My 10 year old male cat, Buster, licks so much that he is bald on his belly and the underside of all four of his fore arms. He is always after himself in some way... if he is not licking himself bald he is scratching himself. He has scabs in front of his ears that he scratches at all the time.
I am embarassed to say that the licking all started 6 years ago when i brought home a kitten. Buster is a needy cat... he needs attention all the time, so I thought I'd get a friend for him. The kitten brought mites but wasn't bothered by them... though Buster was. I found out that some cats are just more sensitive than others... it doesn't surprise me that Buster has sensitive skin. The problem was though that he was after himself all the time. After taking him to the vet and treating him and the kitten for the mites, Buster did get better though he continued to lick himself a lot... he always preened a lot so i didn't think much of it until i noticed the bald spots. When I took him to the vet I spent about $100 and found out nothing. They did tests which were negative and said that he could have an environmental allergy, a food allergy, or he could have anxiety. I walked away with nothing more than what i knew before, other than less money.
So, now we have moved a couple times and for a year now we have been in our newly built home with mainly laminate flooring and only carpet in the bedrooms, which one of the bedrooms in the "cat room". So my point in that is I really don't feel as if it's environmental... but if it is, what would I even take away from his environment?
I have had the cats on Natures Balance Green Pea & Duck Hypoallergenic dry food for a couple weeks now and they hate it... it took them about 4-5 days to actually eat it, even when it was mixed with their previous food, which they liked. Finally when they did start eating it, I don't feel as if they eat as much as they used to or as much as they should. I also have noticed within the last few months that Buster is loosing weight. A few years ago he used to be like 14 LBS. and now he is about 7LBS.
I have taken away all treats and even cat nip so that the only thing he is digesting is the hypoallergenic food and water. sometimes he'll try to eat the dog food, which only happens once in a great while, or sometimes he'll lick a dirty dish in the sink.. again, that doesn't happen too often.
The scabs on his ears started about 6 for so months ago... around the time that we got a puppy who likes to play with Buster. When they play Buster's head is usually in the dogs mouth but the dog is not rough, though I could see how the dog could puncture his skin and then maybe Buster just keeps scratching at it... I don't know. Is it possible for Buster be allergic to the dog or the dog's saliva, or even the other cat for that matter? I have tried putting a .05 cortisone spray, for cats, on not only his ears but also his paws and stomach. Even though it seems to relieve him a bit, mainly on his ears, he still licks at the sprayed bald spots causing him to vomit. And whenever he see's me with the spray bottle or the cotton swab he runs away from me... he hates it... I don't know if it hurts his scabs or if he just doesn't like me holding him down to put it on.
Even though I would gladly take him to the vet if it meant that he would even be partially relieved of his scratching and/or licking, but I am afraid that we will again pay money for nothing. Today I am going to buy the anti-anxiety plug in and collar to see how that works. If anyone has any thoughts or opinions on this matter please help... it breaks my heart to see him uncomfortable pretty much all the time.
P.S. I took his temperature today and it is normal.
Yes, some cats are more sensitive than others. Has the vet done a scraping to retest for mites on Buster? It may just be that Buster is a stressed out cat and between the new kitten 6yrs ago, then a new puppy six months ago, Buster's anxiety is through the roof. It's certainly possible an anti-anxiety med would benefit him. It couldn't hurt to try.
Our last cat had the same chronic licking problem and I mean All the time so I can relate to your frustration. It's heartbreaking to watch your kitty so uncomfortable. Unfortunately, I don't have any recommendations on how we handled it because we lost her at only 3yrs old.
I assume you mean that phermone (sp?) plug? I'm not sure about the collar you're talking about.
Hopefully someone else will have an idea for you since I don't believe I've been much help.