Any ideas why Fred losing more fur?

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Martica and Fred

Martica and Fred

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Hi
I posted a few months ago when Fred first started getting a big chest rash and lost all his fur. At first I wasn't sure if it was the antibiotic eye drops he was on, the Plavix or the fact that I washed him with Ivory soap and left residue on since it was washcloths I used. I ended up taking him to the vet and she thought it was contact dermatitis--so basically the result of the soap. It was getting better--had gone from hot skin and red/pink to not hot and dark skin. She did not think it was 'necrotic' skin, but she also thought it would not lighten up (not sure why).

Anyway, so it seems to have been ok BUT the bald patch keeps getting bigger and bigger. So it's not feeling hot and red anymore, still dark areas but the fur keeps gradually falling off so his whole chest is getting to have no fur.

Does anyone have any idea what this could be?
He was tested for thyroid twice in the past few months and that's fine. It doesn't look like ringworm.

At the time the treatments she mentioned were steroids, but they are risky for him and she said she'd rather not. He's 20 and 3 diseases.

So anyway, I don't think it's painful, and also not sure what I can do...and trying to hold off on taking him in to be checked up until he really needs it...but wondering if anyone has any ideas?
 
Oh and also at the time of intiial onset, my cardiologist has recommended I take him off his Plavix in case that was causing it. So he's been off Plavix for 2 months now. He was off the antibiotic eye drops for a couple of weeks but his eye infection came back, so he's been on them again, for almost 3 weeks, but I'd gradually lowering the dose. Eye infection gone. He is still on pepcid a/c 1/4 BID.
 
Poor Fred he just cant seem to buy a break. I'm sorry I dont have any ideas but will say a prayer for your dear guy. He's such a cutie.
j.
 
Are you sure it's falling out and he's not biting/pulling it out.
Korbel gets this at the base of her tail from time to time. It seems as if it starts out as an itch and she just gets carried away. I'm assuming it's like with us humans and itching something can sometimes make it just itch more?
Anyways, when that happens with Korbel I treat with a combo of dry/itchy skin lotion I got from vet and vitacaps. The faster I catch it, the quicker it heals up. She does this a few times a year. I've taken her to the vet and they can never find anything. In her case I really do believe it's something that gets irritated and she just keeps irritating it more-vicious cycle.
Jennifer & Korbel
 
I don't know your full situation, but our GA Solomon wa shyperthyroid, and he often chewed/pulled out his own fur to the point where his skin looked irritated. He ultimately did radio-iodine treatments which added 4 more years to his life (we lost him last Feb. to renal failure). More recently, Melek, before his DX, was overgrooming his rear end to the point where his tongue caused what almost were like burns on his skin. We changed his diet and gave him Fortiflora, which alleviated that situation - but it is possible that a skin irritation can be caused by the cat's tongue, and can lok rash-like.

Not sure if this helps, but just in case...
 
Well, Fred doesn't groom anymore. He stopped at least a year ago, maybe more--he did resume when I was giving him kidney fluids, but since I had to stop that in January because of his heart disease, he doesn't groom. So he is not pulling his fur out.

I'm going to keep an eye on it for another week and then take him in if it appears to get worse.
One thing I've noticed in general with my 20 year old kitty is that things are slow--he doesn't grow hair back fast at all--like when they shave him to take blood, he stays bald, short hair there for MONTHS. He had blood drawn on his legs in June and July and there is still barely any hair there.

I guess that slow growing thing is just age?

Anyway, hoping this skin thing is nothing.
 
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