My kitten is itching. How effective are feline allergy blood tests?

Question

Do feline allergy blood tests actually work? My kitten is 6 months old and we can't figure out why she is itching. After vet visits and plenty of lifestyle and home changes, it is getting worse. No scabbing or blood yet. To find the cause of the allergy, a blood test was advised, but If I decide to go forward what is my success rate? I hate seeing her uncomfortable. And i don't want to mask symptoms with medication until I know what is causing it. Pet's info: Cat | American Shorthair | Female | spayed | 6 months and 5 days old | 11 lbs

Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA · Accepted Answer

Poor Love Bug! There are different types of allergies that cats can get - blood testing is usually quite accurate for environmental allergies, but less so for other issues like fleas or food allergies. Bacterial or fungal skin infections or skin mites (mange) can also cause recurring itching issues in cats, so it's important to rule out these possibilities as well. I would definitely make sure that Love Bug is on a good quality monthly flea control medication to make sure that fleas are not the problem, and ask your vet about doing a skin scrape to rule out mites if this hasn't been done already. A skin cytology test and/or fungal culture could also be considered if her skin problems look suspicious for some type of infection. If you're hesitant about going forward with blood testing for environmental allergies, you could also consider a hypoallergenic food trial first - if she has a food allergy, this is a more effective way of diagnosing it than using a blood test. If all of these things have been done already and your vet is fairly certain that Lady Bug has environmental allergies, then yes - a blood test would be a good, accurate way of determining what she is allergic to. From there, you can either do allergy hyposensitization injections (similar to what is done in humans) to help train her immune system over time, or start a daily allergy medication like Atopica or prednisolone as-needed to control her symptoms. If you opt for the allergy hyposensitization treatment program, the success rate for significant improvement (not necessarily a cure, although some cats do have complete resolution of their symptoms) is about 60-70%.

My kitten is itching. How effective are feline allergy blood tests?

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