Are my cat's scratch injuries worse due to new food? Should I stop it?

I would recommend to wait up to 8 weeks before thinking about other causes. If not working, a skin scrape and more dermatological tests (including allergic testing on bloods) are required to determine if other causes are possible. 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.

You haven't caused any serious harm! The peroxide will cause irritation to the new cells and delay the healing. That's why you shouldn't use it more than once or twice. You should transition the food to make sure you don't cause his belly to become upset: https://www.petcoach.co/article/how-to-change-your-cats-food/ I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!

HI, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I am so sorry to hear about Finn. It does seem a but suspicious that he may be allergic to something in the new food. Personally I would recommend going back to his original food until his skin is back to normal then choose a different food to try and help manage his weight. Sometimes we have to choose the lesser of 2 evils! Good luck!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Yes, this could be due to the suspected food allergy. You could consider having your veterinarian prescribe prednisolone to help decrease the itch while you get his food. That can help quite a bit. Good luck!

Hello. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It is very hard to tell from the photo what is going on. It is uncommon for cats to get general wounds just by rubbing up against something or scratching themselves - usually a wound is due to direct trauma like a bite from another cat. If he goes outdoors this could very well be the case. This wound may turn into an infection (abscess). At this stage I would just monitor the wound. Do not put anything on it. If you notice any of these things then you need to get him to your vet ASAP. * swelling around the wound * discharge coming from the wound * wound is hot to the touch * Casey stops eating/drinking or becomes lethargic * vomiting or diarrhea Hope this helps. Best wishes.

First you have to rule out other things as well like fleas and secondary infection which can both be itchy. If there are any lesions under the skin there may be a secondary infection (common with allergy). For food allergy it can take time for symptoms to resolve (8+ weeks for some dogs) and those pets who are very itchy may need medications to stop the itch (itching can lead to secondary skin infection as well). So if your pup is very itchy you may want to talk to your family vet about meds to help with itch while going back to the old food. And treat for fleas just in case (even if you do not see any). I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!