Oh no, not the cone!

[iscooterliberally]

Poor little Celina got coned today. She has some sort of skin condition and won't stop scratching herself. She went to specialist today. She just turned a year old last month. Her two brothers/litter mates don't have this problem for some reason. Our regular vet thought she might be allergic to her food. I'm not so sure about that. I think she found a plant out in the yard and got into it. Hopefully the specialist can figure it out. It's hard to tell from this shot, but she scratches until she bleeds. Hopefully she'll feel better soon.

[fleur-de-lisa]

1. Poor kitty!

My vet said food allergies are fairly common in cats. I found through trial and error that one of my females is allergic to fish.

Cats allergic to fish? Who knew? My vet said that is common too.

I hope Celina feels better soon!

[iscooterliberally]

2. Aw, thanks!

My regular vet thinks it might be the chicken by products. We went through many different bags of really expensive cat food, but she didn't improve. All we could do there is get her cortisone shots, or something that sounded like cortisone. The shots would give her a day or so of relief, but the scratching would start right up again. I think part of it is the fact that her scabs start healing that itches too. My wife took her to a dermatologist today, so hopefully they'll have some other ideas about how we can treat this more effectively.

[shraby]

5. Do you give your cat baths? If so, quit. Cats clean themselves very nicely.

By giving them baths, you destroy the natural oils they have and can get skin problems from it.

[iscooterliberally]

8. Nope, I never give them baths.

The fur always sticks to my tongue, so I make them do it themselves.
All kidding aside, I have only given cats a bath when they get into something really stinky and they can't lick it off themselves.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

11. There is no person alive who has given a cat a bath.

That's just something you don't live to tell about.

[Tucker08087]

3. Ask your vet first

But coconut oil helped my kitty who has an allergy to flea bites and, unfortunately, flea and tick preventive treatments. She has very long fur and a plume of a tail, but had gone bald in many areas and was covered in scabs. A new flea treatment helped, steroids, and the coconut oil seems to have helped.

[fleur-de-lisa]

10. This might be a dumb question

but do you rub the coconut oil on her skin?

[Tucker08087]

18. Not dumb at all!

I rubbed some on the scabs but now that her fur grew back, I can’t get to the skin, which is good news. I also heat a small amount in the microwave and pour it over her food. The other cats will lap it up like milk, but of course she’s the finicky one who wouldn’t do that, so I mixed it with food. I’m sure they all end up eating some because she’s a sweet cat and shares her food. And by the way, I first got it from a health food store, but found it in the dollar store. I think one jar lasts about 2 weeks, so it’s a good deal for $1!

[sinkingfeeling]

4. Can cats be given Apoquel? My dog scratched constantly for 3 years. We tested

for allergies, fungus infection, and a dozen other things. Then along came Apoquel. About 4 hours after first tablet, he stopped. He's now on a 1/2 tablet a day maintenance dose. Has been for 2 years. To me, it's a wonder drug.

[iscooterliberally]

7. I think my dog was on that.

He was taking some sort of pill to stop his chronic itching, but I can't remember the name of it. I have to go get him some more because he started up again. I just gave him a medicated bath the other day to give him some relief. This cat and one of my two dogs are the itchy ones. Everyone else is doing fine. I have no idea if they can give that to cats, but I'm sure the specialist will prescribe something.

[procon]

6. Where is she scratching?

If the area is on her body, go to the pet store and get a cat sized T-shirt outfit and put it on her. My cats hate those cones, but they seem to really like wearing their cat suits. They now have a wardrobe and the outfits have the added effect of keeping them calm. If your kitty can't lick or scratch at her bad spots it may help her relax more without that uncomfortable cone.

I'd lean more toward food problems, too, as they are systemic and often result in itching/scratching issues. A contact dermatitis would also affect the mouth area as she grooms herself and picks up whatever plant pollen or residue was left on her fur or feet. Did your vet do any tests or recommend a diet change?

Hope she gets better soon!

[iscooterliberally]

9. She scratches around her ears, so she does need the cone.

Almost all the fur is gone off of the back sides of her ears. She also cut her self on the sides of her face. Her body is fine. I really think she got into a plant that the other cats avoided. It's also possible that a neighbor sprayed her with something, but I think that is unlikely. As far as I know all of my neighbors like animals. There are dogs and cats everywhere in my neighborhood.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

12. It looks like she has a lot to say about it.

You might try a soft collar; it might annoy her a bit less. There's thing called the Kong cloud collar: https://www.chewy.com/kong-cloud-collar-dogs-cats-medium/dp/47473?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=hg&utm_content=KONG&utm_term=&gclid=CjwKCAjwj4zaBRABEiwA0xwsP5FQgzlyVckkX5l-98wl5dsBiRIGVPTDsDu6EJhSq0ECG4qNnnM70BoCnlsQAvD_BwE

[iscooterliberally]

13. Thanks for the tip!

We'll see how she does with this one first, but I'll keep this in mind just in case.

[Permanut]

14. My vet calls it a party hat..

not that it fools my Jack Russell terrier.

[catbyte]

15. Poor little girl! She could be my Sammy's twin.

I have such a soft spot for tabbies. I hope you find the source of her discomfort soon. Please keep us posted.

This is my Sammy:

[IMG][/IMG]

[iscooterliberally]

16. Your Sammy is beautiful!

Little Celina is a product of a feral mom and a stray dad. We finally trapped the mom and got her fixed, but the dad disappeared right after the kittens arrived. I hope he’s OK, but I have a bad feeling he got hit by a car. Celina slept on my chest all night with her cone. We have pills that we have to give her every morning and she has to be on Revolution every two weeks. The pills are for a possible inhaled allergen and the Revolution is to rule out scabies mites that she might have gotten into. The vet says no more outside excursions for Celina either. She’s not a happy camper, but we’ll get her fixed up. The other cats are hanging out with her too. They all know something isn’t right with her.

[Demovictory9]

17. poor thing. This guy invented a soft cone. made of pillow type material.