Cat scratching self too much.

azith28

Hi, Little worried about my cat, thought i would ask your advice.

I have an 8-9 year old indoor only calico who up until about 10 days ago was very healthy and active.

I came home from work that night and noticed that she seemed to be walking a little gingerly. she wasnt limping but she had a little arch to her back that looked odd, and i didnt even notice it until she tried to jump onto a table by the window and only made it about halfway up before landing then giving up on trying to jump again. I saw her do this same half jump and miss to a lower window ledge and started running my hands over her limbs to see if she had some obvious damage, and she didnt complain about her legs at all. I figured she may have sprained something or pulled a muscle so i kept an eye on her and she seemed to be improving over the next two days. The arch in her back went away and shes back to more or less walking normally, but i dont think shes been jumping like she usually does, and is sleeping on the floor instead of the bed.

I also noticed that shes been scratching/biting herself and breaking the skin. on her right upper leg i can feel a patch of broken scabs and last night i noticed shes got scabs on her ears. Her poops are also off. instead of the 'log' i usually see, i see lots of little poops and she licks herself alot after going. I thought she might have been blocked up and that was causing her pain in her rear end but i cant explain the scratching of the ears so hard.

I realize shes not exactly young but all this happening at once seems very off for any kind of natural degrading. I've never had flea problems or anything like that, and she doesnt go outside to have picked up a bite.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

mts

fleas could still get in through a window or something. has she had any changes in diet or anything? sounds like an allergic reaction to something

azith28

Nothing she hasnt eaten before no. I have to doubt its fleas or i would have bites since i generally walk around my apartment without shoes or socks, but i plan to look her over tonight just in case.

Magic Pink

That's enough warning signs that I would call a vet and explain things. See if they want you to bring her in.

Jimmy King

Yeah, get her to a vet. It does sound like an allergic reaction of some sort. Cats can develop allergies or other problems that have some similar symptoms later in life even if they've been fine for many years. I've got 3 cats that are 10-11 years old and a couple of years ago one just out of nowhere developed either some sort of food allergy or cat IBD and even with her food issues, the actual symptoms will disappear for months at a time and then reappear very suddenly.

Delphinidaes

Just to chime in as someone who works at a Veterinary Hospital (In the IT department mind you) I would absolutely get your cat to a vet sooner rather than later. We see so many animals that are so much worse when people wait. Honestly at the first signs of some sort of illness or change you should have your family vet check it out, even if it is just to alleviate possible concerns.

In this case however it certainly seems like there is some sort of issue going on so you would want to jump on that as soon as possible.

jwideman

Bring a poop sample with you when you go to the vet. They are going to want that.

Griswold

jwideman wrote: »

Bring a poop sample with you when you go to the vet. They are going to want that.

Ideally the cat's.

azith28

Griswold wrote: »

jwideman wrote: »

Bring a poop sample with you when you go to the vet. They are going to want that.

Ideally the cat's.

....damnit, now i gotta call the vet today and tell them the sample i dropped off earlier was accidentally from a different VERY STRANGE cat....

Nappuccino

It may be an allergy of some kind. My cat has gotten similar symptoms late in life and a quick little shot fixes her right up. Granted, she is an outdoor cat but I would imagine the symptoms are the same.

azith28

*sigh*. Kitty is sick. I brought her to the vet as soon as i could get an appointment (went on friday and had to take off work to do it) cause she was starting to show signs of it getting worse, to find that she had actually cut herself somehow along her underside behind her right leg and it had gotten infected along with a UTI on top of that. They gave her a shot of antibiotics and gave me pills to give her and anti-bacterial medication to put in her ears.

I've been giving her the meds, and they warned me she may lose part of her ear. But im worried cause i cant tell if shes really getting better. shes had a fever since thursday, and cleaning her ears caused some of the skin and hair to come off the tops of her ears and she still has some scabs on some parts of her.

She still moves around, sleeping mostly in different areas, she still is eating and the occasional poop so its not like shes doing the thing where the cat goes to a corner to die and never moves, but im very worried about her.

Can someone please tell me what my realistic chances of her pulling through this is? I cant help but feel like the vet is milking me for as much cash as they can and may not be telling me that its a lost cause. I'd honestly rather have her put down if this is just going to be a drawn out painful for her process cause it hurts me to look at her.