Cat Scratching/Taking chunks of skin off

Question
Hi, My name is Adrienne Ward. I currently own a 9 year old kitty named Brat. Brat has been through quite a bit over the years. (Ex: loss of both parents, loss of other cats in the home due to relocation, several relocations in general) Our living situation now is this...I am now living with a girlfriend who is not too fond of cats but has allowed me to bring my guys with me. For the most part he stays in my room when I am not home but he is allowed to roam the house freely when I am home. Also, when I am not home...I leave the window wide open for him so he can graze all day while I am at work. (M-F 7:00am - 6:00pm)
The issue I am having with him now is he seems to be scratching chunks of skins (behind his neck/shoulder area) completely off to where it is leaving a large open red soar. It almost looks as if he has gotten himself caught under something and ripped off a chunk attempting to free himself? That was my initial thought but now he has another chunk missing on the other side so I know he didn't do it the first time trying to free himself. He also HATES to get combed! Both my daughter and I have made several attempts to comb him and he will run and hide or he bites! I think that he may just be suffering from a case of dry skin but I'm not 100% sure. I have been keeping the chunked areas clean. They heal and then another seems to appear? He is eating well, his behavior to me seems to be normal as it always has been so I'm at a loss as to how to help him or as to why this is happening to him. Also note that I believe it is just a dry skin issue because when you run your fingers through his coat over his back...it feels like he either has built up dander or possibly several nail nicks from him scratching? I was going to take him to the groomer to have them just shave him so we can start all over...maybe get his coat to grow in again without issue but I don't want to take him in to be shaven and then cause more chunking than what he already has now. Also note that he does not act as if the areas already open bother him....he acts as if they are not there at all?
Before I over react and take him in....is there any at home remedy I can attempt to give him for dry skin to see if I can get his skin to change or do you suggest I just take him in to be checked? Also note...I have checked for fleas and he does not have them. He is the only animal in the house and I have seen with my own eyes he has no fleas.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thank You,
Adrienne Ward


Answer
Hi, your little one could be suffering from any number of conditions that could be causing this. I think that he needs to have his skin examined by your vet to ensure that he doesn't have mites (which are microscopic), mange, or some sort of skin infection. Another possibility is allergies. Some animals will also become self injurious as a result of stress. It sounds like he may have scabs under his coat, dry skin usually looks like dandruff. Just because he doesn't have adult fleas on him that you can see doesn't mean he wasn't bitten by one that caused a condition called flea bite dermatitis. Could he have somehow come into contact with pesticides or household chemicals? What are you feeding him and have you changed it recently? If you are feeding a non premium food it is possible that he has a food allergy due to a formula change as non premium foods have numerous changes to their ingredients without letting the general public know - they use the most cost effective ingredients, not necessarily the highest quality ones. It is possible because your cat goes outside that he has been in fights with other cats, causing scratches, scabs and general irritation. It is my opinion that he should, for his best interests be kept indoors to see if that helps at all. He really should be evaluated by your vet to make sure that he isn't suffering from any number of ailments from skin infections to viruses, food allergies, the neighborhood bully, pesticide or chemical toxicity, etc. If after he has had a full medical evaluation the vet can find nothing to explain these new developments he may refer you to a specialist. I hope that it isn't anything serious. Please keep me posted as I would be interested to find out what is happening.