Stratching & pulling out hair... :-(

[Elvisisboss]

Hi i have a 8 year old half siamese half tabby cat, Elivs.
this is fairly long so i will try and make it as short as i can!

i went to live with my boyfriend and left my cat with my dad, not out of choice but at the time my partner only had a flat and we felt it was not fair to my cat. being apart from my cat for about a year my dad had new carpets put down and my cat started to stratch alot, during this time we had bought a house and my cat came to live with me, he was really red & kept straching he had lots of tests done and they said he was allergic to about a million things food/dust/flys/different types of grass & plants etc.

but within about 3weeks of living with me he stopped stratching and became really happy again, the vets decided that it was down to being apart from me and he did this for attention.......

well after 2years we have had to sell our house (through just not being able to afford it ) and we could only afford to rent a flat so once again my cat has gone back to my dads, and once again he has started to stratch/pull his hair out again, he has had courses of injections ranging from everyday to every month. but they have decided that it is jsut behavioural and it is because he doesnt live with me.

but he keeps doing it even when i visit him he walks off drops to the floor and pulls out hair! the strange thing is i suffer with Trichotillomania (hair pulling) and i even wonder if he LEARNT it from me?!?!
is this possible? i just dont know what to do for the best i dont want to give him up he is really well cared for but until next year there is no way of him living with me!

Also he is always getting blocked up and cant go to the loo, he has had this since he was a kitten he is on latulose everyday, for, forever really, and i suffer with IBS, does that cat pick up on my feelings? or is it just me? because my whole family says this?

i just wanted to hear others views on me & my really connected cat! (Elvis!) [/font]

[Patch]

I would take a guess here at a connection with his toiletting problems and stress, both of which individually as well as in combination, can cause the fur pulling from the tum rather than anywhere else.

If mog is stressed [ from moving to your dads place and away from what he considers home with you ], it can cause the problem and can also upset his digestive system which would make him uncomfortable in the tummy area which can exhaserbate [ sp ? ] the fur pulling.

If he bites himself on the tum and leaves marks from his teeth as well as pulling fur, that would indicate pain [ rather than just mild discomfort or stress only ], in which case he would need another vet check in case of bladder crystals or cystitis or any complication of his disky tum.

What food does he have [ wet or dry ? ], and does your dad give him anything different which may be making him more constipated when he stays there ?

Did the allergy tests include food types and did the vet suggest a detox diet using a particular food specifically designed for this - a Hills one unfortunately but its made without any common ingredients to let the cats system `rest` then other foods can gradually be reintroduced until a food allergy trigger becomes obvious then its a case of just not feeding whatever it may be if there is a food intollerance going on which there must be, logically at least, if he has IBS but no kidney or liver function issues.

Re the allergies, is your dad able to ease that by trying different products in the home [ laundry products / moving plants if relevent, avoiding aerosols if applicable etc ] ?

Any of that give you things to go on ?

[dinahsmum]

If it is stress-related (which would be no suprise; Siamese can get very attached to people and distressed at separation) a Feliway DAP diffuser might just help. It's an aerosol thing which gives out pheremones which mimic the cats' own calming systems. Your vet probably sells it, if not any of the on-line petshops will have.
Could you try giving him something intimate of yours, to cuddle when you're not ther? For instance, could you get a 'conveyor' system going, where you wear your nightie/pj's for two nights, take it to your dad's to line Elvis's bed, take away the one which has been there for two days and so on? That might be enough to reassure him.
Is there no way he can stay with you in the flat? Or another flat which permits pets?
Good luck - let us know how he gets on

[Elvisisboss]

Hiya all, no the loo problems happened since basically he was born, i got him at 5 weeks old, and when he was about 3 months is when the loo problems started to happen, we were told that some cats just get like that, and when his on latulose he is ok its just when he comes off of it!

he has whiskas food, the one with no carrots as he cant eat them, he is really fussy and changes his mind every day about what he likes! he does have biscuits but we soak them first in water & his lactlose its easyer & nicer than giving him the injection in his mouth of it everyday and now he seems to really like eating it!

just the stratching everyone just swears its because his not with me

the thing is were in a flat that does not accpet pets, it has a comunal door, so i couldnt let him out and if i did let him out we have a carpark behind us, and a road the other side!!!

the thing is my partner was made bankrupt so it is really hard to get Anywhere to accpet us, we can afford it, but so many things are not going our way, we need a a gareentur (SP) but the only person i know who earns over 25k is my boyfreind and his the one whos bankrupt!
only one place will accpet us and they dont have any houses or flat with gardens or that accept pets available to rent! we have to sign contracts for nother 6 months in a months time so unless we find somewhere by then or within another 6 months from now when we have to re-sign again we have to stay here

oh that was a good idea about the clothes! i will do that!

[dinahsmum]

..........and the Feliway?
http://www.feliway.co.uk/

[Elvisisboss]

oh yes the hornmones! i have bought that before and it really does work my vet sells it i will get some more!!