I have a cat that has a stress disorder. She has licked her stomach, tail, and back legs hairless. Help???

Question

Sorry I did forget to say- she it the younger cat- I have a very aggressive alpha female that will hiss and not let her aroung us or food. I have to put them in seperate rooms during meal time. She ia very needy and friendly when she is just w/ my Husband and I.

Answer 1

Usually vets can give you antianxiety meds for something like this. Did a vet diagnosis her with this?

Answer 2

I'm assuming that your cat has been seen by a vet who's ruled out the common causes of over-grooming such as parasites, allergies or dietary issues.

Grooming can be a source of comfort to cats, but when severely stressed, they will over-groom. Fitting her with an Elizabethan collar will mean that she cannot groom, but it is only treating the symptom. What you need to do is remove or alleviate the source of the stress. You don't say how long you've had the younger cat or how the initial introduction to the older cat was made, but if the older cat is bullying her you need to resolve this problem. I would suggest that you initally confine the younger cat to a separate room and try re-introducing them slowly, so that the older cat will accept her. The web articles below explain how to do this.

http://www.tulsa-animalshelter.org/tips/intro%20cat.htm
http://messybeast.com/first-impressions.htm

You could also try using a Feliway plug-in diffuser or spray. They emit pheromones which help cats feel calm. A lot of people have had great success using Bach Flower Remedy to help treat both nervous and aggressive cats and the web article below explains how they help and which ones to use.

http://www.critterchat.net/bach.htm

You need to be very patient as it may take a while for your older cat to accept the younger one.

Good luck.

Answer 3

Did your vet diagnose her,or are you just guessing? If it has been diagnosed by a vet,then the vet should have prescribed an anti-anxiety drug for the cat,in addition to a medicated shampoo and a steroid shot to stop any itching.What do you feed your cat? A premium diet may help.Also,give your cat a lot of things to do;toys,cat trees,catnip,walks outside on a leash,etc. Put a birdfeeder outside a window so the cat can watch the birds. I've had a few cats with this,but it was a long time ago,and they didn't have the anti - anxiety drugs that they have now.I know it is a pain in the butt to try and stop your cat from mutilating itself.Two if my cats had to have casts put on their legs to stop them from chewing them off! I also had to make little suits for them to wear,out of men's socks! Oddly,they were both dilute tortoiseshells and not related.I don't know if coat color has anything to do with it,though.I saw a white cat at my vet who had to have it's tail amputated because it kept attacking it and making it bleed! Good luck to you with this very difficult problem.

Answer 4

A vet can probably prescibe a tranquillizer or other drug depending on what's really going on. As for the licking (or biting of the tail), cut the top and bottom off of a two-liter soda bottle AND then cut it length-wise so you can slip it over your pet's body. Sizing is important so the cat can wear it comfortably without chafing. Good luck, Tom G

Answer 5

Take her to a vet. He may perscribe a tranquilizer. This will help calm your cat down. He might also give her a collar to keep her from licking her skin raw. Raw skin will irratate her and she'll want to lick it even more. It might not be a stress disorder. She may have a skin desiese.

Answer 6

my kitten has a similar problem: he suffers from a clinical case of separation anxiety
it's tough to take care of him because he has so many needs that other cats do not have
however he is a beautiful little boy, and it's well worth the extra effort to keep him happy and healthy
just to give you an idea of my cat's problems:
I have to leave him with a sitter while I'm at work because if I leave him home alone or even in a room alone for more than 5 or 10 minutes then he'll start biting himself badly.
also, I can't leave him with the sitter for more than 10 or12 hours because after that long without me, he lies down in the litter box biting himself and hissing at anyone who tries to go near him, as well as refusing his dinner (which he has to take with his respiratory medication)
oddly enough, his anxiety about being alone has nothing to do with a lack of things to do: he ownes hundreds of dollars worth of cat toys (everything from the more expensive toys like panic mouse, his own extra-large cat tower, and a cat spa massager to the cheaper toys such as bird feeders outside the window, pom-poms covered in catnip, and me, because I'm always willing to throw a toy, hunt for food, or dangle a string for him)
like most cats he sleeps for 18+ hours a day however he wakes up every couple of hours, searches the house, and freaks out if he can't find anyone
oddly enough though, unlike most cats, he has never been finicky about his litter box being moved or his food bowls being moved either (my ex-room mate used to move them around while I was at work and it never bothered him)
I wasn't sure what was going on when I first started noticing his behavioral issues however I did a little online research then I consulted two separate vets---they all said the same thing: clinical separation anxiety
he was put on a medication but reacted poorly (rubbed the top of his head near bald within the first week of taking the medication), however he does well with herbal stress relievers such as Rescue Remedy:
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=3550

what you're describing (licking herself bald) is a symptom of several things including skin disease, skin irritation, yeast infection, food allergies, and mental illness (such as chronic stress or anxiety)
the only way to know for sure that your cat has a stress disorder is to take her to the vet for a through check-up
after your vet has diagnosed your cat, the vet should be able to help you more than any of us on here could
Stress disorders are a very serious illness which can worsen if not treated
however, a cat with a stress disorder can lead a very happy and fulfilling life with treatment
simple things such as having a routine for food and exercise can help your cat reduce stress
leaving home and coming home from work at the same time every day, never moving the food bowl or litter box, making all changes in the household very gradual for the cat
these are things that are important to try to do for all cats, however these are things that are absolutely necessary to do for cats with stress disorders
be patient with your kitten, she is worth the extra effort

Answer 7

we have a cat that actually went bald on the top of the head tail and stomach and we took it into the vets and it had a skin disorder. which required meds