My cat is 4 years old and she is losing the hair on her hind legs and belly. What am I most likely looking at? Pet's info: Cat | American Shorthair | Female | unspayed | 8 lbs

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. What you are describing could be due to an allergy or due to a skin infection. I would recommend switching to a new food altogether such as Science Diet, Royal Canin, Natural Balance or Purina One. If after 4-6 weeks of being on a new food there is no improvement, I would recommend having a veterinarian examine Mama so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. Please remember to rate this answer as helpful or not. Thank you!

This is usually caused by either a psychogenic overgrooming (basically a behavioural disorder due to stress) or could be due to an allergy, infection or mites. First of all, in order to rule out skin parasites, you will need to treat with a high quality flea treatment (advocate or advantage), then ask the vet to perform a skin scrape - this might reveal an infection or a mite infestation. If all of those came back negative, the next step is to treat the allergy symptomatically and try to discover the cause of the allergy. Three main type of allergies are usually affecting pets: food allergies, flea and parasite related ones and environmental type (allergens coming from trees, pollens, dust etc etc). Some medications can be given by the vet in order to repair any possible skin lesions (like steroids and antibiotics). Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further

Why is my cat losing hair on her hind legs and belly? What to do?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | American Shorthair | Female | unspayed | 8 lbs

My cat is 4 years old and she is losing the hair on her hind legs and belly. What am I most likely looking at?

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS 102

Veterinarian

Published on December 9th, 2016

Hair loss in that area is likely due to excessive grooming. Cats will overgroom when they are itching, and Nora could have fleas causing her to overgroom that area. If she isn't up to date on her flea treatment, she will need a spot on treatment such as Advantage or Revolution. You will need to disinfect the environment as well. If she is up to date on her flea treatment, I recommend taking her into the vet for an exam. This hair loss can then be due to allergies, mites, or ringworm. The vet can do blood tests, skin scrapings, and use a Wood's lamp to diagnose allergies, mites, and ringworm. Once the cause of the itching is found, the vet can prescribe the appropriate treatment. I recommend taking her into the vet tomorrow during normal business hours.

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Why is my cat losing hair on her hind legs and belly? What to do?

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