Overgrooming?

[jessdotdotdot]

My one year old cat I noticed has been grooming a lot more than normal. So much so, that he's soaking wet by the time he's done. No bald patches or anything, no fleas, and it's usually on his back shoulder blades. I'm thinking it's stress related. I bought feliway for him. I did just have to change his diet to a prescription diet due to crystals he has, that's kinda where I noticed it got a lot worse. Any recommendations on what I can do to help him stop!?

 

[kittensx4]

My one year old cat I noticed has been grooming a lot more than normal. So much so, that he's soaking wet by the time he's done. No bald patches or anything, no fleas, and it's usually on his back shoulder blades. I'm thinking it's stress related. I bought feliway for him. I did just have to change his diet to a prescription diet due to crystals he has, that's kinda where I noticed it got a lot worse. Any recommendations on what I can do to help him stop!?

This is quite interesting. My cat Timmy over grooms in the area just beyond his shoulder blades as well. The interesting part is he has been diagnosed with idiopathic cystis. Stress can bring on an episode so I am always worried that the over grooming is stress related as well. I had no luck with the feliaway. Recently another one of my cats was diagnosed with allergies. Still trying to figure out the type/cause. His affected area is the head though. Still that makes me wonder if Timmys issue is some type of allergies as well??? So frustrating! Sorry I was no help at all, but I couldn't help but notice the coincidence.

 

[Columbine]

How are things going now jessdotdotdot ? I have two thoughts here. One is that, as it coincided with the food change, he may be allergic or sensitive to one of the ingredients in the urinary food. Try comparing the ingredients to see if anything jumps out at you. The biggest culprits are generally things like wheat, gluten-containg grains (wheat, rye and barley), potatoes, peas, pulses, unnamed cereals, unnamed vegetable derivatives, chicken, beef and shellfish. No cat will be allergic or sensitive to everything - that list is just to give you hints on which (if any) differences may be the trigger.
11 Key Facts About Food Allergies In Cats

My other thought, given the location, is that it may be a reaction to spot-on flea treatments.

I'd definitely go back to the vet about this to try and pinpoint the culprit. If it is the food, there are Dl-Methionine (the primary urine acidifer in the urinary foods) supplements available, but I would only use those under veterinary supervision, as it's vital to get the dose right - too much can actually cause calcium oxalate crystals to form, and these are much harder to treat