Why is my cat obsessively cleaning himself and scratching?
Thursday, December 31st, 2009 at
8:18 pm
My outside cat is scratching himself raw. His entire belly, under his chin, and his legs are covered in scabs. He obsessively licks and scratches. We’ve tried a cone around his neck, OTC itch spray and prescription allergy pills. Nothing has worked. What’s the deal?!
He also seems like he has a fever.
Filed under: Cat Furniture
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Most likely he has some allergies to his diet. What are you feeding him?
Cats are obligate carnivores and most dry pet foods are grain based and have very little quality animal products in them. They are also high in many toxins.
I would recommend getting him onto a better quality food, absolutely grain free and preferably raw food. Raw food is not hard to feed at all you just need a good recipe and once you get used to making the food I find it takes no time at all.
Also the cats poop and urinate a LOT less which means less litterbox smell and odor, and you use less litter. They also are overall much healthier, rarely get fleas and shed a lot less. Their teeth also stay clean and healthy so you wont have to spend a lot of money getting their teeth cleaned.
If you can’t feed raw then I recommend a quality canned food diet using meat based foods that are grain free such as Raw Instinct or Wysong Au Jus varieties.
I have a kitten care and diet booklet on my website, free to use. There is a recipe for raw, an explanation about the supplements and why they are needed and also recommendations on feeding canned or dry food.
We had a cat that would scratch up his own face and lick himself bloody and it turned out to be food allergies. Once we got him on raw he healed up and was a totally different cat. Happier, healthier and even sweeter. I knew he appreciated us helping him get well.
I hope this helps the little guy.
He could have a flea allergy. Or, since he’s outdoors, it’s very possible that he could have ringworm or scarpotic mange. It sounds like it’s gotten pretty bad, so it’s time for a trip to the vet for a proper diagnosis and treatment. I don’t believe home remedies will solve anything. Given that the ringworm fungus is contagious to humans and the mites that cause mange will sometimes adopt a human host, I think it’s best to be certain it’s not one of these and get him treated if it is.
give him a bath..stop spraying him itch spray or taking him allergy pills
We just discovered that our cat had been licking and scratching at an area of skin on her leg for a few weeks and didn’t notice it until yesterday. We took her to the vet today and discovered that she had extremely full anal glands. Sounds gross, but sometimes since the cat can’t reach that area back there, they scratch and lick as close as they can get to the area. This is a very common problem in cats, and is very uncomfortable. If you take him vet, have them check the glands, and if they are full they can empty them to relieve the pressure.