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Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / February 2005male cat goes in licking fits when back scratched
Male cat, fixed, overweight, no declawd, when scratch his spine he goes into licking fits, licking the air. In summer he may have had a flea infestation, thick hair, outside cat. stevn moore > Male cat, fixed, overweight, no declawd, > when scratch his spine he goes into licking fits, licking the air. > In summer he may have had a flea infestation, thick hair, outside cat. Google "feline hyperesthesia" and stop scratching him there. It is the equivalent of hitting your funny bone over and over or tickling you until you can't breath. There is nothing that can be done about it. Be happy your cat just licks, others get aggressive. (My tuxedo has it.) >> Male cat, fixed, overweight, no declawd, >> when scratch his spine he goes into licking fits, licking the air. [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > be done about it. Be happy your cat just licks, others get > aggressive. (My tuxedo has it.) Mine has progressed where it now happens when I touch her anywhere on her back - she has seized once from it - my Old English Sheepdog loves to lick her and she caused her to have a seizure. She bites herself madly and screams most times. The only really safe place to pet her is her head... One previous vet recommended kitty prozac... but I just stay away from petting her there... "Connie" <imconcon*NOSPAM*@cableone.net> wrote in message > One previous vet recommended kitty prozac... but I just stay away from > petting her there... Forgot to mention it is because feline hyperesthesia is considered an obsessive compulsive disorder... > >> Male cat, fixed, overweight, no declawd, > >> when scratch his spine he goes into licking fits, licking the air. [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > One previous vet recommended kitty prozac... but I just stay away from > petting her there... Oh, Connie, I am sorry to hear that. How old is she? For whatever reason, once we put my girl on Tapazole and a beta blocker for her irregular heartbeat, the hyperesthesia lessened. Now her skin just ripples a bit when I brush her on her lower back, but she does not yowl and wag her head anymore. >> Mine has progressed where it now happens when I touch her anywhere on her >> back - she has seized once from it - my Old English Sheepdog loves to [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > her > on her lower back, but she does not yowl and wag her head anymore. She is going to be 11 this year. She has it pretty severly. When she needs to scratch, she'll go under a chair and rub back and forth. I watch her closely when she does this, cause sometimes we have to stop her. She can tolerate being petted up toward her neck for a slightly longer time than near her tail... that is almost instantaneous. She is still happy-go-lucky... > >> Mine has progressed where it now happens when I touch her anywhere on her > >> back - she has seized once from it - my Old English Sheepdog loves to [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > near her tail... that is almost instantaneous. She is still > happy-go-lucky... Did you have a vet check her, and did she say she had hyperesthesia? >> >> Mine has progressed where it now happens when I touch her anywhere on > her [quoted text clipped - 25 lines] > > Did you have a vet check her, and did she say she had hyperesthesia? She has been to 3 different vets - one said hyperesthesia, another said some sort of compulsive disorder (which hyperesthesia falls under this category), and one thought it was allergies.... After doing research of my own, I agree with the first 2... she has had this for 5-6 years... maybe even longer - at least it has not gotten any worse in the last 2 years. In the beginning she was tried on anti itch meds, steroids, and antibiotics - none helped... "Connie" <imconcon*NOSPAM*@cableone.net> wrote > > > > Did you have a vet check her, and did she say she had hyperesthesia? > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > least it has not gotten any worse in the last 2 years. In the beginning she > was tried on anti itch meds, steroids, and antibiotics - none helped... Connie, if you think she is really uncomfortable and that this condition is negatively affecting her quality of life, maybe Prozac/fluoxetine is worth a try. It is proven to work on obsessive/compulsive disorders in animals. > "Connie" <imconcon*NOSPAM*@cableone.net> wrote > > >> > Did you have a vet check her, and did she say she had hyperesthesia? [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > worth a try. It is proven to work on obsessive/compulsive disorders > in animals. That's the thing, I really don't think it "bothers" her unless someone touches her wrong. She has gotten to where I can actually stroke her lightly the whole length of her body without her having a fit (sometimes). We just know to stay away from that area, and even my dog now just licks her on her face (well - in her ear..lol). She is a very happy cat otherwise... The vet said if she continued to get worse with it, to consider it... but in the last 2 years, I think she has actually improved... or we have just adjusted :-) > > Connie, if you think she is really uncomfortable and that this condition > > is negatively affecting her quality of life, maybe Prozac/fluoxetine is [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > last 2 years, I think she has actually improved... or we have just adjusted > :-) Well good then! Cats are normally weird, after all. My vet said the condition varies in severity. > Oh, Connie, I am sorry to hear that. How old is she? For whatever reason, > once we put my girl on Tapazole and a beta blocker for her irregular > heartbeat, the hyperesthesia lessened. Now her skin just ripples a bit when > I brush her on her lower back, but she does not yowl and wag her head > anymore. Oh, hey, this got my attention. I've noticed that sometimes, Oscar's skin ripples, even though nothing's touching her. It's been going on as long as I can recall, but happens rarely. Should I be worried?  Signaturemonique, who spoils Oscar unmercifully pictures: http://www.bounceswoosh.org/rpca > > Oh, Connie, I am sorry to hear that. How old is she? For whatever reason, > > once we put my girl on Tapazole and a beta blocker for her irregular [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > touching her. It's been going on as long as I can recall, but happens > rarely. Should I be worried? Oh, cool, Monique wants to talk about actual cats! :-) I am not sure that there is anything to worry about--even if a cat has hyperesthesia it is not serious, or life-threatening in any way unless the cat gets aggressive from it and gets itself hurt that way. When I first saw Buddha's skin ripple, I thought: "Hmm, cool, what the cows do in the field when flies get them!" But then later my husband showed me that when he petted "her spot" near the base of her tail, she started going "Mow. Mow mow mow," and wagging her head, with her nose pointed skyward. :) It was actually hilarious, esp. when we discovered that I could pet there there, and however many "mows" I made, she would answer with the same number. (I am not kidding. I was thinking about Letterman's Stupid Pet Tricks!) So I would say "Mow." Buddha would say "Mow," wagging her head back and forth like a blind, black bluesman. Then I said, "Mow mow." And she said, "Mow mow," And so on. THEN my husband said, hey watch this. Now if I pet her spot she bites her arm!" Next time I took her to the vet I asked him about her wagging her head and crying when we petted her, and he said, "Does she bite her arm?" When I nodded, he said "feline hyperesthesia." Very common. You might not want to pet her there because it probably is not comfortable for her." Then I read about it online, and saw that the worst it gets is when some cats get aggressive and actually attack when their tails or backs are touched. > I am not sure that there is anything to worry about--even if a cat has > hyperesthesia it is not serious, or life-threatening in any way unless the [quoted text clipped - 17 lines] > about it online, and saw that the worst it gets is when some cats get > aggressive and actually attack when their tails or backs are touched. I'm not even sure what Oscar does is related to the same condition, because she does it without any apparent stimulus, and I've never seen her do it when she's being petted or grooming herself. She also sometimes shakes her head a little bit in what looks like a twitch -- it's not pronounced enough to be a vigorous head-shake. Again, without apparent stimulus. Signaturemonique, who spoils Oscar unmercifully pictures: http://www.bounceswoosh.org/rpca > She also sometimes shakes her head a little bit in what looks like a > twitch -- it's not pronounced enough to be a vigorous head-shake. > Again, without apparent stimulus. Does she look at her tail with alarm, and then run as if being pursued by it? That's what Rosalie does. I think it's a game. It's the same look she gets in her eyes before pouncing on something. --Catherine & Rosalie the calico > > She also sometimes shakes her head a little bit in what looks like a > > twitch -- it's not pronounced enough to be a vigorous head-shake. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > it? That's what Rosalie does. I think it's a game. It's the same look she > gets in her eyes before pouncing on something. OMG this is really funny! >> She also sometimes shakes her head a little bit in what looks like a twitch >> -- it's not pronounced enough to be a vigorous head-shake. Again, without [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > it? That's what Rosalie does. I think it's a game. It's the same look she > gets in her eyes before pouncing on something. Just the skin twitch, or head shake. No accompanying theatrics that I've noticed. Signaturemonique, who spoils Oscar unmercifully pictures: http://www.bounceswoosh.org/rpca > Mine has progressed where it now happens when I touch her > anywhere on her back - she has seized once from it - my Old [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > One previous vet recommended kitty prozac... but I just stay > away from petting her there... Shamrock is like that too. He reacts violently if you pet him anywhere other than his head or his shoulder blades (he loves being rubbed there, like a shoulder rub). He gets very overstimulated, but even though I've posted here before about drugs for this, I don't think I could bring myself to drug him (prozac, sedative, etc) just to pet him. His overstimulation problem does flow down to how he reacts to one of my other cats, though, but we're going through some behavior modification now to try to stop that. He's just a very high strung cat. But he's o so lovable most of the time. He also has allergy or EGC problems, and that obviously affects his personality when it is flairing up. SignatureCheryl > Male cat, fixed, overweight, no declawd, > when scratch his spine he goes into licking fits, licking the air. > In summer he may have had a flea infestation, thick hair, outside cat. > > stevn moore This is fairly common - the 'lick response' when scratched in a particular place. One of my cats used to do it if I scratched her in one special spot on her back. Cathy > Male cat, fixed, overweight, no declawd, when scratch his spine he goes into > licking fits, licking the air. In summer he may have had a flea > infestation, thick hair, outside cat. I knew a cat in high school who, when petted in a certain way, would literally flip herself, pee, and scratch, all at once. Apparently, she was epileptic. Signaturemonique, who spoils Oscar unmercifully pictures: http://www.bounceswoosh.org/rpca > Male cat, fixed, overweight, no declawd, > when scratch his spine he goes into licking fits, licking the > air. In summer he may have had a flea infestation, thick hair, > outside cat. > > stevn moore It tickles? SignatureCheryl > Male cat, fixed, overweight, no declawd, > when scratch his spine he goes into licking fits, licking the air. > In summer he may have had a flea infestation, thick hair, outside cat. This is a fairly common reaction to scratching a cat's lower spine near the base of the tail -- as long as only licks his lips and not his skin Not all cats have this reaction. Comes in handy when pilling a cat! After pilling, scratching the lowing spine makes some cats swallow the pill automatically so they can do their licking thing! Phil Thank you, all I am relieved it isn't serious,yet. I will ask again if i have any question about health. steven moore >Thank you, all I am relieved it isn't serious,yet. >I will ask again if i have any question about health. >steven moore >Thank you, all I am relieved it isn't serious,yet. >I will ask again if i have any question about health. >steven moore > >Now I'm confused!I'v been reading the threads and while my cat,Thom, has the same reaction to being scratched where his tailbone is, he not only seems to enjoy it but he constantly seeks me out when ever I'm sitting in my reading chair and pushes his butt against my leg and slaps his tail very hard against my ankle untill I scratch him on his tailbone.The longer I "softly" scrath him there the more he seems to enjoy it.He even purrs while I do it! Is it possible that he's being compulsive and therefore I should resist his pleadings to be scratched there?The last thing I want to do is hurt him if he's suffering from a disorder that makes him request to be scratched in an area that will only do him harm.Now I'm afraid to scratch him there even a little.Could someone please explain to me what the signs are and whether or not I need to be concerned.Thank you so much,Thom's friend.[Admin] Created=02/20/05 07:17:29 Newsrc=C:\Documents and Settings\r.w.beejur\My Documents\newsrc Version=WinVN 0.99.9 (Released Version) [Personal] UserName=roland booth MailAddress=evaluater@aol.com Organization=rec.pets.cats.health+behav ReplyTo=news.astraweb.com [Communications] UseSocket=1 NNTPHost=localhost SMTPHost=Mail NNTPService=nntp ConnectAtStartup=1 ForceXhdr=0 MailDemandLogon=1 MailForceType=-1 DebugComm=1 TimeZone=est5edt MAPIPrefix=SMTP: [Authorization] NNTPUserName=brotherb NNTPSavePassword=1 NNTPPassword=X4oaQmeXPPR3UkY= [Logging] MailLog=0 MailLogFile=MAIL.LOG PostLog=0 PostLogFile=POST.LOG [Confirmation] ConfirmBatchOps=1 ConfirmDisconnect=1 ConfirmSaveOnExit=1 ConfirmReplyTo=1 [Group List] DoList=2 ShowUnsubscribed=1 SortGroupList=1 GroupListMultiSelect=0 GroupListSeparator=80 [Article List] ArticleThreshold=5000000 MinArticlesToRetrieve=3000000 FullNameFrom=1 EnableThreading=1 ShowUnreadOnly=1 NewWndGroup=1 ThreadFullSubject=1 ThreadDepthIndicator=> SaveArtAppend=1 SaveNewsrcOnClose=1 ArtListMultiSelect=0 TrackSubscribedCrossposts=1 TrackUnsubscribedCrossposts=1 SpareRanges=8 ArtListSeparator1=64 ArtListSeparator2=120 ArtListSeparator3=320 EnableArticleAction=1 [Article] NewWndArticle=0 WrapIncomingArticleText=1 WrapIncomingArticleTextLength=80 TrimHeaders=1 ScrollPastHeaders=1 ItalicizeQuotes=1 [Compose] WordWrap=1 PrefillCcAddress=1 ShowOrgHdr=0 ShowReplyToHdr=0 ShowFollowupToHdr=1 ShowKeywordsHdr=0 ShowSummaryHdr=1 ShowDistributionHdr=1 ShowFromHdr=0 FollowupSaysTemplate=In article %i, %a says... 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news.astraweb.com] NeedGroupHeader=0 [G: alt.binaries.pictures.blasphemous-sex] SortOption=Date NeedGroupHeader=0 [G: alt.binaries.e-book.flood] NeedGroupHeader=0 [G: alt.binaries.mp3.audiobooks] NeedGroupHeader=0 [G: alt.binaries.pictures.erotica.amateur.lolita] SortOption=Date NeedGroupHeader=0 [G: japan.binaries.pictures.erotica.lolita] SortOption=Date NeedGroupHeader=0 [G: microsoft.public.games.zone] NeedGroupHeader=0 [G: microsoft.public.windowsmedia.sdk] NeedGroupHeader=0 [G: misc.forsale.computers.memory] NeedGroupHeader=0 [G: rec.guns] SortOption=Date NeedGroupHeader=0 [G: rec.pets.cats.health+behav] SortOption=Threads (strict) NeedGroupHeader=0 Now I'm confused!I'v been reading the threads and while my cat,Thom, has the same reaction to being scratched where his tailbone is, he not only seems to enjoy it but he constantly seeks me out when ever I'm sitting in my reading chair and pushes his butt against my leg and slaps his tail very hard against my ankle untill I scratch him on his tailbone.The longer I "softly" scrath him there the more he seems to enjoy it.He even purrs while I do it! Is it possible that he's being compulsive and therefore I should resist his pleadings to be scratched there?The last thing I want to do is hurt him if he's suffering from a disorder that makes him request to be scratched in an area that will only do him harm.Now I'm afraid to scratch him there even a little.Could someone please explain to me what the signs are and whether or not I need to be concerned.Thank you so much,Thom's friend.
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