If it seems like an urgent situation to you, you may want to get her to the vet sooner.

 

[natalbe19]

She is an indoor only cat, and we don't have any other animals. I would say it's gotten quite a bit worse this evening, she can't do much of anything without her back starting to twitch. She always cuddles in my hair and loves on me when I go to bed, but she didn't even do that, just started twitching again and ran under the bed. My vet takes walk ins, so I'll prob head in this morning.

 

[talkingpeanut]

Please let us know how it goes. It certainly sounds like she's uncomfortable, so I understand wanting to get her seen asap.

 

[samus]

Cats have really sensitive livers, so depending how much you smoke your ecig that might cause problems. Other people on here have had problems with essential oil diffusers. But I think liver problems usually manifest with stomach-type issues (lack of appetite, vomiting, etc).

 

[natalbe19]

Thanks for the input everyone. Took her on today and found out she has allergies, just not sure to what. I'll switch her food back and give her some antihistamines. I guess she tested higher for parasitic activity, but she didn't have any fleas or mites, so not sure what that means.

 

[samus]

Unless they saw some parasites in her poop, they probably mean her eosinophils are high. That's a white blood cell that's often elevated with parasites. BUT it's also elevated with allergies. Vets will often give a cat with high eosinophils a dewormer just to rule it out, because parasites aren't always being shed in the poop if they're there so you can have a negative poop test and still have parasites. (I think it's less likely to have a false negative if you get the fancy DNA test rather than them just looking at poop with a microscope, not sure if it's even available everywhere though.)

 

[natalbe19]

Thanks for the clarification! Her eosinophils were at 11%, which he said normal is 0-4%, so that makes complete sense. She already seems to be doing better since I'm transitioning her back to her other food.