Seasonal Allergies in Cats: Do You Know the Signs?

Dr. Jon's Advice For Your Cat

We Love Our Cats

Is your cat prepared for Allergy Season? Warm weather is finally here and our indoor-outdoor cats can once again spend more time outdoors. But as winter melts away and spring comes into full bloom, so do seasonal allergens - and they can affect all cats, even those that live indoors. Allergies aren't just a problem for people.  “Our cats can suffer from allergies, too.” This is the time of year when your cat will come into contact with seasonal allergens every single day. There's simply no way to avoid it.

Allergies can be irritating and uncomfortable for your cat, but if you know what signs to watch for, and what treatments can help ease your cat's symptoms, you can keep your cat's allergy-related problems under control.

Learn: Which Pets are Most at Risk for Allergies? »

What's An Allergy?

Allergies occur when your cat's immune system overreacts to something (an “antigen” or “allergen”) that really isn't a bodily threat.

While your cat's immune system is designed to protect against real threats like bacteria, it should not have the same reaction to substances like dust mites, grass or pollen. When cats are first exposed to an allergen, they may develop an immune reaction.

With continued exposure, the reaction increases and your cat will develop a hypersensitivity to the allergen. That's when itching and inflammation develop. The more antigens your cat is exposed to, the more severe the reaction will be.

What Causes Allergies in Cats?

Your cat's allergies can be caused by food, or they can be environmental. Since this is the height of allergy season, let's talk about seasonal environmental allergies today.

The #1 cause of seasonal allergies in cats may surprise you...it's fleas.

This is the worst time of year for fleas. Flea bites are annoying to all pets, but if your cat is allergic to flea saliva, all it takes is one little flea bite to cause a full-blown allergic reaction. Most cats with flea allergies actually have very few fleas. That's because they're so itchy, they excessively groom themselves, eliminating evidence of fleas. But for a cat with a flea allergy, all it takes is a couple of bites every two weeks and the cat will be constantly itchy. Flea bites are very annoying for cats, and they often lead to secondary skin infections.

Your cat may suffer from “Allergic Inhaled Dermatitis” also known as atopic allergies. They are caused by environmental allergens that your cat can inhale, absorb through the skin or pads of the feet, or ingest. Some of the most common atopic allergens are ragweed, pollen, mold, feathers, grass, trees, shrubs, animal dander, house dust and dust mites. This condition makes cats very itchy, particularly on the paws. The skin may be red and irritated from scratching or the ears may be inflamed. But atopy can be hard to diagnose in cats, so the problem often goes undiagnosed.

Symptoms:

Unlike humans who suffer from sneezing, stuffy noses and watery eyes, cats with allergiestend to suffer from dermatitis and skin skin disorders. In fact, allergies are one of the top causes of skin disease in cats.

When your cat's immune system detects an allergen, histamine is released causing allergy symptoms to appear. Areas of the body will become hot, swollen, puffy and very itchy. Some typical symptoms include:

		Scratching
		Licking of paws
		Head shaking
		Red, raised, scaly areas on the skin
		Salivary staining (brown color)
		Increased skin pigmentation
		Thickened skin
		Loss of hair

If your cat is suffering from an atopic allergy, the face, feet and armpits are the most likely to be affected. But as the condition progresses, the symptoms may spread to the entire body.

The more your cat scratches, the greater the risk for skin infections. Continued scratching breaks the skin allowing bacteria to enter and begin multiplying. Some bacteria can cause serious infections that require antibiotics to clear up your cat's skin infection. But the allergy still remains and cycles of recurring skin and ear infections are likely to continue.

An Allergy Catastrophe:

Last spring we treated a four-year-old cat that was allergic to feathers. The cat had all the symptoms of a full-blown allergy attack when he came to the clinic. When we questioned his owners, we found that the symptoms began about two weeks earlier. The cat had never had allergy symptoms before.

What was this cat allergic to?

We began asking the owners some questions to determine what had changed during the last two weeks. We learned that their cat had a new bed. It was a zippered duvet cover that could be stuffed with clothing, pillows and the like. The cat's owners had stuffed the new bed with an old feather pillow - that's when the cat's symptoms began! We prescribed some medications to ease the cat's symptoms and told the owners to get rid of the feather pillow bed.

The cat's owners had stuffed the new bed with an old feather pillow - that's when the cat's symptoms began!

Most environmental allergies are not so easy to pin down and the cat may require extensive testing to determine the cause of the allergy. But in this case, we were lucky. After the pillow was gone, the cat's allergy symptoms disappeared.

How to Reduce Your Cat's Exposure to Allergens:

This is a real challenge. Inside your home, it may help to run air filters, keep windows closed, vacuum frequently with a HEPA-filtered vacuum and dust with a damp cloth. Carpeting is much worse for your cat than tile and linoleum. Never keep a cat with allergies in the garage, basement or in a dusty area.

All cats will be exposed to many environmental allergens, especially at this time of year. Pollen counts are highest during early morning and late evening, so cats with allergies should be kept inside during these hours. Try to keep windows and doors closed during this time as well.

Prevention and Treatment:

Allergies have no cure. But you can take steps to reduce your cat's exposure to allergens. Treatment of your cat's allergic symptoms is a must. It will make your cat more comfortable and prevent the condition from getting worseâ?¦ but the underlying allergy problem will still be there.

CATS:

Immunosuppressant prescription drugs like Atopica For Cats,or Cyclosporine (Modified) Generic To Atopica can soothe your cat's allergic skin condition by stopping the itch and preventing white blood cells from responding to the infection.

Antihistamines help many cats. Common antihistamines include Hydroxyzine Pamoate,Hydroxyzine HCl, and Diphenhydramine (Generic Benadryl).

Steroids such as Prednisone are also used to treat allergic reactions, control inflammation and reduce pain. But steroids can have negative side effects, like stomach ulcers and high blood sugar. To make steroid use safer, try adding an Omega 3 Fatty Acid supplement likeSuper Pure Omega 3 or Be Well for Cats. It will reduce inflammation so your cat will need fewer steroids to recover.

Topical treatments and shampoos can also help relieve itching and allergy symptoms. Some popular ones include Excel Hydrocortisone Spray and Excel Hydrocortisone Shampoo.

If your cat has an allergy to flea saliva, it's important to use a good preventative flea treatment year-round, like Advantage II®, Flea3X, Frontline Plus and more. They're safe and very easy to use. Just apply once a month to the back of your cat's neck. It is equally important to treat your cat's environment for fleas, indoors and out.

I hope this information helps you to identify possible allergy problems in your cat and take the necessary steps to treat them.

Until next time,

P.S.: If your cat undergoes allergy testing and the source of the allergy is identified, you might want to consider immunotherapy. These are allergy injections that are custom-designed for your cat's specific allergies. With continued injections of the allergen in low doses over a long period of time, cats often become less sensitive to the allergen. But this treatment could take a year or more, it can be very expensive, and is sometimes ineffective.

P.P.S. Remember to inspect your cat regularly for allergic reactions and fleas. Catching the problem early will help keep the symptoms under control.