[MoMoandJazz]

So we've been having an issue with our older cat, Cosmo, licking and chewing his hair off recently. It started maybe two months ago and I didn't really think anything of it because his skin wasn't red or flaky. However, he's now chewed himself bald on his tummy (back between his hind legs) and a couple of places on his hind legs. Haven't had the money to go get him tested for allergies, but through process of elimination, we've figured out that that's probably what it is (they have plenty of toys, a 6-foot cat tree, we interact with the cats almost more than we do the dogs).

Anyway, when we first got the boys, we were feeding them Evolve Maintenance Formula with chicken ( Evolve Pet Food | Superior Natural Food and Treats for Dogs and Cats ). They liked it well enough and we never had any problems. Then, we couldn't find it anymore, so we decided to switch them to Taste of the Wild. We feed them the Canyon River formula ( Canyon River Feline® Formula with Trout & Smoked Salmon ? Taste of the Wild Pet Food ). They've been eating the TOTW Canyon River for at least two years with no issues at all. They LOVE it and scarf it down.

Our problem now is Cosmo's allergies. Jasper is fine and doesn't seem bothered by anything, but Cosmo's frantic licking and chewing makes me sad.

Anyone have any recommendations we could try to help Mo out? I have access to a good variety of foods, as my fiance works for a local pet/feed store.

I have heard that some cats can't tolerate fish? Would something like Orijen's Regional Red formula be worth a try? Regional Red | Orijen It does have some fish in it, but at least it's not a main ingredient. It's also what we're thinking of switching our dogs to (they currently get Pro-Pac Ultimates grain-free Bayside Select Bayside Select? | PRO PAC Ultimates ).

I am going to be calling the vet to see how much an allergy test would be for Mo, but we have to catch up on bills first before we can actually do anything.

 

[10cats2dogs]

Hi M&J!
You might want to read through this link...
This poor little cat was suffering terribly from food allergies...
Her owner never gave up, and finally found something that works!
Sharon

http://www.catforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=335785

 

[TranquilityBlue]

Hello. I have a Jasper too! Both of my boys love Nature's Variety Instinct. It's pretty widely available, they make it with a few different protein sources, and there's a limited ingredient line to try if it comes to that as well. I just switched my new kitty Spot from eating dry Royal Canin to wet Nature's Variety and it was the easiest thing ever because he loved the wet so much more! :thumb Good luck to you and your kitty!

 

[MoMoandJazz]

Something to add that I just realized while sitting here thinking about this...

Around Christmastime, we started feeding the boys wet food because Jasper (the younger one without the allergies) was peeing on EVERYTHING and not drinking enough water. So, we started the wet food to try to increase his fluid intake. We fed everything from Friskies to TOTW to another grain-free one that I can't remember the name of. We had a local store going out of business so got quite a bit of wet food for really good prices ($.50 a can for stuff that was usually $1.50+). We haven't fed wet food since maybe May, but that's about when Cosmo started itching, is when we stopped feeding the wet food.

 

[10cats2dogs]

M&J,
OUCH! Yes, get them both back on canned food!
Wean them off of the fishy stuff...
A lot of cats develope allergies to fish too...
Get a Grain Free canned food, to start with, a lot of cats develope allergies to the grains, which cats can't process!
They are Obligate Carnivores!
Since you've got BOY kitties, it's imperative that they get enough water, to keep their urinary systems running efficiently!
If a male cat blocks, it's life threatening!
Hope other's chime in here, with some great suggestions!
Sharon

 

[MoMoandJazz]

I don't mind feeding them canned. They love it. The only difficulty is keeping the dogs out of it. lol

Jasper is drinking a lot more now. We moved their water dish away from their food, which helped a ton. We also switched litters, which helped (went from Tidy Cats with Glade to the Tidy Cats 24/7 Performance for multiple cats...they won't use the pine or newspaper-based litters, we tried). Our next big purchase we have planned is a large-capacity pet fountain. We have to get a big one because the dogs and cats share a water dish and there's nowhere we can put a water dish in our house that just the cats have access to. We had a small fountain that Jasper especially LOVED, but Abby decided she liked it too and would drink it dry in a matter of seconds. We didn't catch it in time once and the pump ran dry, which burned it out. We haven't been able to replace it since.

 

[10cats2dogs]

Ah yes! Cats and litter boxes!
What may smell good to us...Stinks to them, and the next thing is, you have a Kitty Strike going on!!

I have little water dishes on all my bathroom counters, and even one on the kitchen counter, and one on the sink counter, in the laundry room!
There are bigger bowls, in their safe rooms, where my dogs can't go, and a Big communal bowl on the floor in the living room!

S.

 

[MoMoandJazz]

Jasper will come boop us when we're using the bathroom so we'll turn the faucet on for him to play in and drink from. He'll also hop in the shower after we're done or try to get into the sink while we're washing dishes.

We also made them a custom litter box because even the biggest ones we could find were a little too small for our boys (Cosmo is about 18lbs and Jasper is 16lbs). So, we took a 30-gallon Rubbermaid tote, cut a hole in the end for them to enter/exit through, and viola! Nice, roomy litter box...that's still almost not quite big enough. lol

 

[HifromCheryl]

My cats LOVE TOTW dry Canyon river but wont eat the wet. Isnt that weird?