Cat eczema?

ThriftySquirrel

Hello,

My cat Elvis has very sore looking scaly red skin on his front paws, around the claws. He walks normally but when he grooms himself he nibbles and licks his paws a lot. I first noticed it a year ago and since then we've been to the vet about this 4 times. My vet doesn't understand what's causing it. Last year he suggested it could be harvest mites but they're only a problem in the autumn and the problem started in March last year. The treatment he's had so far is anti-inflammatory injections, which works well for a few months and then the problem comes back again. A few weeks ago I noticed that Elvis was nibbling his back paws a lot and was drawing blood. We had an appointment with the vet last Saturday for his annual vaccinations and the vet had a good look at Elvis's paws. He couldn't give him the anti-inflammatory injection at the same time as the jabs so we have an appointment to go back this Saturday. I like the vet and he seems good but he's puzzled as to what is causing it. He suggested an allergy, maybe a food allergy.

Elvis is a black and white moggy, between 6 and 8 years old. We've had him for 3 years now. He does goes out and at first I though maybe he stepped into something that irritated his skin but it's looking like eczma or an allergy now. I bought some evening primrose oil capsules for cats and thought if I could put a few drops of that on his paw it might help but it made him lick even more.

The vet said he could refer us to a dermatologist or try an exclusion diet to see if it is food that's causing it. The problem is I know some neighbours feed him. He's very fussy with his food and if he doesn't like what's on the menu here he goes off to try and find something better. I don't think an exclusion diet would work with him. I've been trying to feed him good quality food like James Wellbeloved and Burns etc but he would eat it for a while and then go off it even when he was offered a variety. My OH then started feeding him wet food because he felt sorry for him. So after a lot of experimenting (mostly with premium cat food) he is now fed the premium dry food from Aldi (40% min. chicken) and occasionally pouches of wet food. But, my OH has also been giving him "treats" on the quiet. A can of tuna here, a slice of ham there and some roast chicken. I've been telling him for a while now to stop feeding him human food. After Saturday's vet visit I think I've now convinced him that this could be the cause of Elvis's sore paws.

So, the plan is to give him another anti-inflammatory injection, OH has stopped giving him "treats" and we'll see what happens. The vet also suggested hypo allergenic food either from Royal Canine or Hills. He said they don't do samples but they have a money back guarantee in case Elvis doesn't like it. I'm not sure. A while back I researched both brands and I'm not convinced they're worth the money. Of course if I knew this would cure him I would give it a go, but how long would he have to be on it? Would the insurance pay for it? I just don't know if I'm doing the right thing here. Does anyone have a similar experience? He is such a great cat and we love him so much. Thank you all for reading.

TS :think:

faded_flowers

The 'Purely' range from Pets at Home is hypo-allergenic and costs about £7 for 2kg - a lot cheaper than RC and Hills. If you really want it to work you'll have to go to the neighbours and tell them, and stop all other treats. Possibly get one of those collars that say 'Please don't feed me' to help.

Definitely give it a try though, it could be so simple to fix.

If after 4-6 weeks there's no improvement, you might have to look at a cereal-free diet.

Olokia

My cat has the scaly red skin but on her face.

As she was insured, the vet took some skin samples and sent them off for an allergy test, turns out she is *extremely* allergic to fleas and mildly allergic to salmon and soya.

The tests cost about £500 in total so if your cat is insured or you don't mind paying this, then it is a good way to know for sure what is causing the problems especially as it may be more than one thing.

As soon as I got the results, I stopped giving her salmon or soya and put her on a strict monthly flea treatment and she looks so much better.

ThriftySquirrel

Thank you. I just had a look at the Purley range on the Pets at Home website. The dry food looks good, but the wet food got bad reviews because they changed to formulation. Still, might be an option.

That's interesting Olokia. I did ask about a flea allergy but the vet said I if that was the problem he would have sores all over his body. Apart from his paws, Elvis has beautiful fur, he's so soft and fluffy. Also I treat him regularly with frontline. I'll check with my insurance and ask the vet if he could take a sample.

WolfSong2000

not sure if one can do this with cats, but with dogs, sometimes a RAW diet can help - basically consists of feeding raw meat. Like I said, I'm a dog expert, not a cat one, but it has helped with dogs with skin issues. As a temporary fix, you could try putting Aloe Vera gel on the paws to help them heal.

Olokia

My cat doesn't have the sores all over the body, only on her ears, forehead, nose and cheeks. The rest of her body has long, soft fluffy fur.

As well as frontline and diet elimination, she had antibiotics for 3 months to clear any secondary infection that might appear and she will be on steroids every summer for the rest of her life to combat her reaction to fleas.

ThriftySquirrel

WolfSong, I have looked into a raw diet. It is possible but not as easy as for dogs. Also, my cat is fussy with food and has turned up his nose at raw food in the past. Maybe my OH would need to eat it first, lol. He usually is very interested any time my OH is eating something.

Olokia, I will ask the vet again, but we've never found any fleas on Elvis. After the allergy test, did you still have to do an elimination diet?

Olokia

I never found any fleas either but obviously your cat may have a different problem. What I meant by diet elimination was just taking the salmon and soya out of her diet. Poor choice of words sorry

WolfSong2000

for the cats who are allergic to fleas - add some odourless powdered garlic to their food. It makes their blood taste foul to fleas, and as it's also excreted through the skin a little, the fleas smell it and stay away. It's worked wonders for my dogs in the past - never needed to use frontline, etc, on them!

Olokia

WolfSong2000 wrote: »

for the cats who are allergic to fleas - add some odourless powdered garlic to their food. It makes their blood taste foul to fleas, and as it's also excreted through the skin a little, the fleas smell it and stay away. It's worked wonders for my dogs in the past - never needed to use frontline, etc, on them!

I would not recommend this at all. Garlic is toxic to cats and will damage feline red blood cells and can result in anaemia and death.

Also feeding garlic to dogs can cause problems if fed too much. A 30Kg dog fed several cloves of garlic will develop Heinz-body anaemia.

The recommended dosage for dogs according to Dr. Pitcairn (author of The Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats) is:

4.5kg - 7kg = 1/2 a clove
9kg - 18kg = 1 clove
20kg - 32kg = 2 cloves
34kg - 41kg = 2 1/2 cloves
45kg + = 3 cloves
http://www.natural-dog-health-remedies.com/garlic-for-dogs.html