# anyone had experience with a cat scratching itself raw?



## MissLucky (Feb 28, 2015)

hi. Not sure if any of you may be able to shed any light on an ongoing issue with our rescue cat. 
To try and keep a long story short (ish), she has a habit of scratching until the fur is gone and her skin is bleeding and flesh and blood is literally flying off. We have noticed a couple of small bald patches on the back of her head, which are obviously old wounds, as well as one on the back of her neck. 
Last year, shortly after getting her, she scratched an area in the middle of her back. We took her to the vet and he gave her an injection (sorry, I can't remember what it was), but he said that basically if she was allergic to anything, that should stop the irritation. It didn't work. This led him to believe that the problem was more of a behavioural issue. (she was also tested for numerous things while at the rescue centre). 
So we decided to make sure she had enough stimulation and kept as stress-free and calm as possible. By this time she had been on a special diet, been tested for various tics, mites, worms, fleas etc. We tried Feliway plug-ins all around the house. Nothing seemed to help. 
As a last resort we brought a tiny dog vest and put that on her - which amazingly worked! She realised she couldn't get to her flesh, so left it alone and didn't even attempt to scratch it. So she's been wearing a vest (changed regularly and groomed regularly) for the past year or so. Not an ideal solution, but it seemed to work. 
But. The past week or so, she decided to scratch again. She scratched so much that it wore a hole through the vest and totally ripped her skin so, so badly. 
It's really upsetting to see her do that to herself. 

I've taken her back to the vet today. I am thinking along the lines of her being stressed and maybe needing some kind of relaxant. The vet has prescribed Zylkene to put in her food and a cream to put directly on the wound - isaderm. 
As we've tried so much so far, I really don't feel confident that anything is going to work. It's emotionally and financially draining. 

has anyone had any similar issues with they're their pet? Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated. 
Thanks.


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## tt24 (Feb 17, 2015)

We did with Ruby and found it was a food allergy - she needs to be on the new food for quite a long time before it comes into affect though


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## Treaclesmum (Sep 26, 2011)

My cat has just been on Ovarid for a similar issue which makes them more relaxed and less prone to scratch or lick


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## Paddypaws (May 4, 2010)

I had a cat who did this....vet diagnosed Flea allergy dermatitis and we treated accordingly. I do think that it was also partly behavioural though as she stopped as soon as we allowed her full bedroom access.

I think flea allergy and food intolerances are the two most common reasons.


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## Ceiling Kitty (Mar 7, 2010)

The most common causes of itchy cats are parasites (fleas and mites) and allergies (FAD, food allergy, atopic dermatitis).

These all need to be ruled out before you can be confident that it's a stress response. The VAST majority of these kitties are itchy, not stressed.

She needs:
- coat brushings, skin scrapes and hair plucks to rule out parasites.
- fungal culture for dermatophytosis (ringworm).
- strict treatment with an effective flea control medication such as Advocate, to rule out FAD.
- cytology samples to rule out any secondary bacterial or yeast infections.
- a food trial to rule out food allergy (the proper term for this is currently 'cutaneous adverse food reaction').

Measures to reduce stress in the meantime are worthwhile and certainly won't be doing any harm - and may indeed be helping - but a full dermatological work-up is essential.


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## MissLucky (Feb 28, 2015)

Thanks for the replies, everyone.


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