excessive anal licking in cats

Question
My cat is a 15 year old domestic short hair who is vaccinated and goes outdoors, she is also overweight.  Recently she has started excessively licking her anus to the point where all the hair is gone and it is an open sore.  Her bowel movements seem a little soft and are mis-shaped (instead of a hotdog shape they are more of a long hamburger shape).  I took her to the vet and they gave her a cone to wear on her head to prevent her from licking, which works, until you take the cone off and then she starts again.  She was tested for a urinary tract infection and it came back negative. Do you have any suggestions for how to get her to stop licking the area? What could be causing her to lick the area raw?
Thank you!

Answer
Did the vet do an exam of the area? Did he look in her anal glands for foxtails, grass seeds, etc? (she does go outside) Did he express them in case they were full? They could also be infected.

She is licking because it hurts. Something is wrong, something is bothering her. At her age she could even have diverticulitis and have an intestinal issue with a pocket, which will cause the runny stools. She might be leaking stool as a result which makes her lick.

She could have cancer too inside, which hurts, and will make her lick. Since all you told me is that they gave you a cone for her to wear, I have no idea what they did, but these are the things that I would ask if I were you.

These are all things that need to be explored. Now, since there is no hair on her anus itself, I am guessing this hole she created is on one side or the other. Correct?

So that is what you need to do Suzanne. Call the vet on Monday or tomorrow and tell the technician you have a few questions to ask the vet. They will get him for you or she can ask and relay the answers.

But call for sure and ask. I can't give any suggestions on stopping her from licking until you find out WHY she is licking. Why not impossible, most licking of this nature is not related to a mental issue!!

Please let me know what you find out.