My cat has bloody scabs, incredible weight loss, and bald patches

[LaceyMariah16]

Our cats had kittens, and we tried to find them homes but one still hasnt found one so we have been keeping her until we can find her a home. She was born April 7th so she is around 9 months. She has always been incredibly healthy, perfect weight, ate good ect. We took in a dog for a few days of one of my friends while she moved and the dog gave all of our animals fleas. This kitten seemed to do the worse with the scratching, but other than that, had no other symptoms. We did everything to get rid of the fleas and couldnt. Finally someone said we could use the original blue dawn dish soap. So we tried that and finally got rid of all the fleas. But after we used the dawn, the kitten started scratching like crazy, she has got bloody scabs ALL over her body and then she started losing her fur. She has lost a little on her belly but the main spot is on her back like right to the base of her tail. She still eats normally, but has lost a very significant amount of weight. We have an elderly cat who is almost 17 and he is just skin and bones and that i what the kitten is starting to look like. I dont know what to do. We do not have money to take her to the vet, but we dont want anything bad to happen to her from being sick either.

[japnee]

If you can't afford to take the kitten to the vet, you should at least call the vet and explain what is going on and that you can't afford to pay for the visit.  They may give you advice over the phone or at the very least work out a payment plan for the visit.  If not, call a different vet.  It sounds like this kitten is in danger, due to the weight loss along with the hair loss.  Sounds like the fleas may be gone, but eggs may still exist, which could be part of the issue.  But it really sounds like the dish soap caused worse problems for the kitten.  Dish soap can dry out the fur and skin on a kitten, depending on the type of kitten it is and it's sensitivities.  If she is losing weight and eating the same, that is a huge red flag and she needs help right away.  Also, keep an eye on her urine and poop.  Make sure she is doing both every day and you don't see any blood.  Good Luck and Best wishes!

[shannon781]

If this cat is still itching, I can guarantee the fleas are not gone. It takes at least 3 months to break the life cycle. This cat of yours is extremely allergic to flea saliva and just one bite can cause all of the discomfort and itching. You need to treat all of the animals in your house with a flea product once a month for a MINIMUM of 3 months. Please, do not buy any hartz or sargents over-the-counter products...stick with advantage or frontline for cats. It would also help to treat the house, but use extreme caution that the products are safe for animals in the house. Vaccuuming every day and emptying the canisters outside can help a lot. Make sure you vaccuum under furniture, as this is where the fleas like to live. The dawn dish soap doesn't kill the fleas, but it probably stripped your cat's coat of essential oils and made her more itchy. She is also probably anemic from the fleas. I know you say you don't have money, but many vets have Care Credit that you can try to apply for. I would suggest calling or trying to apply for it or trying to borrow the money because your kitty really needs to see a vet. If it was just the itching, I would suggest the flea products alone, but with the extreme weight loss and how miserable she sounds, the vet will be able to administer or give topical products and give her some supportive treatments like fluids to treat the anemia.

[LaceyMariah16]

She wasnt ill when we gave her the bath. I heard from a vet and a lot of other people to try the dawn soap. The fleas are completely gone from the house and all of the animals and they have been for awhile. We have checked her numerous times and she has no fleas. I dont think the symptoms are from the fleas because none of the stuff happened until she had the dawn bath. We cannot afford to take her to the vet. We did get our male cats fixed. The lady we got our cats from told us they were a lot younger than they actually were so that is how the kittens happened. We had the apt to get the males fixed but it was too late.

[opus88]

I"m afraid you may have a very ill little kitten on your hands....flea bite allergy can be very serious esp. with a kitten....and the dawn dish soap does not kill fleas that I've ever heard of...and its also very dangerous to give a bath to a very ill kitten, you are doing your best I know you are trying...the kitten has gotten anemic from the bites and anemia can kill her.
she does need to see a Vet asap.
please copy and paste this site and read it ok

http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_flea_anemia.html

also this kitten should really be checked very good for more fleas and your whole home needs to be thoroughly vacuumed and everything washed...
meanwhile this kitten really needs to see a Vet....and don't let the Vet suggest a shot of convenia either this will kill her!!!!!

If he still has fleas he will need a Vet product to kill the flea nd the larva..don't use over the counter stuff its way tooo harmful on the all cats!!!

I will give you the site and name of a product to use in your home, just be sure you sprinkle it around while wearing a mask as it is a very fine dust that is very harmful to your lungs..and the pets too, be sure they are out of the room you are doing, don't sprinkle too heavily it just needs to be lightly dusted. this will kill the fleas from your carpet and furniture. make sure its the FOOD GRADE one you buy

http://www.amazon.com/Natures-Wisdom-Grade-Diatomaceous-Earth/dp/B003QJ8CSE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1390447964&sr=8-2&keywords=food+grade+diatomaceous+earth

but do be sure and get this kitty to a Vet as well that could save its life...and please please get your mommy cat fixed so there are no more unexpected babies.