Civie literally scratching is face to pieces. Update

My black DLH Onyx is literally shredding his face. We have so far ruled out ear mites and fleas (ears have been checked and no mites) and he is on Advantage Plus so not fleas. He has another appointment with the vet this next week, but was hoping someone here might have seen something like this before and might offer some relief or help for this poor guy until the vet can figure this one out, she is as stumped right now as we are.

Shortly after Muse went to the bridge this behavior started in Onyx, first it was just scratching under his chin (another reason for not fleas or mites, but had ears checked just encase) Then he started just kind of getting twitchy all over like a horse trying to shake off flies. Vet started him on meds for allegies which helped with the twitchy skin but has done nothing for the scratching of the face.

One other thing is that he weighs only 14lb but is far bigger in physical size than our 19lb Meezer. Not a bigger or fluffier cat but seems almost swollen all over.

Here is a picture of what he is doing to his face. Tried a cone collar but he went nuts, running into walls, windows etc until we removed the collar.



Mel & Muse (GA)

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

oh mamma, i think he must be having an allergic reaction to something...or could it be stress related due to losing muse? either way this is something i'd want the vet to look at as it's been going on so long and only getting worse. perhaps just a steroid shot (god forbid) may be the answer (it was for tom's allergies)
poor baby, he must be miserable.

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

Oh poor baby it must be awful..maybe some baking soda in warm water it is suppose to help us right??? I hate to see our babies uncomforable..Prayers that the vet will fine what is wrong with him. Kath

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

momma have you tried to google the symptoms?
i will now.

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

I feel so bad for him, first he loses his best kitty buddy and now this. I know he is miserable, he isn't coming to bed with us anymore, but bless his heart he still purrs when I hold him but is hiding more and more during the day and only really comes out in the evenings when the house is darker, otherwise he is wanting to stay in dark places. I worry to death over him. Our vet is out of town until next thursday but I have an appointment with her first thing then. We don't have an ER vet close and I absolutely refuse to take him to any of the other vets in town. (Tried them all and wouldn't take an earthworm to any of them but Dr Tami.) Its a small town and we only have 2 choices in Vets, Dr. Tami is awesome but the other one almost killed 2 of my dogs when I boarded them there, since they didn't bother to call me to tell me that my GSDs weren't eating for 2 weeks! Even though I have left 6 different contact numbers for everything from my hotel to my mother's #

Mel & Muse (GA)

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

http://pets.webmd.com/cats/slideshow-sk ... swodiyZnsQ

i found a whole lot of skin conditions here plus what causes them and pictures

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

One person I would talk to about this situation is dian and wheezer. She has a similar problem with Twinkie. These are some of the things she tried with Twinkie:

Zyrtec and Chlortrimaton antihistamines, non-steroidal anti-itch cream, Lysine, 4Life Transfer Factor Classic, fish oil (omega-3), diet change to non-beef, non-fish, wheat gluten free canned Fancy Feast, humidifier, an e-collar as a barrier, and antibiotics. Finally, she caved in and got the boy a depo steroid shot, and that clears it up--for a time.

I also would talk to Jean and Charcoal. She has had experience with a condition that causes cats to want to crawl out of their skin, but I don't recall the name of the condition (so I can't search for her post).

My best to Onyx.

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

i also read when i looked at that link that baking soda/powder is toxic for cats. milk and dairy products can cause skin allergies.

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

Mel, I suggest calling the vet and getting him to work you in tomorrow between other clients. I wouldn't wait much longer.

Good luck,
Pam

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

The vet put him on chlor which helped with the twitchy skin but hasn't slowed the digging at his face. Looks almost like hives, there are little red bumps and scaly skin. Is there any way it could be because of the hot humid weather we have been having? Also he is now developing dark patches of actual skin in his ears, almost like his ears are trying to match the color of his coat...In 30 years of being owned by cats I have never seen this in any of them. Onyx is the only one that seems to be effected. Everyone else is just their normal happy purry selves. Onyx is also really grumpy with the other cats which is out of character for him, but I guess I would be grumpy too if I was trying to crawl out of my skin.

Mel & Muse (GA)

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

That definitely sounds like an allergy and may be a food allergy. Check with your vet but I believe that you can give benadryl to him. I know it is safe for dogs and I had good results with it with Sculley. You may also want to get a e-collar to help protect his face. You may also want to try feeding him one of the prescription foods for allergies like the Hills Z/D.

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

Pam I would dearly love to get him in tomorrow if there was a vet here that I trusted to look at him. Our vet is out of town until next Thursday. The other one in town is a Large Animal vet and is worthless IMHO when it comes to dogs and cats. He is rude, rough with animals. ( I watched him strike a 2 yr old colt in the face that had broken a tooth with a lead rope because after 1 hour of tasting blood the colt was throwing its head.) and generally believes that cats are merely vermin control ( has told me as much when I took Muse to him in the beginning. I was told she is an old cat might as well put her to sleep rather than do a BG test). And the closest ER vet is 300 miles away.

Mel & Muse (GA)

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

He needs more diagnostics to determine what's wrong. If you are in within reasonable driving distance of a veterinary dermatologist, you can go there, but you can do a bunch of diagnostics with your regular vet as well. (The dermatologist might get a handle on everything sooner, though, and you sound desperate.) Whatever treatment you start, he should get antibiotics too because he's very likely got an infection from the skin destruction.

You need to get a cone on him. Whether you get a soft e-collar, a bite not collar, or try the cone again, he needs to lose access to his face pronto. I know they panic when they first have the collar on and it's sad, but he needs to adjust to it. I would look into other types of collars (besides the plastic cone) in the meantime but you need to do something right away to keep him from further injuring himself.

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

Angels & prayers to help Onyx with his itch problem That is a very good site Lori bookmarked it thank you Kath Maybe just plain cold water may help cool it down I hope you find the answer soon

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

Min had periodically scratched the same thing to his face, leaving welts and scabs under his ears, but not to the same degree as your cat. I also thought that it couldn't be fleas because he's on Revolution and we have literally never seen one, but the vet said that sometimes all it takes is literally one bite to set off a severe allergic response. Benadryl and topical cortisone cream really helped calm down the incidents.

Have you considered the softcaps, the things that you glue on a cat's claws? That might limit the damage.

You might try a Bonofido soft collar. Someone here recommended it to me ages ago, and it has worked well for me. The cat can see so they don't freak out as much, but not get at themselves. For other options, check out Vet School Blog.

good luck,
laur

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

Thank you for the link Laur that collar might work well for him, because I think what freaked him so bad with the cone is that he couldn't see to his sides. I don't know much about his past history other than the folks I got him from said he was thrown from a car in front of their farm house. When they found him he had several broken ribs they believe came from being kicked or hit. I just know I have always had to make sure that he knows that I'm approaching before I can touch him. If he is sleeping I need to talk to him first or he will freak.

Mel and Muse (GA)

 

Re: Civie literally scratching is face to pieces.

You might want your vet test for an ear infection...Bandit was stratching his fur off under his ear, that turned out to be the problem. He also had dark looking wax in his ear.

 

Well it took a trip to the other vet in town not my favorite choice but at least we have an answer. Onyx is indeed having an allergic reaction, but to what really has me stunned...His vacinations, apparently he is allegic to the rabies vac. Never in my life have I heard of that, but then again I guess anything is possible. I'm still going to have our regular vet check him on Thursday, since I don't trust the other vet, but for now at least my big black boy is resting comfortably for the first time in weeks. He is even softly snoring. His poor face is shaved to keep the hair from getting all gooey with the salve we have for him, they gave him a shot to help with the itchies, and he is now wearing lovely purple soft claws, since all attempts to get a e-collar on him failed. But to add to the woes, when he freaked out on the collar he cracked a rib, so he is also wrapped up from shoulders to hip. His BG was also boarderline for FD, but the vet thinks that might be stressed related, both from the allergic reaction and a mild infection from the scratching (will have his regular vet check that also). So we have salve, and antibotics and anti-itch meds and a vet order for absolutely no more rabies shots, which I don't really worry about since Mr O-man doesn't go outside. except when it comes time to renew his license perhaps it won't be a big deal since I have a letter from the vet saying he can't safely recieve the shots.

Mel & Muse (GA)

 

SO happy you finally got him answers. Poor Onyx hope everything settles down for him Angels coming to keep watch over him for a good night rest itch free and good night for you too ;-) :mrgreen: Kath

 

ooh, I bet Onyx didn't like having his face shaved. And his poor ribs! Glad he's feeling better, though.

How did the vet determine it was the rabies vax that caused the reaction?

luar

 

Well I think it is more of a guess than anything else...since it isn't mites, fleas, fish, beef or gluten. And that was the last shot he had. Which is why I'm double checking with our regular vet this week.

Mel & Muse (GA)

 

hmmm, how long after the shot did this happen. we have no clue on twinkie either. everything possible I have tried to rule out and tried meds galore. only thing that works is steroid shot and we give half dose so BG do not go really high and it does work for a while

 

Well his twitchy skin started just a couple days after his vacs, but he has always acted that way, but before it only lasted a couple of days and went away on its own. But didn't really notice how much he was scratching, until right after Muse passed in late May, but then it was just a small spot under his chin, so I kind of figured he had just gotten into something and rub the fur off, but it just kept getting worse. So after multiple test and everything coming back negative this is the best guess the vet and I could come up with.

Mel & Muse (GA)

 

Good deal on the dx, bad on the ribs and shaved face. But at least you have a somewhat comfy cat now, right?

You also might try aloe vera, straight from the plant. It can make stools runny if they lick enough of it off (it's a great, although somewhat harsh, laxative). Also, look into Tea Tree Oil, because that will also help the itchies.

And, for soreness, I always use "Sore No More", which has Arnica Montana in it. I use it on the cats, on the horse, on myself...it's a topical spray you can find at your local feed and tack store. Don't use a lot, as it's pretty effective.

But mostly, I'm just glad he's got a diagnosis, and a plan of care. It's so hard when our fuzzy bottomed babies are hurting and we don't know what's wrong.

Best-
Michele

 

Well he looks like hell right now so I have promised him no pictures until at least some of his fuzzyness comes back. I can tell he doesn't approve of the new hair cut because he has taken to sleeping with just his head in the kitty condo, not stretched out on top as per normal. Still not sure the vet we saw can find his arse with both hands but at least until our vet gets back I have a cat that isn't trying to maim himself. And his toes look real pretty in their soft claws...lol. Apparently he didn't like Dr Lemons (yes his real name) any better than I did. Because he gave him a 170 bg at the office, just check him a little while ago and got a 41.. Onyx HATES vets, he hates car ride, and being confined in a carrier. Mom however can do anythingin the world to him and if I scritch the belly afterwards all is good.


Mel & Muse (GA)

 

Awww special prayers and Angels with lots of beautiful healing green glowing light to help Onyx little face heal....As long as he is not itchy he should recover quick...Lots of green vibes too what ever it takes coming to you Kath