Help for a kitty friend

[littlevalentine]

I'm looking for some advice! My momma has a friend who just adopted a kitty from a shelter! But, the kitty, Clara, keeps pulling the fur off of her sides. She also has a skin allergy that the vet is working on, but the fur pulling seems to be related to anxiety. Have any of you ever had to deal with something like this? Are there other things

Comments

[lev_cat]

Tell your mommy's friend to have the vet check her for any problems (it could be mites or an allergy). If nothing shows up health-wise, it is "Nervous Grooming." My brother Beckett does this. It is not an uncommon trait in kitties who have had some trauma in their lives. Beckett's first family threw him out, like yesterday's trash. He was very hurt and very angry about this. So, he started grooming, mostly to give himself the comfort that all us feline folk get from grooming. Eventually, it turned into a neurosis. I don't really know what that means, but the human things called him Neuroticat sometimes because of it. I guess it kinda means he forgot why he was doing it in the first place but now just feels compelled to do it.
The human things have given Beckett a lot of love and he is now a generally very happy cat. But, he was a nervous groomer for over a decade. He suddenly stopped over-grooming a year or two ago. My human things say it is because he is very old and forgets stuff all the time, now.
Sinead is right. Some of the herbal stuff (Bach's flower essences' Rescue Remedy or Dr. Somebody or another's Feline Calm) can help. They used to treat Nervous Grooming with sedatives, trying to get the nervous groomer to chill out. But the sedatives can be very hard on a kitty's liver, can make him a zombie-cat, and don't even necessarily cure the problem. So, your mommy's friend should give the herbal treatments a try, but tell her to "just say no" if anyone tries to put the kitty on anything harder-core than that! Nobody likes a zombie-cat!

[mrtubbs]

Ditto, to what Lev said.
The Beckster is my bestest buddy and I would know if there was something wrong with him. Thee isn't. He just loves to groom. I let him groom me all the time. He is very good at it. Lots of practice!

[birds_sing]

Thanks, you two!