My cat keeps licking his tail and it twitches. What's wrong?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Raoul! I would worry about trauma: someone pulled his tail, his tail was ran over and fractured or other nerve damage. Ideally he should be seen by a Vet to potentially X-ray to the tail to look for fractures. I hope this helps and I wish Raoul the best!

Excessive grooming of the rear may indicate fleas or worms. The area she's paying attention to is classic for flea allergy. The most common worms are tapeworms, which your pet gets by grooming and ingesting a flea carrying the tapeworm eggs. A broad spectrum dewormer can be gotten from your vet as well as a topical or oral flea control such as Cheristin or Comfortis. You might also consider asking your vet for a dose of Capstar. It helps get the problem under control by killing the fleas on the cat starting in five minutes but only lasts for 24 hours. You also need to treat your home environment. If you use a pest control service, tell them you are having a flea problem and they can adjust their treatment. Use a premise spray that also contains an IGR, insect growth regulator. This will keep eggs and larvae from maturing into adults and helps break the life cycle. Also, vacuum EVERY DAY, throwing out the bag or emptying the canister every time into an outside receptacle and spraying the contents with insecticide to kill the fleas you’ve vacuumed up. Treat your yard as well, since fleas are opportunistic and will hop a ride into your home on your pant leg without you knowing it. Concentrate on areas under bushes, in the shade. Fleas are less likely to be located in open sunny areas where it gets hot. You might want to consider boarding your cat for the day at your vet, to give you the opportunity to flea bomb your house without having to worry about your cat. They can bathe your cat and give a dose of Capstar while you take care of the problem at home. Be patient, you may have to repeat these steps multiple times 10-14 days apart to help break the flea life cycle.

He could have pain in his tail from a skin wound or fracture that is causing him to traumatize his tail. He might also have feline hyperesthesia syndrome, a likely neurologic disease that can result in self trauma. I’d recommend having your vet examine him to see if there is any evidence of other diseases and to discuss starting medication if needed.

Poor Gary! These marks could be caused by him over grooming the area due to itching. This itching can be caused by fleas, mites, ringworm, or allergies. If he isn't up to date on his flea treatment, he will need a spot on treatment such as Advantage or Revolution. You will need to disinfect the environment as well. If he is up to date on his flea treatment, I recommend taking him into the vet for an exam tomorrow. The vet can do blood tests, skin scrapings, and use a Wood's lamp to diagnose allergies, mites, and ringworm. Once the cause of the itching is found, the vet can prescribe the appropriate treatment.

That looks like it should be seen by your vet. Treating the underlying problem that is making him itch or sore in those places and encouraging his licking is important so hopefully this won't happen again. Your vet will do an exam, possibly look at some cells from the lesions under the microscope to see if they can determine what the cause may be, and based on those results will be better able to tell you what is going on and how best to treat it.

I would take a close look at the skin here because the base of the tail is a common place for flea bites. Check for fleas or flea dirt, which is small black specks on the skin/fur. If no evidence of fleas is present and the skin appears totally normal, your kitty could have an area of hyperesthesia, which is where the skin is very sensitive and can cause intense reaction. If it is just this small area, your cat may not need treatment, but if your cat is traumatizing himself or unable to live his life normally then a veterinary exam is recommended.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I'm sorry to hear Sky has been having issues with her tail. It does appear that she has a wound on her tail, either from the original injury or from something unrelated. It is difficult to tell from the picture whether or not the wound is extensive enough to need stitches, but it may need antibiotics to help prevent infection. I would recommend she be re-evaluated by her veterinarian to assess the severity of the wound, and if further treatment and/or antibiotics may be needed for it to heal. Good luck!