Over grooming

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rob - 03 Nov 2003 21:40 GMT

I have 3 cats, 2 girls and a boy.
one of the girls (Poppy) is a very nervous cat and has been since we got her
from a rescue at 10 weeks old. She has always had a slight tendency to over
groom her tummy and the insides of her back legs but over the last year or
two this has got far worse such that her tummy and the inside of her back
legs are almost bald.

the vet only treats this with steroids which have a minor effect for a few
months but then the over grooming takes hold again.

has anyone had any experience of this? if so did you find any alternative
treatments?

many thanks
rob

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Cheryl - 05 Nov 2003 00:18 GMT

> I have 3 cats, 2 girls and a boy.
> one of the girls (Poppy) is a very nervous cat and has been since
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
> many thanks
> rob

It could be a food allergy. The top food allergens are beef and beef
by-products, tuna, milk, yeast and yeast products, pork and turkey.
The histamines secreted by "mast cells" allow for blood to enter
tissue causing the itching and licking you are seeing. "Lick
Granuloma" is another term used by vets for this. Does she lick her
feet a lot too? Is she an only cat? I only ask that because if you
have to try an "ellimination diet", it's easier with just one cat or
one that you can separate from the others at meal time.

My cat with the same problem as yours is still only relieved by
steroid shots. I'm trying to find another, permanent, safer way.

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rob - 05 Nov 2003 11:41 GMT

> > I have 3 cats, 2 girls and a boy.
> > one of the girls (Poppy) is a very nervous cat and has been since
[quoted text clipped - 23 lines]
> My cat with the same problem as yours is still only relieved by
> steroid shots. I'm trying to find another, permanent, safer way.

Thanks - Poppy has a sister and brother here so food elimination is
difficult. She is eating the Hills "Sensitive skin" dry food + whiskers
singles at present but it doesn't seem to have any palliative effect. I
guess another trip to the Vet for a steroid shot is called for.

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Marion - 05 Nov 2003 17:32 GMT

Poppy...has always had a slight tendency to over

> groom her tummy and the insides of her back legs but over the last year or
> two this has got far worse such that her tummy and the inside of her back
> legs are almost bald.

Our Pushkin did this for years -- her back and tummy were raw, and the
only way of holding it even moderately in check was to give her a shot
of steroids.

Then the flea control product Advantage appeared. After one
application, the problem went away and her thick shiny coat recovered
everywhere! It turned out that she was highly allergic to flea
secretions. One flea bite set off the allergy, causing dreadful
itching and the frantic licking.

The scarey thing was that I wasn't even aware that fleas were around
-- I'd been doing the vaccuuming, spraying, and flea bath routines as
scrupulously as
I could, and never found any evidence.

I'd recommend a trial of the stuff, because I can't tell you how great
a difference it made.

Marion

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rob - 05 Nov 2003 18:23 GMT

> Poppy...has always had a slight tendency to over
> > groom her tummy and the insides of her back legs but over the last year or
[quoted text clipped - 20 lines]
>
> Marion

Thank you, we will try this. BTW - how is Advantage applied? is it a pipette
to squeeze on the back of the neck?

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M.C. Mullen - 06 Nov 2003 05:09 GMT

| > "rob" <rob@no-spam.rtanet.com> wrote in message
| news:<3fa6cab8_2@mk-nntp-2.news.uk.tiscali.com>...
[quoted text clipped - 26 lines]
| Thank you, we will try this. BTW - how is Advantage applied? is it a pipette
| to squeeze on the back of the neck?

Make sure you put it high enough, about half way up the head, not on the
backbone as it says on the medicine.
I did it wrong the first time, and half of it ran down the side of the cat.
It was also applied too low so that he could lick it away. He hated the
stuff and went crazy once he had tasted it. The second time it went better,
and the stuff seems to be very good.

Carola

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Marion - 06 Nov 2003 13:13 GMT

> > I'd recommend a trial of the stuff, because I can't tell you how great
> > a difference it made.
> >
> > Marion
> Thank you, we will try this. BTW - how is Advantage applied? is it a pipette
> to squeeze on the back of the neck?

Yes -- the important thing seems to be to get it as close to the skin
as
possible and in a place that the cat cannot lick. They don't like it,
by
the way, because the smell must be quite strong to their noses, but
that fades after a few hours.
I do hope that it works as well for you as it did in my house!

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rob - 06 Nov 2003 17:04 GMT

> > > I'd recommend a trial of the stuff, because I can't tell you how great
> > > a difference it made.
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
> that fades after a few hours.
> I do hope that it works as well for you as it did in my house!

thank you all for your advice - i will let you know how it goes.

rob

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