cat has allergies?

[krazyaboutkatz]

Hi and welcome to PT. Paulie sure is adorable. My cat Pearl is allergic to grains. She would break out on her lips and chin and ever since I started feeding her a grain free diet, she's never had another problem. My oldest cat Storm became very itchy after I adopted him about 13 1/2 years ago. I was feeding him a lot foods that had fish in them. My vet at the time said that many cats are allergic to fish. He was so itchy that he was losing the fur on his ears. When I changed his diet to one without much fish in it,back then pretty much everything had some fish in it, he improved and his fur grew back.

I do know that when you do a food trial that the cat needs to be on that food for about 6-8 weeks before you notice an improvement. In my cases it didn't take that long. I was feeding everyone Innova Evo dry and canned but since Procter & Gamble bought them out I switched to Nature's Variety dry and canned. Unfortunately after a while the Nature's Variety dry food didn't agree with 5 out of 6 cats so now I'm feeding then Natural Balance Green Pea & Chicken dry, Nature's Variety Rabbit, Duck, & Vension canned, Natural Balance Duck & Green Pea, and also the Chicken & Green Pea. So far so good. I have heard that some cats are allergic to chicken so this may be part of Paulie's problem. I try to stay away from Beef and Fish. I hope you'll be able to find the right diet for Paulie. Good luck.

[Catlady711]

Depending on how allergic a cat is to something you could see an allergic reaction within hours or days of exposure.

I used to feed Royal Canin Duck and Peas to my RB cat Dusty. It's a good food.

It takes approx 6-12 weeks to know if a new food is eliminating the allergy. You have to be SURE that the cat gets absolutely NOTHING else during that time, no treats, no people food, no milk, etc. If after 3 months there is no improvement then it's probably time to go looking elsewhere for the cause of the allergies. Cats can have allergies to dust, pollen, and things just like people do.

Testing is expensive but may help narrow down the possibilities and if necessary an injection can be formulated for your cats particular allergies. But the testing is not 100% but when the other main culprits (fleas/food) haven't worked it may be a good option to try.

BTW, it only takes the bite of one flea to cause an allergic reaction in an animal that's highly sensitive to them. Does your vet have you treating your cat with anything to prevent them just in case?

I hope things work out for your kitty. I know how frustrating it is to see them miserable and not know what to do to help them faster.

[Freedom]

i hope things work out for your kitty. I know how frustrating it is to see them miserable and not know what to do to help them faster.

ditto!!

[MyCatPaulie]

I just came online for a sec to check any updates and thank you all so much for your help and kind words about Paulie!!! You guys have some beautiful pets as well, Freedom all of your cats are adorable, I especially love Chestnut! CatLady711 what a bunch of sweethearts, Jack is my favorite he looks so peaceful. kraztaboutkatz all of your cats look so cute, I just want to cuddle up with blaze.

Thank you so much again everyone!!!!!!!!!!

[MyCatPaulie]

Hi everyone, just a quick update my vet wants me to try the RC green pea and rabbit, the only thing that concerns me is that it has fish oil in it, if she ever is allergic to fish would fish oil be a problem. I could not find a food that has no chicken or fish in it. I will come on soon to update you gusy more.

[Karen]

Hi everyone, just a quick update my vet wants me to try the RC green pea and rabbit, the only thing that concerns me is that it has fish oil in it, if she ever is allergic to fish would fish oil be a problem. I could not find a food that has no chicken or fish in it. I will come on soon to update you gusy more.

Yes, if she is allergic to fish, the fish oil will affect her. Speaking as a human with food allergies, I know this very well.

Tell Paulie I am allergic to fish, too, it's not just her!

[MyCatPaulie]

I will tell Paulie for you Karen
What do you think I should do should I try the Rabbit and green pea even though it has fish oil in it (we already ordered it)
Or try a food with no fish in it like
BLUE Buffalo Basics Turkey and Potato Recipe Dry


Deboned Turkey, Turkey Meal, Whole Potatoes, Oatmeal, Peas, Whole Ground Brown Rice, Canola Oil (naturally preserved with Mixed, a natural source of Vitamin E), Natural Turkey Flavor, Flaxseed (natural source of Omega 3 and 6 Fatty Acids), Whole Carrots, Cranberries, Blueberries, Barley Grass, Dried Parsley, Alfalfa Meal, Dried Kelp, Taurine, Yucca Schidigera Extract, L-Carnitine, -Lysine, Turmeric, Oil of Rosemary, Dried Chicory Root, Beta Carotene, Vitamin A Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Riboflavin (Vitamin B2), Niacin (Vitamin B3), d-Calcium Pantothenate (Vitamin B5), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Biotin (Vitamin B7), Folic Acid (Vitamin B9), Vitamin B12 Supplement, Calcium Ascorbate (source of Vitamin C), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Choline Chloride, Sodium Selenite, Calcium Iodate, Salt, Caramel, Potassium Chloride, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bacillus subtilis, Enterococcus faecium.