Cat hair loss & vomiting after new food: Is it food allergy or fleas?

Hi, and thanks for your question. This could be due to an allergy, although it could also be infection or mites. First of all, in order to rule out skin parasites, you will need to treat with a high quality flea treatment, then ask the vet to perform a skin scrape - this might reveal an infection or a mite infestation. If all of those came back negative, the next step is to treat the allergy symptomatically and try to discover the cause of the allergy. Three main type of allergies are usually affecting pets: food allergies, flea and parasite related ones and environmental type (allergens coming from trees, pollens, dust etc etc). Some medications can be given by the vet in order to repair any possible skin lesions (like steroids and antibiotics). Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

Calli could certainly be allergic to some component of her food, causing her licking and hair loss. Cats most commonly develop allergies to the protein source of the food, but other allergies to fleas or environmental factors, or infectious issues like ringworm or mange can all cause similar signs. With excessive licking and scratching, skin infections can develop, which only serve to worsen itching and scratching. At this point, your best bet is to take Calli to the vet to rule out signs of a skin infection, ringworm or mange, as these would require a different course of action. If these issues have been excluded, you next need to assure that Calli is receiving a high quality flea preventative (such as Advantage, Revolution or Bravecto) regularly. If you want to try a diet trial to determine if food allergies are occurring, you can choose either a prescription based hydrolyzed hypoallergenic diet or a novel protein diet (such as Dick van Patten's Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diet, choosing a new protein source like venison or rabbit). To change Calli's diet, mix the old and new foods together over 5-7 days. After that time, exclusively feed the new food without adding other treats or table foods. It can take at least 6-8 weeks to see the full effect of a diet trial. I hope this helps and that all goes well!

This is probably caused by an allergic reaction. first of all make sure you de-flea Ciciregularly every month with a high quality spot on (ex. Advantage) as fleas are by far the most common reason for these reactions. If the fleas are not the problem, it could be an allergic reaction to food or an environmental factor. this is more complicated to treat and will sometimes require medications such as Steroids, anti histamines or cyclosporin in order to stop the allergy. This isn't an emergency by any means.

This could be either one or both. Without seeing him in person, it’s hard for me to say for sure. Since the hairloss is new and since your are pregnant, I would have your vet check him out to see to make sure nothing else is going on. Your vet will be able to start him on some medicine to help his fur. Your vet can even start an anti-anxiety medicine if he isn’t improving. I hope this helps!

This could be due to an allergic reaction. first of all make sure you de-flea Chibi regularly every month with a high quality spot on (ex. Advantage) as fleas are by far the most common reason for these reactions. If the fleas are not the problem, it could be an allergic reaction to food or an environmental factor. this is more complicated to treat and will sometimes require medications such as Steroids, anti histamines or cyclosporin in order to stop the allergy.

I would be concerned about fleas and allergies foremost, and recommend she be on a high quality flea preventive (seresto collar, revolution topical, bravecto topical are all good, or your vet can recommend one they carry - avoid the pet store for this because there are some sold there over the counter that can actually cause seizures in cats. The seresto collar lasts 8 months, so might be a good option for handling her less, but she may also find a way to get it off). If she's already on a preventative, I'd recommend talking to her vet about testing/treatment for allergies. There are many different ways to approach this and you're going to be significantly limited by her feral status.

Flicka may have allergies or some other skin condition that allows her fur to pull out or break more easily than it should. She might benefit from a diet high in omega fatty acids or a food allergy specific veterinary diet as well. The best place to start would be an exam by your vet to evaluate her skin and see if she needs diagnostics like a skin scraping or food allergy trial. Hope that helps!