O/T Anyone Ever Have a Cat Get a Bald Patch? Any Vets in Here?
Hi there!
This is TOTALLY o/t but I'm wondering if anyone has ever had a cat get a bald patch randomly...
My kitty is a fairly stressed and anxious kitty who often chews her paws and hides as soon as she hears anyone coming near the door. If people come over, it's like she knows beforehand and hides out in the room and won't come out until they're gone. When it's just us home, she's very loving and sweet and doesn't hide at all. So hopefully that gives you an idea of her personality - very anxious.
I noticed this morning that she has a sudden bald patch on her lower back. She's an indoor kitty so the chance of fleas/general parasites is super low and I don't often see her chew/lick her back as much as her paws. But if you've had a cat that had this before, let me know what it turned out to be. I'm all worried, even though I'm sure it's nothing serious. She's always been fairly healthy.
I'm going to take her to the vet as soon as I can get some time off work. My vet is open 9-5 and that's my usual work hours so i've gotta get something booked off, but I'm hoping it's nothing serious!
Ew I didn't even think of
Ew I didn't even think of that!
She's not itching or anything, and the area doesn't seem to be irritated whatsoever. I was petting her and accidentally pet the bald spot, but she pushed into the pets so I don't think it hurts.
Thank you for letting me
Thank you for letting me know!! That's what I'm thinking is most likely. I have been paying extra attention to her lately, giving her lots of cuddles and love so she can relax a bit. I'll probably try to pick up some felliway (the pheremone diffuser) tonight so hopefully that'll relax her a bit until we can get to the vet
Go check out what coconut oil
Go check out what coconut oil can do for issues like this, it is a wonderful cure to most things.
It could be a "hot spot" I
It could be a "hot spot" I think dogs and cats can get them. they over groom to the point that they lose hair.
It's very inconvenient but
It's very inconvenient but they're fantastic! And my town had a scandal with a vet abusing animals recently. Some workers video taped it and put it online. So I'm absolutely terrified to switch vets now, even if I could find one with better hours! I am thinking it's likely stress. I told my boss I'm way too worried to wait any longer so I'm going in tomorrow!
Possibly licking or chewing
Possibly licking or chewing due to stress. My sisters cat had a bald pitch on his arm last time they were away on vacation. Took to the vet and it was stress related behavior
It could be a multitude of
It could be a multitude of things. Hot spots, vitamin deficiency, fleas, stress. Our big Stump has a bald patch extending down his leg from fleas/over grooming. We've been feeding him tuna with hidden vitamins every other day and the hair is slowly growing back.
Update: I went to the vet and
Update: I went to the vet and they have two theories that need to be investigated: 1. an internal parasite of some type, not fleas though. 2: a skin allergy of some sort. They said stress could possibly be the cause but it's the least likely theory. Since the cat is so nervous, we're investigating each theory before we jump to a skin graph or any invasive tests.
We're addressing the skin allergy theory first through oral medication, switching her food to a hypoallergenic one, and getting a topical cream to apply on the spot. If that doesn't clear it up within a few weeks, or if it gets worse, we'll start trying out treatments for an internal parasite.
Hopefully one of the two theories is the right one so we don't have to do the skin graph or any invasive tests because that would scare the heck out of her and be pretty expensive for me! lol
In my experiences it could be
In my experiences it could be severe food allergies (they can develop over time), ring worm, or flea allergy.