Cat dandruff?

Question

My cat has extreme dandruff. I do not bathe her and she is an inside cat. I am feeding her Science Diet Nature's Best. She is overweight and I think that may be a factor because she cannot reach and clean her back where the dandruff is the worst. I try to brush her every other day or so. What else can I do to help her?

Also her coat seems oily, but her skin is really dry.

Going to the vet or a pet groomer is not an option with my cat. She is not very anti-social except with me and scared of everything.

Answer 1

My cat had the same problem for many years and caused me a great deal of allergy problems. I found a cure by accident while treating my other cat for an illness.

Try switching your cat to a high quality natural canned food. In addition give her a feline multi-vitamin. You may want one that's specific to skin problems. My cat made a dramatic turn around after just two weeks and my allergy to her went away.

Here is a link to info on pet food. http://www.belfield.com/article3.html

Here is a link to info on skin problems. http://www.belfield.com/article6.html

The book on cat health available on this site is excellent if you are interested in feline nutrition. You can get natural foods and cat vitamins at pet shops, health food stores and they even carry some brands at my local Wal-Mart. If you shop online try http://www.onlynaturalpet.com They have most of the top foods and suppliments.

Incidently, my cat actually lost weight by switching to a better food and adding vitamins. My vet warned against diet cat foods as they can cause other more serious problems.

Good luck!

Answer 2

Science Diet is an expensive and low quality cat food as it uses by-product meat and is 2/3 corn. Problems at the skin level are an indication of poor stuff inside the cat - in this case its food.

Your cat will do much better on a diet of high quality meat protein with adequate moisture and fat to keep her skin (and insides) healthy. Use Natural Balance, Wellness, Blue, Lick Your Chops, Avoderm etc.

If your cat is not used to canned meat she may rebel at first. So just offer the canned food and nothing else for 24 hours. By the next day she should be willing to sample the meat. As long as she eats a little each day she will be fine and because she is overweight she cannot go without eating anything for more than the one day. I hope you can convert her as I am sure that this will clear up her dandruff problem.

The Natural Balance and Wellness come in small cans and there are quite a variety available. So try some of those at first to see what she likes the best before getting the larger cans. A diet of high quality meat without fillers will also help her to take off excess weight.

Answer 3

We have 5 cats and 2 dogs and they all have dandruff. The vet gave us some special shampoo to use on the worse case pets, but you could buy anti-dandruff shampoo at the store.

It is important to brush and brush them as much as possible.

This is VERY VERY common, especially in the winter. A humidifier in the house should help a bit also and google some home remedies...maybe you could add some certain vitamins or something.

Answer 4

That is a good cat food. If she is overweight, first of all, you need to cut back on the amount she receives each day and less treats. Dandruff is very common among cats. You can try adding a fatty acid supplement to her diet. It should also make her coat nice and shiny.

Answer 5

sometimes dandruff or dander isn't just that. You have mentioned that your cat is overweight but didn't say if she is active or not.
Just as sometimes being overweight isn't caused by overeating.

These are two symptoms of Thyroid problems just as in humans animals can suffer from thyroid disease. The best thing is to get her into her vet and have him run a thyroid panel if thee is a problem there is medication. Once they have adjusted to their meds the skin and weight problems lessen.

Take care and good luck

Answer 6

hey there. i have three cats and my aunts a vet. one of them is as exactly as you described your cat. my aunt said the easiest, fastest and safest way to get rid of dandruff is to add cod oil (or any fish oil) to dry or wet food. the oil wont make the fur oilier just get rid of the dandruff. my cat looks amazing now and he especially loves the fish oil. he goes absolutely crazy when i add it to his food. Good luck!

Answer 7

1

Answer 8

besides talk to your vet about a precription diet for obesity, corn starch once a day combed through will help absorb the excess oil and distribute it around

also get her bathed professionally every 16 weeks or so, it will help a great deal, good luck

Answer 9

the brushing is good, it promotes oil production. can u wash her? and then a good creme rinse or conditioner . take her to the vet first to make sure there is no psoriosis or other skin conditions. the vet may have special sprays too. my cats hates vets too, but i wrap him in a towel, and my vet gives me a little kitty valium to calm him before he comes