Expert: Jessica - 10/19/2010

Question
Dear Jessica , here I'm back with a new dilemma!

From last few months my cats have started to scratch themselves just too much. I am a pedigree-Persian-cat breeder so we basically always have so many of them. At first it was not that serious, then it started to deteriorate. Now each and everyone of them is scratching themselves too much. I mean , almost all the time. Every single minute. Adult cats , kittens, all of them.

At first we thought it could be mites or some parasites. I had my cats checked then by two different vets. They both said it was no mites or louse issue. It's actually about cat allergy. They both said there is something wrong with your cats environment or food. The environment has not changed that much, except their litter box that I have change. I am using Amax cat litter now. But I doubt if this is the problem hence it's a good cat litter and many other friends of mine are using it with totally no problem.

I personally think the problem is in the food I give to my cats. I give them boiled chicken , and trying to get rid of the terrible smell of boiled chicken I put an onion , and add an small spoon of Curcuma longa powder to the chicken too. Now ,  searching on net just today I realized that it was actually a mistake as onion can be toxic in cats and create allergies too.

Now , From tomorrow I am going to stop adding onion and Curcuma longa to their chicken. My question to you as an expert is , do you think this was the problem of so many of scratchings in my cats? They scratch their head and bite their tails like crazy, always. Can onion or Curcuma longa allergy in cats appear like this? Do you think that it will stop from tomorrow? What else do you recommend me to help my cats to get rid of scratching themselves? Do you think that Curcuma longa can cause allergy in cats too? Please help. All my adult cats and kittens are going crazy scratching themselves day and night.

Thank you a million times for your help
Sincerely , Soheil

Answer
Hi Soheil,

I'm glad you won't be using the onion anymore.  The Turmeric is not necessary but shouldn't be a big problem.  It's possible for it to cause an allergic reaction in some cats, but I would not expect it to cause problems in all your kitties.  The onion, while this could also be allergenic, is more likely to cause problems with the cats' red blood cell counts, and I really would doubt that the onions caused their skin symptoms.  But if all the symptoms were related to either of these foods, you should see the itchiness begin to stop in the next couple of weeks.  It takes about 2-3 weeks after removing the allergen from their diet for a real improvement to be seen.

I would still be very suspicious about the new litter, since all of the cats have been affected.  Some breeds can be very sensitive to any fragrance or dust that is present in a litter and can develop contact allergies from it.  My Siamese can't use any kind of clay litter for this reason.  If you find that you're having trouble, I would recommend that you try switching back to your old litter just to see if they improve.  If they do, then you know you have your answer.  I find my sensitive cats do best on wheat or pine litters.

You can always try mixing some Dermaquin into your cats' food to help improve the integrity of their skin and fur.  This can help reduce itching caused by environmental allergens in some cases, and it will help prevent itching from dry skin.  If you don't use a slicker brush with your kitties, I also recommend this after a good comb-through with a comb.  The slicker brush will help massage the skin to encourage healthy oil production and will distribute the oils throughout the skin and coat, to keep the skin moisturized.

Best of luck!

Jessica