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Why is my cat losing hair, has scabs, swollen belly, and vomiting?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Female | spayed | 3 years and 6 months old | 12 lbs

So my cat lost almost all her hair and has scabs. Her stomach is swallen and she throws up sometimes

4 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Stephanie Echols, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on October 26th, 2017

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It looks like Lily has a skin infection. I recommend taking her to a vet for antibiotic’s and something to relieve the itching. It is possible to be from a food allergy or an environmental allergy. This may be the cause of her vomiting as well. You need to speak with a veterinarian about what she eats and the environment she is in. They will then be able to treat her appropriately. Good luck and kisses to Lily!

3Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Related Answers from Veterinarians

Answered By Karly Macon, DVM, MS, CVA Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist
Veterinarian
Published on April 5th, 2017
Oh no! Lily is clearly having stomach issues. She may have food allergies, metabolic disease, inflammatory bowel disease, lymphoma, or any number of issues. Hopefully a simple prescription food allergy diet will help her. I recommend a vet visit for a full workup to include blood work, urinalysis, and abdominal radiographs. You could always try Hills z/d diet and feed ONLY that for 8 weeks to see if that helps first, but I would still recommend doing the workup so we aren't missing any serious health problems with Lily.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Ricardo Fernandez, DVM
Veterinarian, Veterinary Oncology Resident
Published on August 5th, 2019
Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Vomiting can occur from many conditions such as foreign body ingestion and obstruction, pancreatitis, gastroenteritis, dietary indiscretion, among other possibilities. I recommend that you have Lily evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. This will likely require bloodwork and abdominal imaging in terms of diagnostics. Treatment would be based on findings. At the very least your veterinarian could start her on medications to make her feel better. In the meantime, keep water available at all times to try to prevent dehydration. Good luck and have a good day!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS
Veterinarian
Published on November 14th, 2018
Yes, I would be worried about Lily because vomiting isn't normal. In a senior cat, this vomiting could be caused by kidney disease, liver disease, diabetes, hyperthyroidism, a GI illness, or eating something rotten. She should see a vet tomorrow for this problem, and I recommend getting a geriatric blood panel and urinalysis done on her. Based on the results of these tests, the vet can discuss treatment options. Best of luck, I hope this helps!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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This is probably caused by an allergic reaction. first of all make sure you de-flea Lily 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.

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My cat has scabs, is losing fur, and won't eat. What should I do?

It looks like your cat has a skin infection, most likely caused by allergies or fleas. The allergies can be from a protein in her food or to something in the environment, like grasses, pollens, dust etc. I would recommend taking your cat in to see the vet so she can be started on some antibiotics to help clear up her skin. I would also recommend discussing with your vet some options for medication to help control her allergies and itch like Atopica.

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Hello, thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Poor Molly, that looks uncomfortable. Molly may be having some type of allergic reaction that has become infected. Make sure you are using a good flea product, not just a cheap one from WalMart. If Molly will let you, you can try bathing her in a medicated shampoo that has Benzoyl Peroxide. If not, please have her seen by your veterinarian. She may need to be treated with a steroid injection &/or antibiotics to clear this up, or to get to the source of the irritation. Take care.

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My cat has tail scabs and vomits after new food. Is it allergies?

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!

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My cat keeps throwing up and losing hair. Should I worry?

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Vomiting in cats can be caused by hair balls, intestinal parasites, toxin ingestion, or even foreign body obstructions of the intestines. These signs can be unrelated to the hair loss, which may be caused by certain infections and hormonal or behavioral abnormalities. I recommend having Zimba seen by a vet if he continues to vomit or develops diarrhea or has a loss of appetite/energy. His area of hair loss should also be evaluated, as it may be caused by a fungal infection that can even be transmitted to humans. I hope this helps and that all is well with Zimba!

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My cat has oozing lumps on her back and is throwing up. Help!

It could be a severe skin infection or an acute allergic reaction. I would recommend a vet check up so that she can get some treatment on board. These reactions can be quite painful and cause itchiness. Vomiting could also be a sign of allergic reaction, leave water down but no food until you see your vet. I would arrange a visit this morning, if possible.

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Why is my cat itching, losing hair, and has scabs and raw skin?

The most common problem causing Milly's symptoms is a severe flea allergic dermatitis. Regardless I recommend brushing her to remove the old fur and skin, giving a bath with a hypoallergenic shampoo and using Advantage flea prevention on her. You can purchase it at PetCo. She may need antibiotics to heal the skin and your veterinarian will do an exam to determine the cause of her problems. They may run a blood panel in addition to determine if she is anemic or has a metabolic problem. Once they have a diagnosis they will give her the appropriate treatment and hopefully she will recover quickly. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Milly.

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

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