Cat Chat Feline Forum

Hello, hoping for some help.

A few weeks ago my cat showed up at home with a bald patch. It turned out that he was pulling his fur out and as it got worse I took him to the vet. She said he’d lost weight and was stressed. She advised feliway and omega 3. I’ve plugged in the feliway but need to wait for the omega 3 to come.

This morning as I was stroking him I realised I could feel his spine !!!!! He’s obviously losing weight rapidly.

The two things that have changed: his brother, who he was very bonded with, kept running off; we’d moved house last year and he kept going back to the old house for weeks at a time. We contacted several rehoming centres incl the one he came from for advice and all agreed he would never settle here - he’d been running off consistently for 8 months, no matter how many weeks I kept him in for and I tried all the tricks. We managed to rehome him with a lovely family as i didn’t feel it was responsible to keep having him run away - and he hated being kept in.

Thunder, the remaining cat, showed up with this first bald patch on the morning before his brother left, and he was always fine when his brother was missing so while I think he’s stressed through missing him, it could be the second factor - which is that my baby is now a toddler. The cat follows her, sits near her when we have a large house with lots of other options, and she strokes him gently - but she is loud and toddler-like (!) and I wonder if this is the cause of the stress?

Any tips or ideas? How can I bring his weight up? His fur doesn’t seem to be getting better although it’s more thin now rather than bald patches. He seems fine when he’s near us, purrs, plays, sits on us etc....but somethings obviously not right! Any help appreciated!

Oh, poor chap - I'm sorry to hear. It IS mysterious, but did the vet do any blood tests?

All the best with him

loss of weight with no loss of appetite needs investigating - blood tests and a thorough feel of the tummy at the very least

meanwhile you might like to try him on a high calorie vitamin paste - some ideas here, though they are widely available https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?ie=UTF8&key ... 4997279406

my elderly girl has also shed a load of weight over the past year for no clear reason, but she loves all these pastes and seems despite the weight loss healthy and happy

How old is he? Weight loss + constant hunger in an older cat could point to hyperthyroidism. I did have a cat with stress related alopecia after finding herself an only cat some years ago. The vet prescribed a mild tranquilliser and I worked hard to mitigate the things that were causing her stress - mostly a stranger cat getting into the house at night. She made a full recovery, and lived a happy life for another eight or nine years.

He’s only 3 - or will be in April. He seems absolutely fine in himself and I wouldn’t say he’s stressed; he’s killing birds, skipping round the garden and woods (we’ve watched him from the house), settles down for a cuddle and a purr at night, and I also had any fears of him getting stressed by my 1 year old allayed by watching them play together - he’s clearly besotted with her and seeks her out for tickles and a roll on the floor with her. He’s a bit like a dog in his behaviour! But he looks so thin. I can’t tell if his hair is growing or thinning, it looks very bad but less bald patches, now it’s just thin fur.

Oh dear, I really regret to inform you that it could be a very dangerous symptom.
I've read that It happens when a pet has a disease, so you should be very attentive.
You can read an article about other symptoms to define what's going on with your cat https://catspro.com/how-to-comfort-a-dying-cat.html

What are you feeding him? Not all cat foods are created equal. Could you boost his protein intake with a little raw or cooked fresh meat?

Being so young hyperthyroid or renal issues shouldn't be high on the list of possibilities but ought to be checked just in case, I would ask for a full screening blood test (around £70-80) which will check thyroid, liver, kidneys, and a whole lot more in one blood test.

That said - have you noticed increased thirst and/or urination? Hyperactivity? Restlessness? Any night-time yowling? Any tender spots - when you stroke his back, joints when jumping etc?