My cat keeps licking his belly despite many vets and treatments.

Question

We have a 19lb large DMH NM 2.5 year old cat who has been excessively licking a spot on his belly for two years. He has been on Prednisolone, Prozac, Reactin, Surolan and several other medications to no avail. He can lick around all 5 cones we have that don't impede his drinking/eating and he likes the taste of bitter spray. Feliway is ineffective. He eats raw food and limited ingredient expensive dry food. He has been to 3 vets with no results. What else can we do? Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Male | neutered | 2 years and 8 months old

Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA · Accepted Answer

Skin problems like this can be very frustrating to deal with - I can sympathize! Most cases of over-grooming and hair loss in cats are due to a medical issue of some kind, so I suspect that there may be something going on that hasn't been diagnosed yet. It sounds like your kitty might be a very good candidate for allergy testing, if this hasn't been done yet - your regular vet may be able to do this, or you can request referral to a veterinary dermatologist if needed. Depending on the results, allergy hyposensitization injections may be a good option for him, or possibly a medication trial with Atopica or Apoquel if these have not been tried. A diet trial with a prescription hypoallergenic food for 6-8 weeks could also be considered, along with a skin scrape to check for mange (uncommon in cats, but possible) and testing for ringworm to rule this out as well.

My cat keeps licking his belly despite many vets and treatments.

Most Helpful Answer

Related Questions

What fish dog food helps dry skin if my dog eats Science Diet?

What's the best way to feed my hamster when I'm going on a trip?

Can chickens eat bell peppers daily and what about veggie salads?

Is Purina Layer Pellets good for chickens? What other feeds exist?

My newly adopted pet won't eat hay. What can I do to encourage it?

My mice eat all their food together from one bowl. Is this normal?

Share