Worried!!!! About Cat Losing Hair??

Saturday my husband and I adopted a cat, Solo, from an animal shelter. He is a 1 yr old neutered male. He wasn閳ユ獩 declawed and we wanted to keep our furniture and ourselves safe, so we instantly put soft claws on him, like as soon as we got home and took him out of the crate we put them on him. That way everything would be safe and he wouldn閳ユ獩 worry about them because he would be 閳ユxploring閳?his new home. Last night I noticed there to be some hair, looks like it was pulled out or bitten out, all over our living room rug. I just assumed that our cat, Jabba, was showing Solo who was boss. Jabba wears soft claws, so they can閳ユ獩 hurt one another. Well earlier today, while Jabba was sleeping upstairs, Solo was alone in the living room, with the freshly vacuumed rug and I found the same patches of hair on the rug. I have brushed him with a good brush and checked him over, he doesn閳ユ獩 have fleas and his skin looks 閳ユΕormal閳? The only different thing is that he is wearing the soft claws, on all his toes, and he is wearing a collar, all of which he has never wore before. Is the 閳ユ笁air lose閳?a sigh of something more or is it just a combination of the claws and the collar and maybe the stress of changing homes?? Should I be worried? Should I call the vet and ask in the morning??? Or just give it some time and see if he continues to do it?

Side note: Its not the food, he eats really good food here and I know for a fact they fed them really good food at the shelter as well. He has had all of his shots and is in good health. And he has adjusted to the change extremely well.

Worried!!!! About Cat Losing Hair??

It could be stress (from the change in environment and adjustment) that could be causing the over-shedding of fur. That the weather is getting warmer may also be a factor. When the weather turns is when cats normally shed. The stress of adjusting to new (even better) living conditions may be aggravating the normal process. But this is just a guess. Also, I am sure that your are feeding good food to your pets. But consider also that many cats and dogs are allergic to grains and grain products - even meats like beef. Just as an experiment, why not feed this kitty a grainless cat food or a cat food specifically for allergic cats = as I mentiones, foods without grains (that rules out a lot of dry kibble!) but with more "exotic" animal proteins like venison, rabbit, lamb and duck. If it is stress, try some "Rescue Remedy" or "Feliway." These producst are supposed to help calm cats is stressful situations.

By the way, I am sooooo glad that you put "Soft Paws" on your kitties instead of having them declawed. Good on you!

Worried!!!! About Cat Losing Hair??

its nothing to do with the soft claws. allergies that cause fur loss do not happen this quickly and soft claws will not poison your cats.

he is probably just malting a little bit more due to the stress of moving house as well as another cat in the house.

what breed is he? some malt more than others.

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Worried!!!! About Cat Losing Hair??

I've had cats all my life and it sounds like spring-time warm-weather shedding to me.. my bed is COVERED with cat hair.. not only single hairs, but clumps... and it's normal.. I hope that helps you

Worried!!!! About Cat Losing Hair??

For peace of mind and for the cat's health, please take him to the vet. I have three cats: male 11yrs, male 7yrs, female 5yrs, there is always loose fur, they will get into little scuffles with each other, or as their playing gets out of hand. The oldest will develop a bald spot (about the size of a penny, on his back/tops of his "shoulders" about 2-3 times/year). The vet says that that is most likely allergies, and it has always cleared itself up, but I was extremely concerned when I first noticed it and wish that I went to the vet sooner to spare myself all of the worry. I'm leaning towards stress being the culprit in your situation. I have also heard stories about "soft-claws" actually making the cat have to scratch harder and more frequently where they want to, thereby causing clumps of fur or other skin irritations to develop and/or persist due to not being able to scratch/groom themselves properly. Please see a vet and post back, good luck.

Worried!!!! About Cat Losing Hair??

It's spring and the stress of a new home, it's likely that the cat is shedding.

Worried!!!! About Cat Losing Hair??

I completely agree with the person(people) who gave you kudos for not declawing your cats, but using Soft Paws instead!! I wish others treated their cats with as much respect as you do. As for your question, you should certainly ask your vet, but it probably is allergies or just the stress of all the change your kitty has been through recently. Good luck!!