cats with environmental allergies

[Jem]

To those of you with cats that have environmental allergies, what are their symptoms and how do you treat them?

Lilly has always displayed (on and off) allergy symptoms since we adopted her three years ago.

She overgrooms - mostly her belly. At first we thought allergies for this and did limited ingredient (2 different ones) as well as hydrolyzed protein (vet prescribed) diets, as well as probiotics for a time. None of that helped. We then after more investigation treated her as anxiety (calming food and zylkene from the vet) and it got better...but now it's gotten worse again and our previous efforts didn't work this time, so now I'm back to thinking allergy and it was just timing that it got better treating it as anxiety the first time.???? But perhaps it's not a food allergy but more an environmental allergy instead Thankfully her licking isn't as bad as it has been in the past the fur is more like short fuzz on her belly and it has not amounted to sores. The thing is...her licking still shows signs of anxiety as well...so it could have two reasons.

She has dirty ears and they do bother her. They are not mites. I do clean them with stuff from the vet and it helps a little.

She has had chin acne on and off. Has never amounted to pustules, infections or sores. Just a dirty chin.

She has also experienced an inflamed bottom lip. At first I thought it was just because she is always licking something and it was irritated but just found out it can be due to allergies as well.

She used to have diarrhea all the time, but with our current food her poops are good, sometimes a little soft. She also doesn't fart as much as she used to either.

She scratches, I feel, a lot. Her ears definitely too much, the rest of her not as much but still more than I think is normal.

After three years with her now, I have seen that her symptoms are much worse in the spring. With added runny nose and sneezing that tends to start when the snow has melted and continues thru the summer but not as bad.

I will fully admit that my housekeeping was not optimal for a while, so dust mites could also be a significant issue, but I have been doing a lot of deep cleaning this summer and will continue to maintain it now that my health has improved.
We do have air purifiers that we run, no carpets and I do wash linens/fabric items regularly.

We've seen the vet about this before hence the changes in food, that I know it's not ear mites, anxiety treatment, proper ear cleaning solution, etc...but now I'm looking for experience from others.

Soooo....what cha got for me?

 

[cejhome]

Do you have an Allergy/Dermatology Specialist Veterinarian in your area? They can do allergy testing to find out just what the problem is (hopefully). Chin acne - I would hope your regular vet told you to not use plastic food and water dishes? Plastic can cause chin acne.

 

[Jem]

We use ceramic and stainless steel bowls/dishes. This is not a big problem just something that has happened that I thought I should include.
No specialist - however I have read that allergy testing is not really that accurate, and usually only done as a last resort.
Which Allergy Tests for Pets are Worth It? | Red Dog Blue Kat | Red Dog Blue Kat

 

[The_Baroness]

I knew someone who had a cat that was allergic to pretty much everything including people dandruff. She could be allergic to a cleaner you use down to some food. You may have to trial an error a few things when it comes to basic household everyday items.

 

[FeralHearts]

I'm not sure how much help I be here but I can tell you what I've done and maybe something will be good for you too. My Charlie has both food and environmental allergies. Like you, he has everything that is not plastic. A ceramic fountain cleaned twice a week and I even resorted to corning ware plates.

The allergy tests are not worth it - everyone I've spoken to about it has told me not to waste the money.

Any bedding is now washed in hypo-allergenic washing detergent - including my own clothes and sheets. That helped a bit. Same with floors etc. Things he will be in contact with. He still gets a chin dot every now and again. He had a bout of it not too long ago. He had a reaction to wool that I figure out after months... so anything wool went.

I run a vacuum, even just a light once around every other day, every day if I can. Just a quick "get up bits" type thing - nothing that takes too long. That helped a bit too.

I'm trying to think of others things I did besides the food as he did have a food allergy too.

I think his Asthma puffer helps as well. (yup baby's got Asthma and mild HCM)

A puffer might be a good idea? Even a mild dose? Even though it's a steroid the vet explained to me that they metabolize a puffer different that a steroid pill so it doesn't have the negative effects the same as the pills do. Maybe that or a nebulizer for her?

Edit to add: Litter. Litter was the first thing we tried when the vet and I were trying to sort him out. Wasn't the litter but.. it was worth a shot.

 

[FriendofFerals]

I have one that's a former feral, 16+ years old (estimated) and allergic to everything. Fleas bites, chronic dermatitis, acne from plastic, asthma from everything (I used nothing with fragrance anywhere in the house, allergy-sensitive detergent, pine litter etc and he still itches and scratches). Here's my observations from the 2 years he's been indoors:

He has allergies to indoor and outdoor things. However, if something inside is setting off asthma....(dinner cooking? who knows) I will let him out on the tiny screened-in patio where the humid air helps after I give him his inhaler. If he's scratching, it's from something outside ...pollen, mold...who knows what. I'm right near the Everglades so it's literally a swamp out there.

I have some hot spot spray anti-itch treatment when he starts licking obsessively, and some prescription foam that I occasionally rub him with that soothes the itch temporarily. If he's licking bald patches on his body, I put the pajamas on him so he can't reach anything except his legs. When he scratches the hair off his ears I put some cortisone cream on them, and keep his back claws trimmed and filed as round as I can ( he was feral, ear tipped and unapproachable for 8 years so the fact I have him in pajamas at all is a miracle).

If I *have* to clean the tile floor, I do it with a scent-free cleaner when he's outside and let it dry before letting him in. I also try to vacuum/dust where he likes to hang out (under the bed, of course).

I have him on lower phosphorous, senior diet (wet only) because he's old, he's 14lbs, and showing signs of CKD. With all his other allergies I can't even tell if he has any dietary ones. Currently, he is on antibiotics for whipworms from when he was feral and I guess eggs hatched when he had an immune system low point earlier this year when he was bitten by a single flea that caused a whole-body allergic reaction (licking/biting 24 hours a day, which was what prompted the pajama strategy).

A limited ingredient diet may help, but if there is a specific food allergy, they say to eliminate one food (chicken, turkey, seafood, etc) at a time for 8 weeks before trying the next one. I just feed chicken and turkey....no seafood since my experience has been seafood/fish tends to cause more allergies, but I know others will say chicken and turkey also.

Everyone is on wet food for the most part but I have one who his diabetic and addicted to dry food, losing weight on a hunger strike even though wet food is keeping him in remission. He gets Blue Buffalo Chicken Pate because that's all he will eat, with Young Again Mature Zero (no carb dry food) sprinkled on top. The "allergic to everything" cat has been wanting to partake in the forbidden dry food and really likes it. So I'm giving him a little (it's very nutrient dense) but so far he has not had any increase in itching or allergic symptoms since beginning to eat in in small quantities.

He is not on any medication specifically for allergies (just asthma) but then again, the antibiotics I'm giving him orally are the first attempt to give him any oral meds. He had an inner ear infection last year (probably had it for years) that caused vertigo and it took me 3 months to get enough Tresaderm drops in his ears to get rid of it.

He has an Aerokat inhaler which he hates but he cannot argue with Mommycat when having an episode. Sometimes it takes a puff every hour for a few hours to calm him down when he has a bad episode.

 

[Alldara]

Has the vet checked if she needs her anal glands regularly emptied? My friend's cat's first symptoms was chin acne and a cyst on her mouth area. They treated those but kept coming back. Later they discovered the problem and started monthly emptying and both cleared up.

We had to switch dishsoap for Magnus's chin acne.

Found air purifiers help with allergens at home and also changing our vacuum filters to HEPA filters. We got a dustbuster to use daily and not have to pull the big vacuum out. So that one has a HEPA too and we use it a few times a week to reduce allergens.

 

[Jem]

The allergy tests are not worth it - everyone I've spoken to about it has told me not to waste the money.

That's what I figured, even my vet told me I'd probably be wasting my money.

Thankfully she does not have asthma. Any respiratory symptoms are strictly nasal and ebb and flow with the seasons. Funny thing...they tend to match up with my own allergies...and I know I'm allergic to grass and molds mostly, and of course dust.

We've used multiple different litters, always unscented, and it does not seem to make any difference. (Clay, corn, pine pellet) We currently have World's Best Cat Litter which is a clumping corn litter, however we just switched one box to a Pine Pellet litter to see if the kitties would accept it. Lily uses the pine pellet one the most. Things haven't changed much with this new litter for her, but I do like that it's not nearly as dusty...I hope that translates to less dust in the air and less tracking...which is does seem to be helping with so far.

If he's licking bald patches on his body, I put the pajamas on him so he can't reach anything except his legs.

Thankfully this past year she has not licked herself completely bald. That happened when we first got her, and when we treated her licking as anxiety it cleared up completely and all her fur grew back. So when her licking started again, during a big change in the home, we did the same thing but it didn't stop completely and has continued, although not as bad and not as consistent. That's why I'm still unsure if her licking is more stress based....maybe the licking has to do with the discomfort of her ears...IDK...

This year has been a horrible year for allergies. Mine have been worse too, but I know several people who have said the same and know of even more people who have said they suffered from allergies this year for the first time. So it could just be a bad allergy season and she'll feel better once the end of fall hits. I'm really starting to try and pay more attention to the timing of the environment and what I've done in the house when she's "acting up" more.

And as I've said, some of this is probably my fault for the lack of housekeeping in the last few years.....not total lack...just not as good.

Has the vet checked if she needs her anal glands regularly emptied?

We did have them checked when she was having her pooping issues...vet said they were fine, and her pooping has been better with the food she eats now. She doesn't butt scoot and doesn't focus a lot of licking around her anus either so I take that as a good sign.

Found air purifiers help with allergens at home and also changing our vacuum filters to HEPA filters. We got a dustbuster to use daily and not have to pull the big vacuum out.

Yeah...I'm really starting to do better about maintaining the cleaning/dusting. We do have 2 air purifiers. One in the bedroom and one in the living room.
I've also read that a dusty house can also contribute to dirty ears so I'm hoping my extra efforts will eventually help with that also.


Lily had a really rough start to life and it took months of working with her to get her to where she is now...She does still have some anxiety quirks (separation anxiety) and her start in life probably compromised her immune system too. She was not only unwell mentally when we got her but she was sickly (mal nourished, under weight, significant muscle loss) and also had a stubborn URI that took months to eradicate. I even did physiotherapy with her, as she didn't even have the strength or muscle mass in her legs to jump up on the couch. Now she has put on weight and muscle mass, is bright eyed and social and can jump up on high things with zero effort. She originally came form a hoarding situation, pregnant. She had her litter at the shelter and they all miraculously survived and according to the shelter, she was a sweet and very attentive mother. To this day, she "mothers" my other two boys all the time grooming and cuddling them and even though she's less than half their size, she disciplines them too...and they listen to her! She's definitely a sweet little feisty pants now and rules the house...but the ears and licking.....I just feel bad.

 

[Kflowers]

This is just a little thing, but really easy to do. Whenever you wash anything with laundry detergent run a second rinse with a 1/4 cup of white vinegar added to get as much soap out of the laundry as possible. You can also use white vinegar and/or baking soda for a lot of cleaning. When you do use soap for cleaning, you can rinse with white vinegar. It's particularly good if you have hard water.

 

[sivyaleah]

Our Maine Coon, Luna was diagnosed with environmental/seasonal allergies about 1-1/2 years ago. Her symptoms included reoccuring yeast infections in her ears, lots of scratching and licking and dandruff mainly on her lower back.

We were able to rule out food allergies fairly easily due to how it started and when plus she had none of the typical symptoms of a food allergy.

We brought her to a feline dermatologist/allergist who our regular vet knew well from medical school and is very well respected in her field.

We opted to have her tested via blood work only since we didn't feel doing the typical "pin prick" test would go over well (she was rather fractious at the vet when younger).

We found out she had allergies to many outdoor things like pollens, trees, ants (thankfully we don't have those in our home), etc.
Treatment is similar to humans; either allergy shots or sublingual "drops". We opted to the drops since I just could not imagine her being tolerant of having a needle put in her 2x a day and we were always good at administering meds to her orally.

The treatment starts slowly, one drop a day for a certain amount of time, then 2x a day and finally tops out at 2 drops twice a day. There are not usually reactions to the drops (the vaccines do have a bigger chance of reactions, another reason we chose sublingual) but they do have to gradually bring it to full dose just in case so it takes several months before you might see the benefits.

She's been on this for a little over a year now and the change is dramatic. She has not had a yeast infection in about a year now, scratching is in the normal range expected for a cat and her dandruff is pretty much entirely gone. He coat looks so much better. I think she's a happier cat now too, being she isn't dealing with those skin and ear annoyances. I sometimes wonder if this is why she's a little reticent about being pet, that maybe her skin just felt so sensitive for so long that she got used to being a bit stand-offish for petting.

There is a possibility of tapering her down at some point but for the most part she'll probably be on this for life. We have not missed a single dose either which I'm sure helps. It's a wee bit pricey, unfortunately, runs about $50 a month but considering how much money we were spending treating ear infections it's kind of a wash, and maybe less. We reorder thru the allergist when about 1/2 way down in a bottle (2 come in a package, lasts about 5-6 months). They ship it door-to-door so no need to drive to get it. I'd save a little by making the drive but it's far and I'm not keen on driving long distances just to p/u medication.

 

[Jem]

I bought a different type of probiotic today when I was at the pet store. I'm going to start using it tonight and see what happens. If Lily has yeasty ears and it's not just wax/dirty, hopefully the probiotics will help and will also bump up her immune system in general. The vet said they were just dirty but who knows...And although her poop is like 95% better, she does still experience soft stools sometimes.
I also decided to try (yet again) a new litter. The pine pellet is working great for less tracking and dust but the Worlds Best just turns into powder after a short time so lots of dust and tracking. One of my boys is an avid digger so I think he's contributing to the decimation of the granules. I decided with a walnut based clumping litter...we'll see how that works.
I really wanted to try grass based litter but if that's one of the things she's allergic to (as am I) probably not the best idea.

 

[BellaBlue82]

If it helps any, our GA cat Sonny developed horrible allergies when he was around 7 years old. Welts on his skin, over groomed the majority of his body leaving 2/3rds of himself without hair, lesions from over grooming, horrible dry crusty ears and ears. We did have some skin samples taken, and it was environmental (dust, pollen, etc.) No matter how often I cleaned, he still suffered. That's when we started treatment with oral antihistamines. We tried benadryl, cirtirazine, and Chlor-trimeton. The last one is what worked for Sonny. It may be worth asking the vet to see if you could try them! I hope your poor kitty finds some relief soon, I know it's heartbreaking to see them like that.

 

[Jem]

We tried benadryl, cirtirazine, and Chlor-trimeton.

That is the next step if my efforts don't start to make a difference in the next little bit. I'm also waiting to see, as we move into fall, if her symptoms lessen/change. If that's the case then we can assume that it's environmental.

 

[sivyaleah]

If it helps any, our GA cat Sonny developed horrible allergies when he was around 7 years old. Welts on his skin, over groomed the majority of his body leaving 2/3rds of himself without hair, lesions from over grooming, horrible dry crusty ears and ears. We did have some skin samples taken, and it was environmental (dust, pollen, etc.) No matter how often I cleaned, he still suffered. That's when we started treatment with oral antihistamines. We tried benadryl, cirtirazine, and Chlor-trimeton. The last one is what worked for Sonny. It may be worth asking the vet to see if you could try them! I hope your poor kitty finds some relief soon, I know it's heartbreaking to see them like that.

We tried that before moving onto the allergy serum. The allergy pills work in about 50% of cats, unfortunately they made no difference for Luna. Glad to hear it's working well for your boy.