Self-inflicted alopecia- Overgrooming

[rogerfixit]

Siamese about 14 yrs old 'saved' from PAWS 10 yrs ago. Probably abused - one 'fang' overlaps bottom lip while other one is broken off.
Always was a messy eater -dribble and drool. Some plaque but no serious mouth problems seen.
For years, she has been 'overgrooming' to the extent of removing the hair from areas of her body down to the skin. Sides, belly, legs, chest - all areas she can reach. She is constantly 'wet' from saliva and the towels she rests on get brown from it.
Vet checked for bugs. Rx'd Prednisone. Seemed to help at first but no longer. Used for 20 days.
Was wondering about using Diphenhydramine (Benedryl) or Loratadine or Chlorpheniramine maleate (Chlor-Trimeton) and recommended dosage for 6lb cat.
We are not going to subject her to extensive traumatic testing at her age. She eats and poops well and aside from being spooky, seems ok. She is fine with it but just disgusting to be around - and she loves to sit on my lap.
My vet wants to do a recheck, of course, and since Benedryl is OTC, she would not make any money Rxing it. They even charged a Rx fee for calling in the script to Costco.
Thanx for reading.

[Traci]

Don't take this wrong, but the "extensive traumatic testing" should have been done years ago, and followed up on, that is a responsibility on yours and your vet's part, your kitty deserves to be happy, healthy and well-cared for, the money issue is moot unless you have regular exams to prevent these problems.

It's obvious she has poor oral health, did the vet suggest dentals each year for several years and you've declined? Just as in humans, you do NOT let your teeth go unchecked, untreated by your dentist, and just in humans, the pain of diseased teeth, inflammed gums, and bacterial overload is serious and demands attention and treatment in pets.

If your vet is and has been trying hard to work with you in addressing kitty's health concerns and for some reason you are declining, then how does that help your kitty? She deserves proper care, she's given you years of joy, comfort, companionship and it's time to repay that kindness by getting her the veterinary care and support she needs.

Sounds like she needs a dental, the drooling is an obvious indicator she is in pain, probably has diseased teeth, possibly oral abcesses or oral ulcers, broken and chipped teeth left untreated will only worsen in time (sounds like they have already), and cause additional problems, mainly excessive bacteria, pain, inflammation, which will cause anorexia, kidney problems, liver problems, and the bacteria will cause endocarditis.

The over-groominig may be indicative of severe stress, and even moreso: PAIN. This could be due to poor oral health and bacterial infection or it could be caused by internal illness going undetected and untreated. All cats over the age of 7 need yearly exams and bloodwork to stay ahead of these health issues, and to [/i]prevent them[/i] early on. All cats over the age of 7 require bloodwork, urinalysis and thyroid function testing. It's entirely possible she has develped a thyroid disfunction and without testing, left untreated this will progress and also cause potential kidney damage that will be irreversible.

Do right by your kitty, and allow your vet to do the tests necessary and oral care necessary that will greatly benefit your kitty's health and longevity. If for some reason, it is your vet that's incompetent, then see a NEW, more qualified and more comitted vet TODAY to get your kitty's health issues addressed and treated. Tests required, are NOT traumatic as you think, they are necessities to keep our cats healthy and safe from disease. Bloodwork is essential to prevent disease or manage disease safely and appropriately.

Antihistamines are not your answer, you need to understand these are not without risk, and do NOT cure health problems, they only mask them, and are only a temporary bandaid. Your kitty needs a qualifed vet to get bloodwork done, thyroid function testing done, and to address her oral health, including potential extraction of problem teeth. Either your vet should be thoroughly ashamed of herself, or it's time you buckle down and admit your kitty needs proper veterinary attention. The money is worth it and your kitty is deserving of proper care. Again, she's given you years of comfort and joy, you owe it to her to get her proper veterinary attention, care and support.

See your vet or a new vet TODAY and opt for the bloodwork, it's the ONLY way you will know her health status/issues and the ONLY way to determine what treatment is going to be effective for your kitty!

[rogerfixit]

If you can post or reference actual cases of diagnosis, care or cure based on symptoms described, then your reply will be considered as more than a beratement of my actions.

[Traci]

You posted in July of 2007, and you are coming back today, 16 months later, to question the advice I gave you? I told you to see your vet, or a more competent, experienced vet, because obviously, from your post, your kitty needed better care and diagnostics. So, what has transpired in the last 16 months? Have you seen a new vet? Have proper diagnostics been done? Has proper treatment of her health issues been persued?

[rogerfixit]

Cat is quite active; eats well; gets along with new dog; poops regularly. Her area is kept clean and all she wants to do is sit on my lap. We have put up with her eccentricities.
I do not care for your advice and was looking for a reply from someone else.
I had a tiger cat that had gotten thin. Was taken to a prior vet who kept her overnight for testing. Fisrt suspected thyroid problems-treated for that. then decided it was Diabetes. She was medicated for that for a while.
Did not seem any better. Took back- suggested she be put down. We think all that crap may have 'killed' her. Changed vets after that.

You have no reason to imply that our animals do not get the best care. Spent a lot of money on our standard poodle on emergency surgery for the bloat where the chances of success were only 20%

[slvrwhispr]

Nothing was being implied. Traci was just covering all the bases. She gave you the most thorough advice that she could, and considering her MANY years of service as a vet tech, she knows pretty much all of the bases and how to cover them.

There's no need to get so defensive. When you come to a forum asking for advice, nobody knows the details of your life. We didn't know about the tiger cat or the poodle. How could we? You were a stranger to us. So, knowing absolutely nothing about you, and wanting to get you answers that can help the health of your cat without wasting any time, Traci gave you all the information that she felt was relevant. If the information doesn't apply to you, disregard it. Take what is relevant to you and your pet and use it responsibly. There's really no reason to get upset when you come to strangers for advice and they just want to make sure all important points are touched upon.

[Traci]

Did you think you would get a new response/advice 16 months later? On a cat with obvious health problems, and yet provide no new details 16 months later?

Couldn't have told me 16 months earlier you didn't like my advice?

Did you like your vet's advice?

Did you even see the vet about your kitty in the last 16 months?

Let me just recap some points in your first post in case you've forgotten. 16 months ago:

about 14 yrs old

Probably abused - one 'fang' overlaps bottom lip while other one is broken off.

Always was a messy eater -dribble and drool.

Some plaque but no serious mouth problems seen.

she has been 'overgrooming' to the extent of removing the hair from areas of her body down to the skin. Sides, belly, legs, chest - all areas she can reach.

She is constantly 'wet' from saliva and the towels she rests on get brown from it.

Rx'd Prednisone. Seemed to help at first but no longer.

We are not going to subject her to extensive traumatic testing at her age.

She is fine with it but just disgusting to be around

My vet wants to do a recheck, of course, and since Benedryl is OTC, she would not make any money Rxing it. They even charged a Rx fee for calling in the script to Costco.

Please run all this by several vets, and post back to me what they tell you. I must assume you didn't like your vet's advice, providing you even saw him, or you wouldn't have had reason to come to MY forum for help. If you did in fact, heed your vet's advice, then why did you come here?

Each health issue, I addressed properly. I encourage you to run what I said by your vet, or two or three vets, and see if anything I advised resembles in the least, their advice. I also encouraged you that if you weren't happy with your vet, to seek a new one, one with more experience.

As for this:

I had a tiger cat that had gotten thin. Was taken to a prior vet who kept her overnight for testing. Fisrt suspected thyroid problems-treated for that. then decided it was Diabetes. She was medicated for that for a while.

Did not seem any better. Took back- suggested she be put down. We think all that crap may have 'killed' her. Changed vets after that.

Unless you plan on elaborating on why you think "all that crap may have killed her", I'm afraid there's nothing myself or anyone here can tell you. Did a new vet "cure" her? I assume by the term "had", he did not. So, what became of that?

In your three posts, it's interesting your choice of words, if I didn't know any better, it sounds like you're blaming all your vets instead of taking some responsibility to do whatever is necessary to help your cat. Vets are not gods, they do their best, but you're as responsbile for following up, heeding the vet's advice when well-intentioned, and if you're still not satisfied, seek a new, more experienced vet. Until you give us some indication what you did with either your vet's advice, mine or anyone else's here, what do you expect?

I don't expect any answers, but I do expect you to engage in civil discourse. If you cannot do so, then don't let the door hit you on the way out. If you want to slightly adjust your attitude, I am still willing to help if it means helping your kitty to live longer, happier, healthier. That's the ultimate goal here. I don't take kindly to wasting my time trying to help cats, only to have the owners attack me, on the simple pretense they simply don't like my advice.

[Auntie Debbie]

Okay, here's the thing.....Traci, as well as others here on this board and boards like this, do not have access to your cat. We can't even see your cat. For all we know, the "alopecia" could be due to ringworm. Only a vet that can further test and diagnose your cat has a real chance of finding out what is causing your cat's alopecia and perhaps curing it.
A dental sounds like it would be a heck of a good idea too.
All Traci was saying, back in 2007, was that your poor cat has problems that need adressing and perhaps a new vet and further testing would be a good idea. You could have and should have figured that out yourself.

Here is a link on alopecia you might want to consider

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm ... 41&aid=195

But please consider further vet care, especially that dental for your cat.