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Old June 11th, 2009, 03:26 PM
Tish257 Tish257 is offline
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My Cat is Losing Fur

I have a 7/8 yr old female cat who just started losing fur 1 mth ago. It started on the front of her right rear leg. Now, it has gone to her lower belly and slowly up her right side. The left side is not affected. She has no problems with her face, head,neck, back tail & front legs. She has grown up with a sister cat & the sister is in fine coat condition. They both eat the same dry food & have been for the past 6 yrs of their lives. In the "balding" patches, there is still "fuzz" left. She is eating, using litter box, not vomiting nor does she have diarrhea. He problem skin has NO scratch marks, bumps, redness, oozing, scaling or eruptions. She has no flea dirt and bedding is clean. She still grooms the problem area as well as the rest of her coat. Some have suggested that I add either fish oil supplement or extra virgin olive oil to her dry food. One thing of note...she has lately been tipping over her water bowel to see "how the water spills out"; therefore one change is that I am unable to provide the constant supply of fresh water that was always put out for the two of them. This is the only change in environment that I can think of. I have not changed scedule & there have been no additions to the home. She eats & is still playful. I do think she is bored. I can afford the initial visit to the vet but am unable to pay for a slew of blood tests & skin scraping analysis. Suggestions?
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Old June 11th, 2009, 04:30 PM
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chico2 chico2 is offline
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My cat,Chico,licks the fur off his tummy and one backleg,the vet says it's from stress,we have one cat he does not like very much.
However it could be something totally different with your kitty.
Did you see a vet?
Maybe having eaten the same dry food all her years,it's time to change to something better,preferably good canned food.
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Old June 11th, 2009, 04:56 PM
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sugarcatmom sugarcatmom is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tish257 View Post
She still grooms the problem area as well as the rest of her coat.
Can you tell if she's grooming those hairless areas more than normal? It sounds like maybe she's over-grooming, which can be a result of stress (and boredom is a form of stress), as chico2 mentioned, or possibly even allergies.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tish257 View Post
Some have suggested that I add either fish oil supplement or extra virgin olive oil to her dry food.
Even better would be to start feeding her wet food, with a plan to eventually eliminate all kibble from both of your cat's diets. Read this link for more info on why that's important: www.catinfo.org

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tish257 View Post
One thing of note...she has lately been tipping over her water bowel to see "how the water spills out"; therefore one change is that I am unable to provide the constant supply of fresh water that was always put out for the two of them.
Can you clarify this? Do you mean that you don't have water out for them 24/7? You should probably try to find a better water bowl that she can't tip over, if that's the case. Especially considering you're feeding dry food, you absolutely MUST have water available all the time. This is not an option.
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Old June 12th, 2009, 12:27 AM
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growler~GateKeeper growler~GateKeeper is offline
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First off I will second the absolute need for 24 hour water supply, especially being feed dry food.

My sister used to have a cat that would play with the water bowl all the time spilling it everywhere, until she got a pet water fountain that he was unable to dump. This is the one she got: http://www.petsmart.com/product/inde...ductId=2751805

I also have a fountain for my cat (who doesn't play in the water), this is the one I have: http://www.petmate.com/Products/Delu...in__24850.aspx


Secondly is your cat vocalizing more than normal?
Is she more energetic than normal?
Is she eating more than normal?

7-8 years old is always a good time to have a full blood panel and urinalysis done to be sure all values are in normal range and it will provide a good comparison for the future.
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