# Kitten losing fur?



## Nishi (Jun 28, 2004)

It's a while since I was here, so you might not remember me. I have a bit of problem... it's more of a puzzle at the moment.

I'll explain...

My cat Ness had 4 kittens April 29th. The first one was still born, but the other 3 were alive and well. After the first week, we noticed that the last born kitten was about half the size of the other two. The first born (female) was slightly bigger than the second born (male), but the difference between these two and the last one suddenly was so clear.

When he fed he always slapped from left to right, violently sucking on the nipple and treading with his paws in stead of kneading. Ness didn't seem to mind this at all. We decided to bottle feed him, but not too much because he still fed with his mother. We helped him find the nipple, since he had problems with that as well. It had to be a pretty obvious one otherwise he couldn't hang on to it. Then when we had to cut a 2 mm diameter hole into the bottle's nipple before he would accept it, we sort of got it that he couldn't get milk out. :? He was bottle fed from then on.

Last week, at about 2,5 weeks of age, the last born kitten began to lose fur. At first it was a stripe all the way down his back that started to thin. I presumed it was from his mom licking him too much there. The stripe began to get wider and wider, then I also noticed thinner spots at the back of his neck and the bottom of his head.

The vet was called in and she was puzzled. She saw him in the basket and thought it might be oxygen loss during delivery. Then she picked him up. :lol: He's the liveliest of the bunch. The others sleep, and sleep and turn over and sleep some more. This little guy is so alive you have no idea! His grip is amazing, and his bite kills (vet needed to check his mouth and he bit her).

The vet has never seen anything like this before. I joked he might turn into a naked cat, because he had peach fuzz on his back by then and wrinkled skin as well. She checked him for parasites: none. Then she took a sample of fur and sent it to the dermatologist. I have yet to find out the results. She guessed it might be that he's losing fur because he didn't get enough nutrients for a while, but he seems to be losing fur rather drastically. She also suggested it might be something to do with metabolism (diabetes?). But we don't know.

In the mean time, the kitten keeps losing fur. What's remarkable is that he's turning a peach fuzz grey all over and he had the same fur as his brother (the one in the lower corner). That *is* odd, isn't it?

Anyway, here are some pictures. From the side it looks thinned out, but his back really does look like the back of a naked cat. Not that I'd mind a naked cat but I'd really like to rule out illness and problems first.






Picture of them together. The fur losing kitty is on top of his mommy. The kitty in the upper corner is female (large paws and big!), the one below is male (normal size):











Comfortably resting on his mommy:











He really doesn't seem to mind. :?


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## Lisa 216 (Oct 25, 2004)

Aww, that kitten is adorable  

I don't have any advice for you, just wanted to wish you good luck figuring out this unusual problem.


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## Nishi (Jun 28, 2004)

Small update. 

The kitten that lost its fur is now doing okay at almost 8 weeks.  His fur is back, though still on the short side. Well, it keeps growing, that's the main thing. We just kept giving him lots of food, and luckily he is a kitten that loves to eat. Apparently he did lose the fur because of a lack of nutrients during week one.

These are the kittens now...


"Furry" Fella!









Playing together:


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