Hair Loss?

[misscrosson]

do cats ever go threw major hair loss in their lives?? i have a 4yr old cat and shes been loosing alot of hair on her tummy, and back legs...

[misscrosson]

:confused: anyone?? im really worried about my cat....:(

[asta7775]

I have never heard of cat's going through a major hairloss other than.... does she lick her belly and her legs a lot? Some cat's will do that as a sign of some sort of anxiety, and then it becomes a habit. Does the skin where she licks look normal, any signs of fleas? I know there are some medical illnesses that can cause them to shed a lot but I don't know if it show's up that way(generally all over). Most of the cat's that I have met with the hairloss pattern you describe is due to over grooming in that area. I know my male was over licking his belly for awhile and I distracted him every time I saw him, he didn't go bald but it was quite thin, I didn't worry because he had blood work done not long before and we had just moved. He has since stopped and it has grown back. Has anything at home changed? Is she eating etc... as per usual and no weight loss? If it were me I wouldn't worry too much at this point if it happens to be that she is over grooming and just keep an eye on her and distract her when you see her licking those area's and then see if there is a change, that's if she is over grooming.

I remember awhile back you had said that it's hard to get into your vet and its far away and you were waiting for him to come out. Has the vet made it out yet? I suppose it could be something else, just baseing it on my own personal experiences.

Best wishes and I hope its nothing. Don't know if I was any help but thought I'd respond.

[misscrosson]

She's got a vet appointment next month.. yay... lol im just trying to save up money now lol... but my vet said we can work out a payment plan...

she does groom this area ALOT .... seem to suck on it too, like bit it... so im thinking she's pulling the hair out....

only change i can think of is i dont sleep with her anymore, because she would just cry early in the mornings and run all over me to wake up and feed her lol... so i booted her from my room, so she wonders all around the house all night long now...

The skin on the area looks normal, shes not totally bald, just little bit of hair there, doesnt bother her if i touch it...

[asta7775]

I know what you mean about the early morning "I am hungry now...get up"
I'm sure she will eventually get use to the new routine, I know there are some spray's out there that taste bad for dogs that over lick but I don't know if they are safe for cat's (I know that bitter apple isn't safe for them). You could also try one of those feliway plug ins, it may help her to relax until she adjusts. When ever I caught Forest over licking I stuck a fresh catnip pouch under his nose and it would seem to distract him long enough that he would forget about licking for awhile. I think the licking helps calm them or something, a way of copeing when they are upset about something. Again just a guess.

[Punkygirl0101]

I was going through that problem too, my cat Muffin was losing alot of hair on her tummy, sides, and back of the legs. We didn't do anything about it, and in a few days it cleared up. She was really stressed out because we had to change everyones eating schedule. She got used to it, and it grew back in no time at all.