Cat ripping out fur

[ave_nu]

Recently my cat has been ripping out his fur a LOT more than normal. He's not grooming, but tearing it right out, and it's now around the hind or inside of his legs. He is around 9 years old, a black cat, neutered, less than obese, and have been giving him (probably) healthier food such as the Wellness Brand seafood dry food and Natural seafood wet food, sometimes giving him Friskies wet food as a reward. Before, his diet was all Whiskas brand, the dry and wet food that were chicken flavoured and the treats that were dairy or chicken too . He has sensitive skin- I can touch his skin very lightly and he'll reflexively try to groom himself. He has no flea problems. He has had a problem of ripping his fur out before, but it was never serious, just a tuff or two once a month. Now he's been pulling out handfuls of fur a day and there are very visible patches of bald spots. My sister has tried putting on baby clothes to keep him from reaching the spots he was pulling the fur out for a few weeks. He manages to get his way out of them and continues ripping out his fur. My sister is pregnant and I think he's been reacting ever since. I feel he is falling into a state of depression. He's not very active lately and all he has been doing is pulling out his fur or sleeping. He doesn't like any people other than me, but he doesn't mind letting others touch him unless they tease him too much. He was quite itchy under his chin but mostly when I scratch him there, which I felt bumps and scabs. It has gotten better but the fur ripping is worse.
Is it allergies? Is it depression? Should I change his food? Is there a connection to cats and babies? My cat has never been fond of little kids or kittens. I can't afford to take him to the vet if the veterinarian tells me to buy medication for him. What should I do?

[tjrusert]

How long ago did you change his food?  Could he have an allergy to an ingredient in the new food?  You have to be very careful when changing a cats diet. You need to slowly introduce the new foods along with the foods that they are used to. I made that mistake with one of our cats and she ended up with Inflammatory Bowel Disease and unfortunately she passed away from it. It does sound like an allergy problem. Although some animals will pull out their fur when they are stressed out. But since you found bumps under his chin, it’s more likely allergies. I believe that you can get some otc sprays for cats that are itching. I know you can buy stuff for hotspots for cats and that helps with itching. There are also products made for cats that have hydrocortisone in them. Just be sure to really check them out and read about them before you get them. Some vets suggest Claritin for cats with allergies. But I don’t know the dosage. You would need to Google that. Also don’t give him the liquid version b/c it has an extra ingredient that is harmful to cats. And be sure that it is regular Claritin and NOT ClaritinD. Almost all antihistamines can make your cat drowsy. So just be aware of that. I hope your kitty is better soon.
Terry

[Tonya_v73]

A cat that was injured before or hurt in any way often pull there hair out. Pain causes them to pull out the hair in places where there in pain or either itching from healing.

[FurballsMom]

Yeah, that's probably why my own kitty's problems didn't manifest themselves worse than they did when it became obvious that she had both food and environmental allergies.  I have environmental allergies myself, so I had already taken measures to remove toxins from the environment.  Kitty still scratches some, and I do still have to give her 1/4 tablet of Zyrtec when her allergies bother her the most, but I am certain that because of changes I made for myself that I helped the kitty not suffer more with the environmental allergies.  

[margypops]

It sounds to me like he is itching and that can be very uncomfortable I think you should take him to the vet for something he must be in a lot of discomfort,