Dandruff

[marissposa]

The past couple of days I've noticed my cat has a lot of dandruff.  she has had a little flakiness before, but this is quite a bit.  Is this something I should be concerned about?

[marissposa]

Great.  Thanks for your thorough answer.   I might even suggest my mom look into yucca for her dog that gets hotspots that take months to heal.  I'll do some more research first about the safety for dogs.
Thank you!

[Mrs_Savas]

Well, to some degree it depends on what you are feeding your cat but yes, dietary enzymes are very useful.  Unless you are feeding your cat the highest-end, human-grade foods, I can pretty much guarantee that they aren't "processing" everything as they should.  Cats are "obligate carnivores", a type of predator that gets it's nutrition in a very specific way that is difficult to reproduce successfully.

So, I absolutely recommend using digestive enzymes.  I use prozyme, but that's just one brand.  

Side note - if you start using digestive enzymes regularly, you should watch kitty's weight.  If they digest correctly, they don't need to eat as much.  However, eating is a habit, as much as it is a necessity (as we all know :), so... they may need some adjustment to their diet at that point!

Yucca Extract is something else.  It's kind of an herbal remedy supplement that, like I say, has anti-inflammatory properties.  It is also effective in some cases and a natural anti-biotic and a mild analgesic.  It does lots of stuff and I have had great results more than once using it with cats with skin conditions.  Including mysterious, really nasty skin conditions that don't respond to medications - they've just cleared right up when I have given the cat the yucca!

Side note - yucca apparently tastes awful!  Sprinkling it on food tends to be just a waste of the food (cat won't touch it!).  What I do, even though my cat hates it, is just to open their mouth and place the powder in there, on the tongue!  It's not hard to do, just don't drop the powder into the back of your cats throat, as you don't want to choke poor kitty (the taste is enough to deal with!).  

You can sprinkle the enzymes on the food, though.  My cats eat it easily enough, I guess it doesn't taste like anything much.

Good luck!

[marissposa]

Thanks you Mrs Savas. Yucca... eh?  Is it in a powder form and can you find it at most human supplement stores?

Have any of you hear of Enzyme supplements.  My local hippy pet food store says that enzyme supplements help a lot with skin and coat problems and help pets digest other supplements they are given... Their claim is that pet food has all the enzymes cooked out of it.  Makes sense.

This is from their website:


Supplements
Why Supplement? Ideally, an animal’s food would contain all the nutrients needed for a vibrant, healthy life, especially high quality pet food. But many factors affect nutrient levels – processing, storage, heat, light, and time all erode nutrient content. Adding extra supplementation is a simple and inexpensive form of health insurance for dogs and cats.

Enzyme Supplements
We have seen almost miraculous transformations in animals after enzyme supplementation begins, including relief from itchiness, allergies, flea infestation, weepy eyes and ears, dry flaking skin, rashes, hair loss and hot spots.

Since 1990, All The Best Pet Care has been producing the finest digestive enzyme blends for pets found anywhere. They require only a small dosage that is easy to mix into moist food or put into a capsule for pilling.

    * Enzymes Plus, our most popular formula, contains a complete spectrum of digestive enzymes plus kelp extract, bioflavinoids, and two natural forms of Vitamin C, rose hips and acerola.
    * Good Digestion combines digestive enzymes with probiotic cultures, FOS, alfalfa, barley, and wheat grass to address the very common problem in dogs and cats of poor digestion, gas, and loose stools.
    * Enzymes pH contains not only digestive enzymes, but also cranberry extract and two natural urinary acidifiers. These ingredients help alleviate urinary blockages that are rampant in cats.

Symptoms of Enzyme Deficiencies:

    * Dry, flaky skin and dull coat.
    * Allergies, rashes, hot spots, flea dermatitis, and food sensitivities.
    * Intestinal gas, diarrhea, undigested food in the stool, stool-eating.

[Mrs_Savas]

Some great advice here.  All I would add would be to recommend yucca extract.  It's a human grade dietary supplement that has, among other things, anti-inflammatory properties.

I've had really good results with it with kitty skin conditions.  Including something similar to what you are describing.

[marissposa]

pretty kitty: I think my cat may be a bit too chubby, but not really obese. (Last Ichecked she was just over 10 pounds) She's got a flabby gut, but the rest of her is slim, she is very active and agile and grooms herself well.  I feed her wellness wet food and a small amount of california naturals dry food (which she LOVES so I portion is out in tiny quantites).  Great tip about getting toxin-free oil, I never even thought about that!

zodiacqueen:  No other symptoms as far as I've noticed, but I'm going to monitor her a little closer than usual for awhile.  Her next regular vet appointment isn't until may.
She is a girl and I think she is around 4, but she is a rescue, so I'm not sure.

Thank you both of you :)

[zodiacqueen]

Hi hon, I hope to God that I didn't scare you in my earlier posts!  That was not my intention at all.  I was just trying to get you to look at different causes of skin problems, because many people aren't aware that skin problems can be caused by an underlying problem.  A diet is only ONE cause of dry flaky skin.  You could start with diet changes like adding salmon oil.  That would be an awesome place to start.  But, if you are seeing other symptoms, you might want to go to the vet for peace of mind.  

You didn't mention whether your kitty has any other symptoms or how old he/she is!

[PrettyKitty1]

Hmm..wow, I don’t think scent oil reed diffuser is causing this. You did mention her having dandruff before, just not as chronic as now. So, it isn’t sunburn and it isn’t a dry environment although you’ve had your heater on lately. Might wanna look into it although if you’ve had that heater working before and she’s been fine then there is no reason why she would be affected by it, after all, she is a Seattle kitty. Let me ask you a question and I don’t mean to be disrespectful because I’m sure your cat is a lady. Is she overweight? Occasionally, cats that are on a restricted fat diet will develop dry, flaky skin. There are also some parasitic skin disorders such as Cheyletiella (known as “walking dandruff”) that can cause the coat to appear flaky and dry. This problem is more common during the winter when the air becomes drier than normal.  Other than that, a good source of Omega-3 fatty acid will certainly help you. I wanted, however, to talk to you about this particular subject: Omega-3.

I would go to the Vitamin Shoppe and get Carlson’s Salmon Oil which has nice high levels of EPA and DHA and is free of detectable levels of mercury, cadmium, lead, PCB's and 28 other contaminants. I trust this one so much I give it to my cat in capsules with each meal. I just clip the end of the capsule with a small scissors or pierce it with a sharp pin and squeeze a few drops on to the food. Since it changes the food taste to fish taste, they usually love it.  Do not use salmon oil that comes as a liquid in a bottle. That oil can go rancid VERY fast once it is exposed to air, even if it comes in one of those lovely cobalt-blue bottles that's supposed to protect the product. It's really best to buy capsules instead.

And yes, monitor her constantly, and if she keeps getting worse, then take her to the vet to get her checked for parasitic skin disorders.

Good Luck Mar.

[marissposa]

zodiac queen:  Thanks for noticing I've been away, I just got all wrapped up in work projects...
I will buy some oil today, I have a nice natural pet foods store nearby that may have suggestions.    Thanks for all the links.  Very helpful

Pretty Kitty:  Thank you for your response. I think it is pretty humid here (I'm in Seattle), but I have had the heater on a lot.  Also I have been using a scent oil reed diffuser.  Do you think that could be it?  She is primarily an indoor kitty, but I take her out on a leash if the weather is good.    No sign of fleas.  Thank goodness!

I'll just keep observing her.  Thanks again :)

[zodiacqueen]

Hi, just wanted to add some resources to back up my earlier post about the other causes of dry skin.  In case other people read this thread, it may help them to see that there can be an underlying health condition that causes the dry skin.

I copied this-

Many diseases and conditions affecting overall health affect the skin a s well. Low thyroid levels, allergies, kidney and heart disease, seborrhea and many other problems cause or contribute to dry skin. Correcting the underlying problem will usually lead to improvement in the skin within a few weeks. Persistent dry skin, despite a good diet and fatty acid supplements, is an indication that something more serious may be going on and is worth investigating.

http://animalclinics.com/ginfo/dryskin.htm

Here is another website that proves that diabetes can also cause dry skin

http://www.natural-pet-care.com/natural-pet-health-blog/?p=1710

I hope that you and others that read this will find it helpful!  =D

[PrettyKitty1]

Well, if you are sure this isn't dander, then it could be mites, fleas, sunburn or sensitivity to something new in the house, like new carpet, or new odor eliminating spray. Anything new in the house that you recall?

Usually, winter is a season when many places become extremely dry. What are the humidity levels in your place? If your hands feel very dry, then your cat might be experiencing this as well.

Check her for parasites, fleas, mites etc. Is she indoors or outdoors?

Most over the counter products don't work but perhaps there is something out there that can help her, depending on what the cause for her dandruff is. I personally don't know of any good products to get rid of dandruff. Hopefully, somebody here can help you out on that.

[zodiacqueen]

Hi marissposa!  Don't see ya that much on the cat forums, have you been "cheating" on the kitty forum?  =[  We miss ya on here!

There are a few things that come to mind when I hear/see kitty skin issues.  Sometimes, dry flaky skin can be a sign of diabetes, kidney disease, and thyroid disease.  If it were one of those 3 conditions, you would most definitely see other signs as well.  If you're pretty sure that kitty doesn't have any other symptoms, then maybe it's just plain old dry skin.  There are additives that can be put into a kitty's food that can help with that-salmon oil (I think).

Take care!!