Hi all, as you may have seen from previous threads, my poor little Cecil has been suffering with itchy skin which has caused him to excessively bite and make it sore.
Back story: the itching started around a month ago just after he was neutered, but we did also put him on a new hypoallergenic food the same day (not because of sensitivities, just because we didn't like that his previous Royal Canin kitten food had sugars in). It started off as small red patches on his tummy, then a few days later brown specks appeared on the skin, then as time went on the redness increased but the brown specks started flaking off like dry skin. It looks like it is healing but has now spread to around his eyes and ears and the creases under his front legs, and he is scratching more than ever.
Anyway.. when he started biting to the point he was pulling clumps of fur out, I thought enough was enough so took him to the vet. After lots of research I was convinced it was fungal, as it looks suspiciously similar to Malassezia dermatitis. The vet took a (quick) look at his sore spots and told us it was probably food allergies, and sent us away with steroid tablets and some sensitive exclusion diet food. 24 hours after the vet visit, the skin has improved but he's been in a head cone since so I assume that's why.
I guess I just don't know whether to trust the vets judgement that it's food related, when he's always eaten chicken (Royal Canin) then after been on a hypoallergenic food consisting of chicken & carrot. I would of course still be willing to do the exclusion diet to see if it works, but Cecil has point blank refused to eat the sensitive food so now we're back to square one.
I'm really at a loss and feel so sorry for my little boy as he is clearly uncomfortable. Any thoughts?
Back story: the itching started around a month ago just after he was neutered, but we did also put him on a new hypoallergenic food the same day (not because of sensitivities, just because we didn't like that his previous Royal Canin kitten food had sugars in). It started off as small red patches on his tummy, then a few days later brown specks appeared on the skin, then as time went on the redness increased but the brown specks started flaking off like dry skin. It looks like it is healing but has now spread to around his eyes and ears and the creases under his front legs, and he is scratching more than ever.
Anyway.. when he started biting to the point he was pulling clumps of fur out, I thought enough was enough so took him to the vet. After lots of research I was convinced it was fungal, as it looks suspiciously similar to Malassezia dermatitis. The vet took a (quick) look at his sore spots and told us it was probably food allergies, and sent us away with steroid tablets and some sensitive exclusion diet food. 24 hours after the vet visit, the skin has improved but he's been in a head cone since so I assume that's why.
I guess I just don't know whether to trust the vets judgement that it's food related, when he's always eaten chicken (Royal Canin) then after been on a hypoallergenic food consisting of chicken & carrot. I would of course still be willing to do the exclusion diet to see if it works, but Cecil has point blank refused to eat the sensitive food so now we're back to square one.
I'm really at a loss and feel so sorry for my little boy as he is clearly uncomfortable. Any thoughts?