Any suggestions for a cat with a rapidly worsening

[BERIGAN]

Our cat "Baby"(have no idea why Mom named him that except he wasn't fully grown when he found us) is about 13-14 years old. Indoors always. No fleas. Has always had great fur, but in the last week or so started to scratch/lick a patch of fur out, right down to the skin. Didn't seem to be seeping or anything, so tried some anti itch cream. Didn't work. Anti-bacterial cream. Didn't work. Even tried some Manuka Honey to heal the sore. Really didn't work.

So, took him to the vet, and they said no infection, gave him a shot of steroids, and said he would be fine. Well, still going over the same area and now the skin is getting scratched up ! I hate to see him suffer like this...he is already dealing with Kidney failure, but still pretty strong, and active.

Don't know why the vet said to put nothing on the sore...seems if you could stop the itching, the scratching would stop .

It's a little bigger than 2 inches, and it's slightly below his shoulderblades, so one of those huge collars would not keep him from scratching it. Not having much luck on the web...most of the info deals with dogs having this problem and drying out the skin. His skin seems quite dry.

Anyone else have this problem with their cat???

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

[Man with the Golden Arm]

no vet here but ...

maybe make a little shirt out of an old t-shirt - tho cats get out of just about anything.

i bought an inflatable donut comfy collar thing (regular collar loops thru it to keep in place) for the dog - looks funny as hell, he won't drown and much better than the cone of shame.

vet has suggested Desitin - baby rash stuff - it's non toxic and won't have any side effects.

increase tuna and salmon for that oil.

[papsrus]

I might want to get a second opinion from a different vet. They should be able to diagnose what it is and properly treat it. Steroids always seem like a fallback treatment to me, kind of like "we don't really know what's causing it but this will stop the itch."

btw, I've had some limited experience dealing with animals with deteriorating kidney function. Not sure how steroids play into all that, but are you doing anything to support the kidney function -- diet, monitoring BUN levels, etc.?

[Dave James]

We have a Leonberger who is subject to big time hot spots. Granted, our problem is canine and yours is feline, but we've had a fair amount of success with a home remedy consisting of water, baby oil and Listerine (as in mouthwash). Mix it in thirds and use an atomizing spray bottle as an applicator.

[Rooster_Ties]

Don't have any advice if the cat is scratching the area, but if it's licking that's the problem -- ask your vet for some bitter herbs, which they should be able to give you in a little bottle, with an eye-dropper.

I've got an old bottle for one of our cats from some time ago. It must be something out vet put together herself, as there isn't a technical name for the solution. The description is hand-written, just says: "Medicated Ptd & bitter". (No idea what the "Ptd" stands for, but I could call my vet and ask, if you like.)

Rather than use an eye-dropper, we soaked the end of of a q-tip in the solution, and "painted" it on the spot with the q-tip.

...an atomizing spray bottle as an applicator.

Even better than the q-tip idea, actually. Wish we had thought of that.

Edited March 5, 2010 by Rooster_Ties

[kinuta]

Change vets immediately, you need to stop the cat licking and scratching the bald spot.

You need a Dutch collar and steroids. That should cure the problem in a couple of weeks. I'm talking from my own experience , our cat suffered the same thing until we dumped the incompetent vet and found one who knew what he was doing.

[Spontooneous]

Kinuta's right. Change vets now. If there's a specialty cat clinic anywhere nearby, try them.

Years ago, I got a cat through something similar by making her a sort of t-shirt from an old tube sock. Cut off the toe of the sock, cut two leg holes, and apply to cat (a two-person operation).

That mysterious kitty injury, BTW, turned out to be a burn that probably came from sleeping next to a radiator.

[BERIGAN]

I might want to get a second opinion from a different vet. They should be able to diagnose what it is and properly treat it. Steroids always seem like a fallback treatment to me, kind of like "we don't really know what's causing it but this will stop the itch."

btw, I've had some limited experience dealing with animals with deteriorating kidney function. Not sure how steroids play into all that, but are you doing anything to support the kidney function -- diet, monitoring BUN levels, etc.?

First off, thanks for all the suggestions guys!

Yeah, I thought the shot seemed like they didn't know what was the cause. Just surprised they didn't suggest something to put on it.

For his kidneys, we give him Epakitin 150 MG.

I have also read up on wheat gluten, and how a some think it's bad for cats...all the Science Diet food has it...anyway, when I can actually read the tiny ingredient label, I avoid getting any food with it.

Any thoughts/experiences one way or the other with it???

[Spontooneous]

Science Diet is waaaaay heavy on the gluten. Just one pellet was enough to cause my old 17-pound cat severe gastrointestinal inflammation. But no skin problem. Still, steer clear of the stuff.

[BERIGAN]

Don't have any advice if the cat is scratching the area, but if it's licking that's the problem -- ask your vet for some bitter herbs, which they should be able to give you in a little bottle, with an eye-dropper.

I've got an old bottle for one of our cats from some time ago. It must be something out vet put together herself, as there isn't a technical name for the solution. The description is hand-written, just says: "Medicated Ptd & bitter". (No idea what the "Ptd" stands for, but I could call my vet and ask, if you like.)

Rather than use an eye-dropper, we soaked the end of of a q-tip in the solution, and "painted" it on the spot with the q-tip.

...an atomizing spray bottle as an applicator.

Even better than the q-tip idea, actually. Wish we had thought of that.

If you don't mind, if you can find out what that was, that would be great!

Science Diet is waaaaay heavy on the gluten. Just one pellet was enough to cause my old 17-pound cat severe gastrointestinal inflammation. But no skin problem. Still, steer clear of the stuff.

Wow! Will do...sad to think it's pushed by vets as a great product...

[kinuta]

This is the only way to stop the cat licking. Drops and the like won't stop an itchy and determined moggy ! Then you need steroids to reduce the inflammation and itching giving the fur a chance to regrow. Without this you're just toying with the problem.

Beware of bandages. Our cat was bandaged by the vet and put in a cage, she ended up chewing through and swallowing part of the bandage, causing an intestinal blockage which nearly killed her. Beware of quack vets !

Get this now --

[papsrus]

... For his kidneys, we give him Epakitin 150 MG.

I have also read up on wheat gluten, and how a some think it's bad for cats...all the Science Diet food has it...anyway, when I can actually read the tiny ingredient label, I avoid getting any food with it.

Any thoughts/experiences one way or the other with it???

Yes, Epakitin. Sounds like you're on the right track. Most of my experience is with small dogs, but some of the same kinds of approaches likely apply to cats, too. Check with a vet, of course.

I recall that in addition to Epakitin, we also used to sprinkle powdered calcium over the food for one dog with very poor kidney function. But I'm just reading now where that may not always be appropriate, so definitely confirm that before doing anything.

We also were advised to feed animals with kidney failure a very low-protein diet. Basically rice with a small amount of ground beef and some veggies mixed in. Mostly rice though. The idea seems to be that you want to reduce the workload on the kidneys as much as possible. Reducing protein will help. Again, cats may be different.

We had one animal that also needed one unit of subcutaneous fluids every few days for rehydration and to try to flush out some of the toxins or impurities that build up in the body without properly functioning kidneys. Nothing close to dialysis, of course, but it worked well for more than a year.

The fluids are not that difficult to give (a vet can show you how) and they did help the animal, usually quickly and very noticeably. Course, they start peeing a lot more, too, but that's intended. Flush, flush.

You eventually reach a tipping point where no reasonable treatment is going to work -- something like below 30 percent function. Time to do the right thing at that point.

Apologies for spinning off away from the skin problem. Good luck and keep us posted!

Edited March 6, 2010 by papsrus

[Jazzmoose]

Get this now --

If only they didn't give you that wounded look while wearing the cone...

[papsrus]

... The idea seems to be that you want to reduce the workload on the kidneys as much as possible. Reducing protein will help. Again, cats may be different.

... and apparently they are. Talked to my ex tonight about this and it turns out low protein isn't good for cats. Also, should probably stay away from the calcium supplement. Too much can lead to crystals forming in the kidneys.

So basically, ignore everything I said.

I guess the takeaway is that treatments for dogs don't always translate to cats, and different cases can require different approaches.