Has anybody found anything that works for this?

My poor little cat has the same thing, she is constantly scratching above her eyes making it bleed and has 2 almost completely bald patches, at points her eyes almost close because it is so sore and close to her eye.

She had blood tests to identify that she's allergic to dairy, beef, house dust mite and some pollens so we've been round the houses (literally) trying to eliminate as much as we can, she's had hypoallergenic diets, anti dust mite sprays have been applied to the whole of the house, carpets, beds, furniture, duvets the lot to no avail.

Surlon helps to an extent to relieve the itching but doesn't cure, the vet has given her the occaisional injection that relieves temporarily but on top of this we have been giving her steroid tablets every day. We managed to get the dose down to every third day a few months ago as it did start to go and the hair started to grow back but now it has come back with avengance. We have put her back on the tablets to every day and it still won't go.

We are really at a loss as to what to do for her, we have thought about clipping her claws and now wash everything that comes in to the house, new curtains, bedding etc straight away, I've even used an industrial cleaner to clean the carpets believing the dust mites are the culprits but nothing seems to help.

Any information on what we can ask the vet for would be really appreciated as he seems to think there are no alternatives.

The poor little thing is turning in to a nervous wreck as she knows when it's tablet time and it takes two of us to give her the tablet.

Any help or advice would be really appreciated, she's only 2 and has had this since she was a few months old.

A friend of mine had awful probs with their dog, symptoms very similar to those mentioned. She used an extended course of homeopathy [ not with any great hopes when she started] and was amazed at how much the combo of things helped. The vet had a bout given up, and the poor dog looked absolutely dreadful and was in awful condition by the time it was suggested.
I saw him recently and he looks absolutely fantastic. More importantly they haven't had a recurrence, something seems to have damped down the reaction altogether.
I wonder if an experienced homeopath would have any suggestions for allergies in cats?

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What is your cat eating? I'm asking because most commercial cat food contains a huge variety of ingredients and it may well be that what you're feeding her contains something she's allergic to. Also, especially dry food is hard to digest plus it makes the cat dehydrated, both of which isn't particulary good for the cat's fur. If you haven't already tried it, I suggest you put her on a strict diet of only meat and liver (just a small amount of liver, think a 50p coin in a day) for a week. Chicken is great to use if she likes it, but any meat will be fine (not beef of course!). Feed the meat raw, not cooked as when the meat is cooked it loses most of it's taurine, which is essential for cats. If it's something in the food, this diet will likely make her better.

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Thanks for your reply and apologies for not replying sooner, I thought I'd found the solution as took the poor little baby back to the vets and went through an intensive course of antibiotics, steroids, piriton, oils to put on her food and soothing wash along with an elizabethan collar to stop the initial scratching which seemed to work for almost 6 weeks but now we are back to square one again and I have had to put the collar back on her as she's been scratching herself raw.

I have booked yet another costly appointment with the vets and more blood tests so they are going to try to create some kind of injection specifically for her allergies but they said this may not work, thank heavens for insurance!

We have tried her on hills Z/D long term before but it just doesn't seem to make any difference, our other cat is prescribed hills T/D as the poor thing has bad teeth so they both eat this, as she is allergic to beef this shouldn't be a problem as this does not contain beef, although if you have any suggestions they would be gratefully received.

Anyone who has found anything that works for this please let me know as I am running out of options but really hoping that anyone who has been on here before may have found a solution?

Thanks

I had the same problem with one of my cats, Tillie. We had no end of tests and skin biopsys all with the same inconclusive results! She would get depressed and just hide under the bed all day. She used to get so fustrated with herself as she was trying to relive the itchiness but in the process was hurting herself, poor little thing. She also lost her apetite.

The vets were starting to run out of ideas as the steroid injection is no longer having an effect. We tried her on Wafcol food which made her sick and then we tried Royal Cannin Hypoallergenic which seemed to make no difference.

We've actually ended up trying Reiki. We went with absolutely no expectations at all as i'd heard mixed reports about it and if i'm totally honest didnt really understand it. Tillie has had 2 sessions and I cannot believe the difference in her. Its like having a different cat! Shes not stressed in the slightest, her apetite is back, she's more playful and so affectionate. She even greets visitors and sits on their laps!!!! I honestly didn't expect this much of a difference in her, if any really! And best of all....................we've been 'outbreak' free now (touch wood) since her second session!!!

I know this kind of thing isn't everybodies cup of tea but I got to the point where i was willing to try anything at all.

Lynz, maybe try feeding her raw/home steamed meat for a while? that way there are *no* additives in her food... can take several weeks to truely show improvement, well.. 2-5 weeks, for all the preservatives etc to flush completely from her system

I agree, you should try this as it's clear there's something in the food that's bothering her.

Give her just raw chicken with some chicken liver for two weeks and see if she gets any better. If she does get better (and I think she will!) you'll know it's the food.

Then, if you don't want to continue feeding the raw chicken (you could if you wanted to, just add some raw chicken bones) you can start trying some high quality wet foods gradually. For example, HiLife pouches.

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Have a look at my photoblog!

Fit for the sunshine so it followed her, a happy tempered bringer of the best, out of the worst.

Hi Lynz
My cat has exactly the same problem and I'm wondering if you managed to have any luck? He has been scratching himself on the head raw for the past couple of days - this is the worst its been (maybe related to the season), and he's been given a dose of steroid injections and 3 x daily Fuciderm gel. I think we may have to go to the vets and get one of those Elizabethian colours which he will go nuts in I'm sure. Its the most horrible thing, so I was hoping to get some advice from others on success/experiences? We are willing to try anything. He hasn't been for the blood test/skin scraping yet to determine what it is that is causing it. He eats Royal Canin dry food only.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!

I'd think it's because of the dry food. He'll be constantly dehydrated, which will cause dry skin, and if you've had dry skin you know how much that itches! Try switching the food to a wet food. HiLife Pouches are great (chicken or fish variety pack of 12 pouches for roughly £5 in Tesco/Waitrose etc). Don't give any dry food at all. He'll need 2-3 pouches in a day.

If I were you I'd try this before spending a lot of money on tests. Hope he gets better

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Have a look at my photoblog!

Fit for the sunshine so it followed her, a happy tempered bringer of the best, out of the worst.

Thanks Coraline, I will try that straight away! I will let you know how I get on