Chewing base of tail

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Tilly262
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Chewing base of tail

Post by Tilly262 »

Hiya my cat is nearly 2 years old dsh and female and she has been spayed. She is chewing the base of her tail raw!! We have had her to the vets got some antibiotics of the vet, as they said it was an allergic reaction to a bite, we have done everything the vet told us to but she's still doing it, anyone have any ideas what else this could be???
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Janey
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Re: Chewing base of tail

Post by Janey »

Hi, I’ve just replied to your other thread. Regarding the chewing, my cat also suffers with flea allergy dermatitis and unless she’s treated monthly with Advocate she gets a bite and ends up grounded with a comfy collar on for a week or two to stop her scratching. So it may be that your cat needs a collar on to break the habit and let the tail heal. It could be that she’s stressed too, if she senses that there’s some upset in the house. I would invest in a comfy collar (you can buy them from Amazon) when our cat has been bitten she bites at her skin until it bleeds. The collar has worked, but it takes a while about a week or more and we keep her in until it’s sorted, but it’s better to keep up with the treatment thereon to prevent it. The other thing I use it an antibacterial powder which you can also buy from pet shops, or Amazon, and that helps stop with the healing. I was discussing it on this thread here:

https://www.catchat.org/felineforum/vie ... 493#p41493

Hope that helps!
Reebud
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Re: Chewing base of tail

Post by Reebud »

Hi, I've just joined this forum to see if anyone else is experiencing what my cat is and it may be that your cat is. Please look up Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome and see if this could be what your cat has. It's an extremely rare neurological disorder can be treated. My tom who has just turned 1 was a perfectly sweet and very affectionate cat until a few weeks ago when he came in growling and hissing and turning round quickly as though something were attacking his tail/back end. I promptly took him to the vet who said he may have an abscess and administered a pain-killing injection along with a 5 day course of antibiotics. I was fairly sure he didn't have an abscess but at least he'd been given something for the pain he seemed to be experiencing. When I got home in the evening he was no better. He'd be his sweet self for a few minutes taking all the affection you could give, then it was like a invisible cat was attacking him, soooo upsetting to see. Unlike your cat, he did not actually make contact with his tail so no physical damage. I looked around the internet and found this FHS and some of the symptoms other cats experienced seemed to match my Buddy's, but not all. I did realise though that the symptoms seems to vary from cat to cat. I called and left a message for my Vet asking if this could be what was happening. He obviously investigated what FHS is but disagreed and said if the cat was still having these episodes that I would need to book him in for a complete examination under sedation to rule out anything physical. It seems FHS is the diagnosis given when they've ruled out any physical issues. Gabapentin was the drug most mentioned on the net and this is what my cat has been prescribed. My Vet had to order it in specially, the smallest bottle costing me £170, though this should last up to 6 months so not too bad really. He reluctantly agreed that it could be a form of FHS. My Bud was on 0.4ml twice a day, but after a week of very little improvement, I increased the dose to 0.5ml twice a day, which seems to lessen the episodes significantly but not entirely. Please post with what you discovered.
TheCatsMum
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Re: Chewing base of tail

Post by TheCatsMum »

My girl had this many years ago and it was a flea allergy. Vet gave her an anti-inflammatory and recommended a better flea treatment.
Reebud
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Re: Chewing base of tail

Post by Reebud »

My Vet confirmed not a flea or any flea dirt in sight, so definitely not a flea allergy in my Bud's case!!
booktigger
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Re: Chewing base of tail

Post by booktigger »

Reebud wrote:My Vet confirmed not a flea or any flea dirt in sight, so definitely not a flea allergy in my Bud's case!!
If you have a cat with a flea sensitivity, all it takes is one bite, which could happen outside.
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