irritated skin

Question
About 3 years ago a friend and I adopted a pair of strays and have had them ever since. After we took them to get fixed, the girl (Tiger) kept licking the area where she was shaved for a couple of weeks. Since then she's pretty much left it alone....although the hair never grew completely back. The last week or so she's started licking it a lot again and it looks kind of red and irritated. She hasn't really acted like it's bothering her, but I wanted to know if there was anything I could do to help her out. She's always been an indoor kitty but we've recently moved. Maybe there's something in the new house she's allergic too???

Answer
HI Rhonda,

I tink you should bring TOger to the vet and have them take a look - it could be an abcess in the old scar. Sometimes, a stitch that never dissolves preperly, or ever a tiny peice of guaze used to clean the wound during surgery gets sealed up in the wound and later forms a sore. It would be best to rule that out.

It is also possible she is allergic to something in the house. Cats are extremely sensitive to chemicals (their livers cannot detoxify many chemicals the way ours can). For example if the previous tenants shampooed the carpet, the chemicals in the cleaner could cause trouble. I recommend never using chemical cleaners around cats - just water vinegar and baking soda to clean the house. No air fresheners and especially no Pine SOl type of cleaners - those are very txic to cats (maybe the cleanup included mopping with Pine Sol?). You may want to re-mop floors with plain hot water to get rid of any chemical residue, and vaccuum carpets thoroughly. Check all cupbroads for any pesticides left behind or rat poison as those are always dangerous. If possible, you may want to give your cat a bath in a mild oatmeal cat shampoo (sooths the skin) to help remove and chemical residues. Don't use human shampoo or dog shampoo which may contain essential oils toxic to cats.

Finally, food can cause skin problems in cats, especially dry food containing corn. You might want to change to a grain-free food such as Wellness Core, or a grain free canned food like Wellness, Nature's Variety etc.

Good luck!