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#1
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fur plucker
Hello all,
I have a 9 year old cat who has been an "on-again/off-again" fur plucker. I had him all checked out, bloodwork and everything all normal. He started this when one of my other cats died and then a year later another of my cats became very ill. All of this spiked his anxiety and he started to "over groom" himself. He grooms himself and plucks, but his skin is okay. He mainly does it along his back where he can reach. He stops, but when something changes, like when my husband and I go away for a weekend, he starts again. His baldness is not blatanly obvious. Any suggestions on how to get him to stop? The vet I work for wants me to start him on anti anxiety meds, but I'd rather not put him on prescription meds when I can try something a bit more natural and less toxic. I've thought of putting "Best Behavior" or "yuk gel" on him, but I don't want to discourage grooming altogether. I've even thought of putting a sweater on him for a while, but that might cause added stress. Help! Jo |
#3
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"CaTails" wrote in message oups.com... Hello all, I have a 9 year old cat who has been an "on-again/off-again" fur plucker. I had him all checked out, bloodwork and everything all normal. He started this when one of my other cats died and then a year later another of my cats became very ill. All of this spiked his anxiety and he started to "over groom" himself. He grooms himself and plucks, but his skin is okay. He mainly does it along his back where he can reach. He stops, but when something changes, like when my husband and I go away for a weekend, he starts again. His baldness is not blatanly obvious. Any suggestions on how to get him to stop? I just went through this with my cat, and she was literally bald but for a thin, scratchy layer of stubble. It was stress, absolutely. She began it in August, kept one side of her body bald until maybe two weeks ago, when I noticed the fur is softer, longer, and growing back in. If your cat's baldness is not blatantly obvious, why worry about it? You know the answer to getting him to stop--keep him from getting anxious. Spoil the hell out of him and remove the source of stress. My cat was upset over another cat suddenly coming into the part of the house she thought of as her territory. I began spending more time with the other cat in her own turf, which led to the other cat not coming upstairs so much. And Cheeky stopped giving her side a buzz cut. The vet I work for wants me to start him on anti anxiety meds, but I'd rather not put him on prescription meds when I can try something a bit more natural and less toxic. I would not do this. Just comfort your kitty. Spend more time playing, eliminate sources of stress, that sort of thing. |
#4
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I used the feliway diffuser before and one of my females decided that
she was going to urinate all over the area surrounding where it was plugged in. That was great. But I now use the feliway spray and spritz it once in different areas of the house. Anxiety has gone down alot. Especially since I've got neighborhood cats that my cats aren't too happy about when they come near my windows and pee and poo in my garden. He doesn't do it that often anymore, but he starts up when we go away on weekends. I have a petsitter come in once a day when we are gone. Thanks for the advice! Joanna |
#5
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in article , CaTails at
wrote on 1/20/05 8:41 PM: I used the feliway diffuser before and one of my females decided that she was going to urinate all over the area surrounding where it was plugged in. That was great. But I now use the feliway spray and spritz it once in different areas of the house. Anxiety has gone down alot. Especially since I've got neighborhood cats that my cats aren't too happy about when they come near my windows and pee and poo in my garden. He doesn't do it that often anymore, but he starts up when we go away on weekends. I have a petsitter come in once a day when we are gone. Thanks for the advice! Joanna Try upping the visits to two. (I am such a worrier I always have them come in twice.) and make sure they squirt a little Feliway around once a day. |
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