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Original poster

cat lovers anyone?

12 replies

squirmyworm · 04/02/2004 19:20

long shot this but ime mumsnetters know everything so here goes. I have a gorgeous black cat - very big with lovely thick fur but as I was fussing him yesterday, I noticed that he's gone rather bald on his tummy/abdomen - sort of short fluffy patchy fur in places and one tiny bald spot. should I worry? what could it be? he seems fine otherwise.

OP posts:
hewlettsdaughter · 04/02/2004 19:34

flea allergy? be worth checking it out, i reckon.

Original poster
squirmyworm · 04/02/2004 21:14

good thinking HD....just checked his baldy bits and lo and behold - a critter. Have frontlined him again (been doing it every month) but it doesn't seem to work all the time. Trip to the vet I think

OP posts:
hewlettsdaughter · 04/02/2004 21:35

haven't treated our cat for a while, but probably will soon - baby due in april so don't really want a flea problem!

Lisa78 · 04/02/2004 21:38

Hi SW, trip to the vet indeed - my mates cat (1 of 5) did this and turned out to have developed an allergy to the frontline drops. He's okay with the spray on frontline oddly enough, but they do have a bit of a battle with him!!!

Lisa78 · 04/02/2004 21:38

1 of 5 cats that is, not 1 of 5 mates!

mothernature · 04/02/2004 21:39

Squirmyworm though this might help you understand the cat:-

over grooming

keeping the coat clean is one of the fastidious habits cats have. in fact they spend quite an amount of time doing it. you will notice after you have stroked a cat, it is quite keen to reestablish its own body scent by licking its fur. you can watch, that cats in a multi-cat household also groom each other at spots they can't reach themselves, like the top of the head for example.

problem

normal grooming behaviour however can get out of control. that's a sign that something is wrong. if a cat licks certain parts of his body excessively until it looses its fur or gets sore, there might be a number of reasons responsible.

solution

check if fleas are irritating your cat. some cats are allergic to flea saliva. this causes itching and makes the cat very uncomfortable
if fleas are present, use flea repellents and the problem should settle, stress can also be the cause of excessive grooming, investigate what actions could have been upsetting. maybe it was moving house or the arrival of a new cat or other pet even your hormones can be responsible,
nervousness can be the reason for over grooming. find out what makes your cat nervous in the first place. your vet may prescribe tranquilizers if the problem doesn't settle on its own.

I hope that helps

Original poster
squirmyworm · 04/02/2004 21:46

thanks everso, hd lisa and mothernature. Arrival of ds three months ago may have triggered something re the washing, MN. I was going to try Feliway since the big chap (cat that is not baby) has also started up a rather bad habit he used to have of weeing in various corners. Just a minute ago he wandered in and posed with his tail up over a load of papers in the corner as if to say 'shall I?' Any idea if Feliway is any good?

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eddm · 04/02/2004 22:19

Hi Squirmyworm. Mothernature is bang on. My cat also has this problem. Not sure if is flea-related (also use Frontline and she doesn't actually go outside much) or to do with stress. She's a real attention-seeker and has suffered since arrival of ds six months ago. Vet has given us some stuff I think is called Hibiscrub to stop her bald patches getting infected and I am really making an effort to give her plenty of cuddles. Her fur does grow back but then another patch crops up. Sadly she just isn't going to get the same sort of attention as pre-baby Vet has now put her on kittie prozac, we've also got her a cat bed that hangs on a radiator as she hasn't been able to sleep in our room since ds came home. Hope your cat is easier to treat!

stupidgirl · 04/02/2004 22:46

What's this Feliway?????

I have 2 girlie cats, who are gorgeous, but I have a problem with a male cat (or possibly 2) who keep coming in and weeing in my house. I know it;s not my cats, and now I've taken to shutting the cats in the kitchen at night (which I feel awful about, but has stopped me being woken every couple of nights with my cats and the strange cats screaming at each other...) they are coming in during the day. It's virtually possible to locate where the tom cats have been spraying and as a result, my house stinks of cat wee - oh the shame

So, any ideas would be good....

Original poster
squirmyworm · 05/02/2004 10:33

hi there - as I write dc is at the vet with dh...hope they come back with some solutions. Feliway is a kind of cat calming thing that you can get in a spray and also in one of those little bottles you plug in a plug socket (like air freshener) apparantly it makes them nice and calm and less inclined to mark their territory by weeing. don't know if it would work on intruders! my husband does some work as a military reservist and had to confess last night that the strong smell of cat week was emanating from his kit....oh dear.

OP posts:
noddy5 · 05/02/2004 11:03

i got feliway for my nervous cat because the stress of moving house had him spraying everywhere!But even the noise of the spray scared him-didnt know there was a plug in alternative

Original poster
squirmyworm · 05/02/2004 11:34

aww poor thing. Mine is also quite nervy. The irony is he's a vastly enormous chap - looks terrifying like a cross between a black bear and a panther but soft as butter and the gentlest little soul on this earth. Will let you know how the feliway diffuser goes...vet said probably a combination of anxiety and fleas never quite getting eradicated. we need to treat the house but I'm a bit worried about using fleaspray with a young baby around...

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