Why does my cat bite when I touch the rough spot near her tail?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Ketkat! The most common reason for chewing the back or the tail is fleas. Use a fine tooth comb and brush above her hips and down the tail. If you catch an adult flea in the comb you have an answer. If you don't, use a wet white tissue or paper towel to remove the fur and debris from the comb. If you see black squiggly flecks that when wet look like blood streaks that indicates flea poop. I would recommend a good flea preventative like the Serest collar, Bravecto for Comfortis. be sure that ALL animals in the house are treated. Other possibilities are skin allergies from the environment or food and cats can over groom from anxiety or behavioral reasons. If you do not find fleas I would take her to the Vet for a diagnosis so you can get her feeling better. I wish you all the best!

She could have an allergic dermatitis. You should get a flea comb and comb her for fleas. If she has fleas then treat her with a flea medication, like Frontline, Revolution, Bravecto, etc. You could also bathe her with a shampoo, like Epi-Soothe and see if that helps. Otherwise, have her examined by a vet to treat. She might need an antibiotic, anti-histamine, and/or a corticosteroid to help.

Poor kitty! There are a few causes including fleas, environmental allergy and food allergy. Fleas are very suspicious for that region. You can rule them out by using a good flea product like Revolution or Cheristan. You will need to use it for a couple months, if the skin clears up then you know it’s fleas! It sounds like your cat is uncomfortable with the description of chewing off all the hair and the red skin. A visit to your veterinarian can provide some relief with medications. I recommend to have your cat checked out to make him feel better quickly. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

He could have a skin infection, allergic dermatitis, fleas, and/or a problem with his anal glands. You could bathe him with a anti-bacterial medicated cat shampoo and see if that helps. Also, use a good flea prevention, like Revolution, Bravecto, or Frontline to prevent fleas. If the problem continues then he should be examined by a vet to determine the cause and treat. He might need an antibiotic, anti-histamine, and a corticosteroid to help treat. Your vet can also express his anal glands if they are full.

There can be a few reasons that Mister would do that. Fleas are a very common cause of sensitivity in that area. I would look at that first and start him on a good flea prevention like Cheristin or Revolution. If Mister is overweight, sometimes they can't clean well and this makes them itchy. Keeping his coat cleaned and regularly brushed will generally help with that. Look for red skin or scabs as this indicated infection. He should be seen if this is present. Hope this helps!

Even though you don't see any fleas, your cat could still be having an allergic reaction to fleas. It only takes the bite of one flea to set off the reaction, and itchiness over the base of the tail is classic flea allergic dermatitis. However, dermatitis can be brought on by other skin parasites (mosquitoes, mites, lice), bacterial and fungal skin infections, nutritional imbalances, hormonal imbalances, and autoimmune disorders. Therefore, I recommend that you have your cat examined by your veterinarian for a full clinical work up.

If your cat has been diagnosed with feline hyperesthesia syndrome, that could definitely be factoring into her resistance to having you pet her. I recommend scheduling a vet consult to have her examined - many hyperesthesia cats will improve on medication. I would start there, before concluding that her scratching/biting is purely behavioral. However, if you don't notice any change in her behavior with hyperesthesia treatment, then it's worth considering behavior interventions and stress management. https://www.vet.cornell.edu/departments-centers-and-institutes/cornell-feline-health-center/health-information/feline-health-topics/hyperesthesia-syndrome Hope this helps!