Scratching & Vomiting

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mellkook
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Scratching & Vomiting

Post by mellkook »

Hello,
our cat Oslo (Chinchilla) started excessively scratching that lead to open wounds about a month and a half ago. We took him to a vet immediately, they said he might have some kind of allergy and they vaccinated him, told us to buy him food for allergic cats (VERY expensive...), prescribed some cream for his wounds also. We did everything we could but all he would do is just scratch himself more and cry while looking out of the window. We dressed him hoping he can't scratch himself however, he finds a way to take it off, or just scratches the uncovered parts... all he does is scratching and cleaning. All day. We took him to another vet since the previous one couldn't find out what's wrong with him. The new vet made some blood diagnosis and said there's absolutely nothing wrong with him. Everything is good. Prescribed some wound healing ointments and vitamins and said he's probably stressed and lonely, could be missing our old female cat, and can't find anything better to do other than cleaning and scratching. The wounds heal rapidly, however he keeps making new ones... Yesterday, he even started vomiting. We really don't know what's wrong with him... We always shower him with love and do everything for him. If anybody has an idea what could be wrong with Oslo, please respond 🙏 Thank you.
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Kay
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Re: Scratching & Vomiting

Post by Kay »

could it be the warmer weather making him too hot? is the vomiting associated with hairballs?

I've never had a long haired cat, but wonder if an aggressive grooming campaign to remove moulting fur might help
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fjm
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Re: Scratching & Vomiting

Post by fjm »

I had a cat that groomed herself bald when her companion was killed on the road - they had never been particularly close but she became extremely stressed. The vet prescribed anti-anxiety medication short term and I worked on making her feel more secure, limiting her to one safe room and only gradually opening up the rest of the house to her. It seemed unkind, but it was just what she needed, and she made a good recovery. Part of the problem was visiting cats in the garden and even through the cat flap - when there were two cats living in the house they could keep the visitors away, but Rosie on her own felt constantly under siege.
cookie2016
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Re: Scratching & Vomiting

Post by cookie2016 »

My cat does the same thing. Let me know if you find a solution! He only had one open wound from scratching, but he scratches and cries often. Blood work came back fine on him as well. I will say since putting him on the hydrolyzed allergy food (which I agree, crazy expensive (ahh!!)) he has only vomited one hairball in the past month (used to vomit 1-2 times per week) so I think it helps a bit. Can't stop with the scratching and crying though. He used to live in a multi-cat household, then was at an adoption center in a room with around 30 cats, and now he's the only cat living with two people who are not home all the time. I do not have the time/money for a second cat, unfortunately, so I have contemplated giving him up to a home with multiple cats or an owner who can be home more often, but at the same time, I would much rather find a solution that would make both of us happy.
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