My cat is licking and biting herself. How can I get her to stop without taking her to the vet?
Wednesday, September 1st, 2010 at
7:00 pm
I don’t have the money right now to take her to see a doctor. I tried mint shampoo and that seemed to help her last time but I was wondering if there was anything else I could try. She’s two years old and is a long haired kitty. This behavior seems to flare up when the weathers change. Any ideas? It would be greatly appreciated.
Filed under: Cat Behavior
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She either has fleas, or she is cleaning herself maybe?
She could have hots spots or she could have fleas. You should try taking her to a groomer and see if they can’t help her. If it doesn’t help though, you really should try to get her to a vet. Check your local shelter, sometimes they have low-cost vet clinics.
I have two medium haired cats, both 1 year old, and they lick and bite themselves also, so this is coming from my personal experiences. From what I know, that is because either they are cleaning themselves (if yours is long-hair, chances are she’ll be more prone to random discomfort in her coat) or they have fleas or ticks (probably the biting also). A good way to determine if they do have a flea infestation is to comb them on a white towel. If the towel has lots of dark, dirty-looking brown specks that turn reddish when wet, they probably do. If you have the money to buy medicine (Frontline+, etc.), do it if you can. I’d avoid using human shampoo on pets, as well as any home remedies involving oils like eucalyptus or peppermint–when in doubt, check a reliable source such as the ASPCA. A flea remedy that seemed to work for me was food-grade diatomaceous earth (see link below). If it flares up when the weather changes, my best guess would be that cats’ skin’s moisture level changes just like some people’s hair "frizz level" does during the summer. Keep her well-hydrated.
Hope this helps!