ALLERGIES - Itching, biting, licking paws, legs, chest, feet, privates and constipation (from ingesting too much hair probably)

[TammiL]

Hi Dr. Jeff,

Chewey is licking himself more and more and he threw up again this morning yellow bile. I noticed he has had for the past 2 or so days what looks like burps. He has done this several times a day.

The fiber powder has been working and he has been pooping just about daily! I recommended it to a friend of mine for her cat so maybe it can help her too!

?? ORDER: I have Alimend K9 and RX biotic in my cart to order. Would I order the K9 one? I know you said it works for cats too, I just want to make sure I am ordering the correct item.

Is there something I can give Chewey/and or Tigger that will help them pass more hair and not have it upset their digestive tract as they are increasingly licking and scratching themselves?? I read about an enzyme on here, can you offer me a suggestion before I make my purchase in case I need to add that item?

Is there anything I can give them to help with the scratching and licking? I don't want to get rid of the symptom as it is a clue, however, I also don't want it to get so bad again that he scratches himself apart. Any suggestions? I keep trying to add in EPA/DHA and he won't eat his food when I do. :0( I have tried 2 brands now.

Thank you.
Tammi

 

[TammiL]

I tried to give him Quercetin without the Bromelain because that's what the vet suggested but he won't touch it. :0(
I saw a post you have on a forum that said EPA, Vit E and Quercetin with Bromelain were the top 3 for an itchy dog. Would those be the best for itchy cats? Maybe I'll try Vitamin E as I haven't tried that yet and maybe they will eat it. Any other ideas or dosing would be wonderful please.

Thank you!

 

[Dr. Jeff]

I'm so sorry to hear about Chewey's continued challenges.

In addition to your regular vet, is there anyone else on your kitties care team? A dermatologist or holistic vet? Reiki practitioner? Anyone that you work with 1:1 to help make medical decisions?

When dealing with allergies, I find that it is most important in decreasing imbalance of the immune system which has resulted in the hyper-sensitivity to triggers such as pollens and foods. The goal of holistic treatment is to decrease this imbalance so there are fewer over reactions and allergic symptoms

Yes, the Answer's raw goat's milk is good for Chewey. Dairy, sugar, carbohydrates, can potentially "feed" viruses. However, the raw and unprocessed form of goat's milk can improve his vitality and healing ability sufficiently so that it can boost his immune system's ability to get rid of a virus.

You can use Chewey's increased hunger to play more of the hunt for treats games which will increase his environmental engagement, happiness level, BEAM, and speed healing.

Please remind me how much fresh food (of any kind) that Chewey is getting? Also, did you say that you have been using the Liquid Immuno supplement?

Has he ever received a homeopathic remedy?

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Oh, I just saw your note about not liking two kinds of fish oils. Perhaps try the SmartZYME frozen (no heat processing) micro-algal DHA extract.

It is quite palatable and can be mixed with the Liquid Immuno for ease of administration. It has helped kitties with allergies (and hairballs):

PhytoSmart™

PhytoSmart™ is the only omega-3 pet supplement that doesn’t have the fish oil side effects but has all the benefits of fatty acids because it’s made from fresh whole food Algae in our patented sterile growing system. A small amount gives cats & dogs healthy, bioavailable DHA without the risks...

phytosmart.com

 

[TammiL]

Hello Dr. Jeff,

There is just my vet, You on Holistic Actions, the woman at the store whom I get food from who is not a vet but offers some information and me! Basically, me.

I completely understand about the imbalance of the immune system and I agree tackling that is key. That's what I am trying to accomplish with healing his gut.

I actually looked at the Answers Raw Goat's Milk at the store I was at but they only had it for dogs in the freezer section. The woman offered me "Feline Complete" by Wholistic Pet Organics and I will attach a picture of it. It is an all in one Supplement. Vitamins, Minerals, Prebiotics, Probiotics, Enzymes, Essential Fatty Acids and Antioxidants. I was going to give that a try because it sounded like it would help mend his gut. If you feel the Answer's would be more beneficial I will switch and try that.

I have been placing freeze dried snacks around the house in all different (Some the same) places each night for him to go on a hunt. He is enjoying the hunt. I have also began trying to get him to follow the red light dot on the floor to lead to a treat in hopes he follows it more and more and I can get him to walk around more. He doesn't do a whole lot of anything now. He has never really been a "Playful" cat but he is getting more tired I am noticing again. I purchased a couple more a salmon one, a duck liver one and I may grab the minnows one from Vital Essentials. The woman suggested I get sardines in water from the store and offer them as a treat at times.

Fresh food: Primal Nuggets Rabbit Formula he usually eats about 3.5-4 a day and then additionally he is getting within the past week about 10 of the Stella & Chewey's Freeze Dried Rabbit dinner morsels as a snack. Those are the treats I place around the house for both cats at night or during the day sometimes. When Chewey first switched to the Raw he was eating all of his meals in one sitting. He seems to be back to his "usual" eating habits of being a picker. I give them 2 nuggets for breakfast and then 2 nuggets for dinner. He has been, eating about 1/2 of the meal which is 1 nugget. Then in an hour he is hungry again and will usually eat either the rest or more. What he doesn't eat in the morning I save for dinner since it has the fiber on it and it helps me gauge how much he has eaten for the day. So, on top of that he gets somewhere between 10 and 15 of those Stella and Chewey freeze dried nuggets and recently about 5 treats like I offered him the duck liver the other day. I was not sure it settled with his belly so I have not repeated that yet. He seems to be burping or having indigestion like we do a little bit. Like tonight I saw it happen 2 times and it has been happening for a few days.

So, here's the weird thing, WE HAVE ALL had the same symptoms. When I am itchier I see they are. Chewey had a belly ache or what seemed like burps, and he threw up yellow bile recently too and Tigger and I have also had similar issues. The two of them I have noticed this past week seem to be doing a little bit of drooling and I don't think Tigger has ever really drooled and I notice drool, clear, on Chewey's lower lip but I am not sure if that is how it will be because he is missing that front L canine. So, it seems we are all following suit, VERY STRANGE! I find it hard to believe that the three of us all of a sudden have an allergy to food. I have also pretty much taken just about everything out of our environment that I feel could be causing it. I am giving all of the polyester blankets to my vet or local shelter, I got rid of my dog's old bed that I was saving because it was made of Polyester and Polyurethane Foam that is bad for you. It is currently in my car so it is out of the house. All of their blankets are now cotton. Minus their heating pads which I saw are Polyurethane foam which I know isn't good for them but they do love the heating pads. So, I have not taken them away yet. They have had them for 2 years now. I got them for christmas 2018. If you feel I should take them away, I will!

I was sleeping on my dog's bed and some pillows while I was waiting for my bed to come and I have, as I mentioned, put that in my car in case that was an issue. It was in storage in an enclosed ziploc bag but the bag ripped and for 2 weeks it sat there unwrapped so I thought maybe that could have been an issue. It's gone!

I changed their litter but will be changing it again as the one I found is clean but it tracks ALL OVER MY HOUSE! It's a nightmare! If you have any suggestions I'm all ears otherwise I'll just pick one soon.

Chewey has never received a homeopathic remedy. The woman in the store said she thinks it may be stemming from all of the stress I was under when I lived at the other place. I moved in July middle of it. However, wouldn't that be better by now? Maybe not because he does love to snuggle on my lap daily and I do not currently have a couch for him to do that and he is a very snuggly cat. Tho not for a couple of months really. He doesn't really want me to hold him and he used to have to have me hold him like 2 times a day for 5 or so minutes and then he was good to go. Now, I am lucky if I get 2 minutes holding him and only on some days because most days he doesn't want to be held anymore. :0(

I do try to just go in and lay or sit on the makeshift bed but only 2 times has he come over and taken advantage and laid on my lap.

I have a bed coming in about 2-3 weeks and I am in the process of getting a couch and am not sure the lead time on that. Could be 3 to 6 weeks. I just don't know. I am happier here and don't have the stress I did. Now, I am just sad when he is not well and frustrated when he gets worse.

I did purchase 2 toys for them to try to play with and he is interested in them and stares at them but doesn't really interact with them. Which is often how he is.

I WAS giving him Imuquin made by Nutramax.. It comes in a packet and you sprinkle it on their food. He doesn't seem to like that much anymore. I don't really think that's a "Good" one to give him anyway because it has "Natural Flavor" and "yeast extract" in it anyways so part of me is o.k. that he doesn't like it. My vet gave it to me to try to help heal his immune system. So, this is why I was inquiring about something different to build is immune. I'm not a fan of this supplements ingredients.

The Smartzyme sounds like a good idea! Do you think that is a better option that the Feline Complete?

I also thought maybe he needed a digestive enzyme to help him break his food down and give his body a little extra help. That's also in my Feline Complete.

Do you have a suggestion of which to try first to heal his immune system?
Alimend k9
Smartzyme
Answers Goat Milk
Wholistic Feline Complete
Maybe I start with one this way I don't cover up symptoms but help him heal?

Or do you feel there's too much going on and I should do a 1:1 with a holistic vet? I don't have a holistic vet around here and he doesn't necessarily travel very well, tho when I did the hour trip to here he actually did suprisingly well.

Tho what's weird is when he is super itchy so am I and Tigger and we all are not itchy somewhat at the same time too! Very bizarre. We sure aren't all eating the same either! I gave up cat food a few months ago! Ha Ha Ha!

Tigger AND Chewey seemed to be better about 2 weeks ago, they weren't scratching themselves as much and they weren't using their hind leg to scratch at their neck or ears. Now it is slowly progressing that way again and for the past 4 days Chewey has been scratching with his hind leg his neck again and licking at his neck too!

Did I mention the 2 lumps I found on his leg? His L hind leg on his thigh kind of where it meets his hip I found 2 small lumps. Pliable, moveable and didn't seem to bother him me touching them at all. One is the size of a frozen petite pea and the other is about 1/4 that size. The smaller one is harder. :0(

I prayed to the Angel of Healing and Mercy and Compassion and any other Angels that could help me to heal them and guide me to make good choices for them. Plus I have been emotionally up and down trying to work through all of this with them. I am trying to be strong for them so I called upon the Angel of Peace for hope and positivity. I felt a little better about 20 minutes later and continue today too. I prayed for you too, I read the day you said you were very tired so have been praying for your health too! We could all use prayers and I think what you are doing to help people learn how to help their pets and take care of them is just wonderful and a necessity in this world. So, I am very thankful for your bright light!

I think I answered all of your questions. Is it bad to give him like 5 small meals a day instead of 2 larger with a snack? He doesn't seem to want to eat as much at one sitting but looks for food in an hour after at times. Does it matter? I bought some raw frozen chicken to sample from the store today along with beef ones. She was kind enough to give them to me to try for them. I know I should feed them a diverse protein diet and it doesn't seem to have done anything keeping him on rabbit for geez, like 6 or so weeks now. So, I thought I would expand slowly.

Will wait for you input and in the meantime I will start to introduce the Feline complete and see how they do on it while I wait for your response on what a good direction would be forward to heal their immune systems. Tigger is a little itchier than she was but she is happy and plays and runs around and what not. She is also eating a little less at meals too in the past several days. Funny, when they were super hungry, I was too and now they are not so and same with me. I'm telling you, it's VERY BIZARRE!

Peace be with you!
Tammi

 

[TammiL]

Guess what! I think the Angels did help him! He was just meowing so of course I got up to make sure he was ok and he was chasing the red light and the little toy I just bought and he ran across the house after the red light and romped around flipping up the crinkle paper I had a stick under! Hooray! IMPROVEMENT! Yippeee!
I just had to share!

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Great news Tammi! Thanks for sharing.

Yes, smaller more frequent meals are natural for cats.

You can use any of the Answer's foods, broths, etc. for dogs or cats.

Regarding your supplements, I don't know the Wholistic Complete but we can definitely look it up with you on tonight's webinar.

Have you considered adding a holistic vet to Chewey's medical team?

 

[TammiL]

At this point, I have considered adding a holistic vet to his regimen. Chewey is not a very good traveler, tho he did seem to do not so bad on the just about hour travel to my current location. He does not like to go in his carrier and traveling in a car is not his favorite, at all. I have to give him a gabapentin 2 hours before a visit and 12 hours before that for them to be able to work with him. I tried just giving him the 2 hours before dose but they coudn't do much with him, he was still a bit feisty.

I am not sure what "Answers" tastes like but the store yesterday gave me a sample of The Honest Kitchen Daily Boosters Goat's Milk in a powder form and she said to add a little to water and see if he will drink it that way. He smelled it and wanted to have nothing to do with drinking it. I hope the "Answers" products will be different!

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Yes, Answer's fresh frozen products, and especially their Goat's Milk, should be tastier.

 

[TammiL]

O.k. Tag ur it. I am filling out all of the forms to be a client. I hope this is o.k. with you! If you are not comfortable or feel it will not be a good fit, please let me know. Thank you!

 

[tsharlo1]

Tammi,
I heard about your itching issues on the Empower hour last night. This may be a wild idea but have you considered the possibility of bed bugs? A friend has a dog trained to detect bed bugs.
Debbie

 

[TammiL]

Hi Debbie!
Great thought! Well, I was sleeping on an air mattress which I have now gotten rid of worrying that was the issue and then I brought down some pillows and believe it or not my dog's old bed to sleep on until my mattress comes. I had a friend who had bed bugs and she had bites all over her body, legs, arms and neck as did her husband from the bed bugs so I would think I would have some bites by now as it has been 10 months. However, I appreciate the thought very much and I will actually grab some of those bed bug little traps and see if I see anything. I have not found any bugs on me or the cats but it is something to think about! I'm not sure how else I would know if I had them. Although I should also say mine began in March and I was living in a different place and I would imagine if I had bed bugs then because it was very bad in March, MY itching then the house would have had them from me traveling and the cats traveling around the house too! Hmmmmm, I wonder if there are other ways to check or if it's possible to have bed bugs for 10 months and not be bitten but be itchy. Now you have me wondering!
Thanks so much for your thoughts! That was super kind of you to reach out!
:0)

 

[AgnesB]

My Bella has been struggling w skin allergies, hot spot. Bella has been on raw food since Sept and her GI problems disappeared. Her vitality and overall BEAM is amazingly good, energy is there. She has been challenged w the redness in her right ear. She is shaking her head at times but not too often. I continue to give her Morning powder and kale smoothie as per Dr. Jeff.
However, the ear is still red and has the puss so I’m concerned. Plan to take her to our vet in Ridgefield on Saturday as unsure what else to do. I’m attaching current picture of the R ear and the one from 2 weeks ago.

 

[TammiL]

My Bella has been struggling w skin allergies, hot spot. Bella has been on raw food since Sept and her GI problems disappeared. Her vitality and overall BEAM is amazingly good, energy is there. She has been challenged w the redness in her right ear. She is shaking her head at times but not too often. I continue to give her Morning powder and kale smoothie as per Dr. Jeff.
However, the ear is still red and has the puss so I’m concerned. Plan to take her to our vet in Ridgefield on Saturday as unsure what else to do. I’m attaching current picture of the R ear and the one from 2 weeks ago.

Sending prayers for Bella?

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Hey Agnes-

Does her ear still look raw and moist like the first pic from 2 weeks ago, or is it dry and waxy like the second pic?

 

[AgnesB]

Thank you for responding. Unfortunately, the first picture with a raw ear is current. The second one was from 2 weeks ago. I’m sorry for the confusion.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Do you have any organic aloe vera or calendula powder?

 

[AgnesB]

I will run to Whole Foods to get it, just came back from work. The ear looks worse and Bella is rubbing it against the snow when outside. There is a lot of liquidity puss coming out w extremely red and swollen right ear. I think it’s infected. I’m taking her to the vet tomorrow but I’m afraid they will apply antibiotics. Bella has been shaking her head a lot. How can I relieve this discomfort? Aloe Vera?

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Exactly! Also, order some Wise Ways powder that Dr. Sara mentioned on Monday's webinar, especially if her ear is moist:

Calendula powder for raw ears and skin in pets

A wonderful product for inflamed areas is Wise Ways Calendula powder. https://www.wiseways.com/product/calendula-body-powder-3-oz.html This can be used in moist ears, patted beside a recessed vulva, or dusted between inflamed toes. It is gentle, anti-inflammatory, prevents chafing, and...

www.holisticactions.com

 

[TammiL]

Update:
Chewey went to the Dermatologist on the 21st and she said she doesn't see a reason for Chewey to be itchy. She said environmental allergies usually don't begin with a cat who is 11 unless they have moved climates so to speak but Chewey has been consistently about an hours distance his whole life. She did say food allergies could happen any time but the fact my other cat is itchy she is leaving that as her second option. She mentioned "Walking Dandruff", Cheyletiella. She said she did not see any on him but that I could give him Revolution if I wanted to and that would rule it out. The Revolution would be 3 rounds and would be administered every 2 weeks for those 3 rounds. She said they hate the smell and will drool. :0( I'm sure it's chock full of chemicals! I flea combed Tigger and got a LOT of dandruff out of her as her dandruff for some reason is getting worse. I placed it in a ziploc bag and brought it to Aspetuck Vet, Dr. Trish to look at under a microscope hoping she can tell me if it's just dandruff or walking. I should know the results on Monday. Dr. Shoulberg, the Dermatologist said they usually only find 40% of the cases of Walking Dandruff on pets as it is very hard to see often. I will see what the vet says on Monday but is there a homeopathic remedy for walking dandruff???

Chewey received a rabies shot on Thursday as well. He meow'd and clawed at his carrier on the way to the other vets from the Dermatologist located in Bedford Hills, NY. However, once the car stopped moving he was fine. After the rabies shot at the vet he fell asleep and didn't claw at the carrier on the way home. Hmmmm...... He was very hungry when we got home and he meow'd incessantly for some reason. He was even meowing during eating. The only thing that stopped him from meowing VERY LOUDLY was him laying on my lap and falling asleep for an hour or two. Then he woke and I fed him some more and then he came back to lay on my lap and sleep more. He probably slept all total 3 or 4 hours on my lap. The next morning he threw up at 9 am bile and a slight bit of hair. I don't know if this is from the rabies shot or from hair being in his gut. He drank a lot of times that day, 5 times before 2pm and he was very tired all day. When he was awake he scratched at himself constantly face, chin, neck, chest, belly sides and feet.

I gave Chewey another dose of Mercurious Q1 on the 22nd in the afternoon. That is Dose #4. He continued to scratch the rest of the day and night and he slept. He itched during sleep too. He was very hungry again on the 23rd and he is now itching mostly his face, chin, chest, sides (the doctor noted hair thinned out on the sides of his body) and feet. Same with Tigger I notice. They are both mostly just itching those few areas now although Tigger is still itching her mid back a little too. Chewey not as often. Chewey was also very tired yesterday still as he was sleeping during playing and watching the play stick go back and forth and he was sleepy while waiting for his food. Tho he is VERY hungry again. He did poop 2 4 inch logs of hair in the litter box and they were attached so I am guessing that is why he was meowing in the litter box.

Today, Chewey threw up this morning again just liquid at 6:30 am so he was 9 hours without food in his belly. I will see how he feels as the day progresses as he is tired and does not want to eat still. I'll see how his BEAM is throughout the day. Do I have to wait a certain amount of days before I redose again with the Merc?

Oh and he won't eat the Alimend again as of yesterday.

Thanks for your help with what to do from here. DID I MENTION I HATE RABIES SHOTS! They have upset him in the past but I never jotted down exactly what and for how long. But I don't remember them always being an issue but then again I think his immune system is further down now so it will effect him more so.

Thank you.
:0)