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I really need help my cat is almost two years old ever since he was 6 months we started having problems. His bottom lip was swollen really big. Took him to the vet we diagnosed him with an erodent ulcer.
We gave him serveral rounds of steroids which helped till i took him off. So we did the surgery where they scrape the ulcer out of the mouth.
And still his lips stayed big. He said it must be a food allergy so I tried many different kinds of natural foods for a month on each, didn't help.
After the steroids and surgery he started scratching his neck, so bad i had to keep it covered cause if not he would make himself bleed bad.
So we put him on some ATOPICA for dogs that regect there own skin. This is working, but i forgot to give him one pill and it through him off he started to get that thing on his neck again. So I have him back on it and we are cuting down the pills but his lip is still swollen and he has been on this medicine since october of 07.
Please help do you have any suggestions.
I do have white carpet and I bleach it with my steam cleaner once a month but my other two cats are fine and i never see him walk on it after i do this. So
DO NOT give your pet any kind of drugs that are not prescribed to him or are for dogs. It says 'for dogs" for a reason. You need to return to the vet and explain the second problem, but it does sound like he has skin issues that need attention, but the bleach in the carpet may be harming him too, you should try to see if not bleaching the carpet helps any.
DO NOT give your pet any kind of drugs that are not prescribed to him or are for dogs. It says 'for dogs" for a reason. You need to return to the vet and explain the second problem, but it does sound like he has skin issues that need attention, but the bleach in the carpet may be harming him too, you should try to see if not bleaching the carpet helps any.
Well it is for dogs they do not make a medicine for cats that reject there skin, my cat is prescribed the dog medicine. He could have died if had to high of a doseage but that is keeping him from scratching his neck to where he bleeds all over my house. And I have stopped the carpet cleaning have done it for a while but it doesn't matter he still will break out if not on the dog atopica. I just wanna know if anyone has ever had this happen and has some answers for me. The swollen lip still will never go away the only time is when we have him on steroids but they can't live on them for the rest of his life.....so we had to end that.
Oh well if its' prescribed then that is okay. I have never heard of this kind of condition persisting, just stories about mange, which can be cured, but doesn't cause the same kind of symptoms you're describing... Have you taken the cat to more than 1 vet? Maybe a new very will have some new ideas? I hope that kitty gets better!
Oh well if its' prescribed then that is okay. I have never heard of this kind of condition persisting, just stories about mange, which can be cured, but doesn't cause the same kind of symptoms you're describing... Have you taken the cat to more than 1 vet? Maybe a new very will have some new ideas? I hope that kitty gets better!
No i haven't tried another vet but i might pay 200 for the allergy test and try and take him to another vet i have been with my vet for years though and he is a smart guy thanks so much. Maybe someone else might have had this problem some other time.
If the Atopica helps it probably is an allergic or immune-mediated problem. You said you have tried natural foods, but have you used a prescription hypoallergenic food?
The natural foods usually contain fewer dyes and additives, but the cat may be allergic to a single food such as chicken or wheat, commonly found in cat foods.
Ask your vet about starting him on something like Hill's d/d. These diets contain novel proteins and carbohydrates that your cat probably has never been exposed to. An example would be duck and potato. You have to use them for 2-3 months with NO other foods or snacks to see if they help.
An allergy test may reveal other allergens that might respond to "allergy shots" designed to hyposensitize him.
If the Atopica helps it probably is an allergic or immune-mediated problem. You said you have tried natural foods, but have you used a prescription hypoallergenic food?
The natural foods usually contain fewer dyes and additives, but the cat may be allergic to a single food such as chicken or wheat, commonly found in cat foods.
Ask your vet about starting him on something like Hill's d/d. These diets contain novel proteins and carbohydrates that your cat probably has never been exposed to. An example would be duck and potato. You have to use them for 2-3 months with NO other foods or snacks to see if they help.
An allergy test may reveal other allergens that might respond to "allergy shots" designed to hyposensitize him.
I haven't tried the prescription food they wanted me to give him z/d which is $35 for 8lbs. I couldn't really afford it I have three cats and they will not stay out of the special food. I have tried putting him in another room with the door closed but when i check on him he still doesn't eat it. The doctor said to stay away from BEEF, Chicken, and corn, So I have tryed eukanuba (sorry for the spelling) lamb and rice. Then I tryed california naturals/venison. The doctor said we should see improvement in the first month. In the mean time my cat was bleeding all over the house i had to keep his wound covered so he wouldn't scratch it. I am afraid to take him off of the atopica, do to the fact this may get bad again. I guess I should just pay $200 for the allergy test. Or would you say i should try the z/d first??
I honestly would just listen to the vet and get the test, but you could try the ZD first and see what happens, it may help. I hope your kitty gets better soon.
Please, please, please, please do NOT give him those Hills prescription foods. They are not good food. You might stop the current problems, but you'll just have other problems down the road from food not fit for a cat. Hills is nothing but marketing hype and make cheap crap. Vets learn to feed Hills from Hills itself. (As though Hills doesn't have some ulterior motive.) Just look at the ingredients. It isn't just about beef and seafood and such.
First, feed canned. All canned. Eukanuba isn't a good food either. If you are in the U.S. try foods that are only poultry, rabbit, lamb, etc., stuff that isn't beef and seafood. You might even eliminate poultry cause cats can build allergies to things they commonly eat. And with NO GRAINS. Many of these foods have grains. California Natural has rice. Worse, many, many foods have corn, which is a common allegen for cats. If you want to do a proper allergy test, you must eliminate grains as well. Something like byNature Organics. (These foods are admittedly hard to find.) Read those ingredients very carefully. The more you can eliminate it down to just ONE protein source and supplements, the better. If you want to send a private message, I can give you some examples, because the average person doesn't even know these foods exist. And don't trust that just cause it says "natural" that it means anything. Sometimes natural is still full of grains and other plants, when cats don't eat that way. (Or as some people I know say, bark is natural too, but would you feed it to a cat? :-))
If you really feel more comfortable with a prescription food (even though you don't need to spend that kind of money), then get IVD limited ingredient foods. Most prescription foods are garbage and not worth the money. I hate to say ignore the vet, but ignore the vet. Most of them really don't know nutrition. And definitely ignore any marketing hype of the companies. Just read the ingredients.
If the steroids are absolutely necessary, stick with them and try to slowly wean off. But otherwise, try as hard as possible to get rid of them. Steroids are very bad news and they cause diabetes very easily in cats, and one shot can do it. If you must use them, check on... um... hold on... Dang, I can't find it. (I just reinstalled Firefox and haven't put my bookmarks back yet, and google isn't getting me what I want.) It starts with a B and it's an "ide" not a "sone." It's less likely to cause problems.
I also still wouldn't put it past the bleach. Just cause you don't see them walking on it doesn't it mean it's not bothering them.
Okay, I am going out on a limb here........my cat does the same thing. I have asked in the past on here and a very wise man told me it could possibly be an allergy to fleas (go figure). Now, keep in mind, my cats are inside only cats. I tried his suggestion anyway, due to my vet wanting to poke and prod my baby with no results or answers. I ordered Frontline for cats and used it on both of my cats.
Since then, I have had no problems or breakouts (except when I forget to apply as directed). As a matter of fact, we are at the end of a bout right now. I applied the frontline about 2 weeks ago, and the area is almost all clear and gone. (It does take a couple of weeks after the application for the healing to take place.)
Just a suggestion....maybe your baby is allergic to fleas too.
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