# Cat has lost his "mane"



## Jessee J. (Jan 16, 2005)

Hi all,

I'm new to this forum and hopefully going about this correctly - I guess I'll know soon enough!

I'm writing because of a strange problem our male cat, Boudinot, has had with hair loss. He's a mixed-breed cat with a luxurious medium-long coat, and until recently, he had an impressive "mane" - long, silky fur that formed a full ruff in front, and very dense, thick fur on the back of his neck. 

In October, we noticed that Boudinot was shedding in large clumps, which would be left all over the carpet wherever he'd been sleeping. An occasional clump would be matted into his coat and have to be teased out. However, his skin seemed in good condition, and he wasn't pulling the hair out on purpose - just losing it in mass quantities. We decided that it must just be a new variation on his natural, seasonal shedding cycle. 

Eventually, the shedding stopped (well, the unusual shedding, anyway) and Boudinot's mane is now completely gone. This is not to say that he has any bald patches - it's just that he now has short, thinner fur where once there was long, dense fur. He seems otherwise to be completely healthy and happy, but his mane shows no sign of growing back.

Is it possible that there is some hormonal or environmental trigger involved here?

Thanks for your help,

Jessee


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## Gudewife (Jun 27, 2004)

My first thought is a food allergy...what are you feeding, and did the hair loss begin around the time you changed his food? A lot of cats develop allergies to chicken, corn, fish, wheat, or other common cat food products, and I could swear that I remember someone saying that food allergy symptoms often show up around the neck/ruff.


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## Jessee J. (Jan 16, 2005)

Wow! That didn't take long - I was still messing around with my avatar when you sent your reply.

Hmmm...the food allergy is an interesting idea. We feed both cats Iams Weight Loss/Hairball Control - this is because of the other cat, Chessie, who is a bit portly at 16 1/2 lbs. (That's her in the photo.) Boudinot is a skinny guy. We allow the cats continual access to their food (it's in one of those dispenser feeders) and we haven't figured out how to put one cat on a diet without making the other suffer needlessly. We're also afraid Chessie would start "wolfing" her food if its availability were restricted.

After Boudinot began losing his hair, we switched to the Iams (regular) hairball control, thinking that the extra nutrition might do him some good. It didn't seem to make any difference, though, so we've since gone back to the original formula.

Would there be other signs of food allergy? Boudinot doesn't seem to display any symptom besides the hair loss.

Thanks,

Jessee


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## Gudewife (Jun 27, 2004)

I'd expect to see some sort of itching or dry skin with an allergy, so it's a bit puzzling. No weight loss/gain, swelling of the throat or face, respiratory sniffles, change in eating or litterbox habits? How old is Boudinot? My mind's wandering to thyroids, a common trouble spot in older cats (and me, incidentally). But that would produce other symptoms, as well. How's his mental health? Is he an overly anxious cat? Do the cats get along, or could there be tussling and fur-pulling going on while you're not looking? Assumpta lost some of the length and fullness of her ruff when she came to us, as she'd been a stray and it was really cold out, but she didn't shed in clumps like you describe.

As for diet, a lot of us here have had better luck with canned food only for weight loss...I had nothing but misery with dry weight loss foods, and had a lot of problems with dandruff and excessive shedding. Too many carbs, not enough fat. Timed feedings are the way to go, as well...it takes some easing into if you've been free-feeding, but it's the only way to know how much food the cats are actually eating.


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## DylansMummy (May 23, 2004)

Iams is a poor quality food... I suggest you try feeding a good quality wet food and see if that makes a difference. Cats are carnivores and Iams contains a lot of carbohydrates cats do not need - this may be why your other cat is tubby and you may find gradually on a wet diet he loses weight.

If it started in October the coat may have shed due to heating being on. Dylan has shed bucket loads since the heating has been on. You may find that when change of season comes that his mane will grow back.

A breeder friend of mine says that a *small* drop of olive oil onto food helps shedding...

hope that helps


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## coaster (Dec 1, 2004)

Welcome to the forum, Jessee!! I hope you'll post some pics of your cats in the "Meet My Kitty" section. Chessie looks like a very handsome cat, but we want to see some full-size pics.


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## Jessee J. (Jan 16, 2005)

Thanks, all, for your posts - this is a great forum!

I had no idea that Iams was not good food - maybe we'll try switching to a "meatier" one. What is the best dry food for cats? I don't know how these guys would react to wet food, but maybe I can gradually shift them over to it. 

It would probably do Chessie some good to lose a pound or two, but the current food obviously ain't gonna do it (we're not following the directions, either :-/ ). Honestly, though, I can barely imagine her as anything other than the fat and happy soul she is today. Maybe a strict exercise regimen would help 

It may be time to take Boudinot to the vet - I was worried that his problem might be thyroid-related. He may have lost a little weight at the same time he lost the hair, though it's hard to tell as he's always been thin - only about 8-9 pounds. He is getting on toward his senior years; we think he's about 12 or 13 years old. As for emotional or psychological problems, I don't think there's anything other than a little separation anxiety - as in, he gets very anxious about being separated from a warm lap!

Cheers,

Jessee


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## Jeanie (Jun 18, 2003)

There are some good suggestions in this thread:

http://www.catforum.com/viewtopic.php?t ... =cat+foods

Good luck!


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## Gudewife (Jun 27, 2004)

Wellness dry food has a size and shape similar to Iams (and it tastes better...I sample all of the cat's food :lol: ), and it might be a good way to transition to better/canned food. Start with several timed feedings a day, cutting back to 2 or 3, and monitor each cat so you know who's eating what...also, be aware that the Wellness is very calorie-dense, so you'll need to feed less. Read through the forum, search for "good dry food," and you'll come up with several good choices and ways to introduce wet food into the diet. 

It probably wouldn't be a bad idea to have a vet check, especially if you suspect Boudinot may have lost weight in addition to fur loss...at the very least, it will ease YOUR mind.


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## Jessee J. (Jan 16, 2005)

Thanks, all, for your replies and your good advice. I think the current bag of Iams will be the last one - time to explain to Chessie and Boudinot that the times, they are a-changin'!

Cheers,

Jessee


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## Jessee J. (Jan 16, 2005)

Good news!

Now that the days are getting longer and the humidity is gradually increasing (though not the temps, just yet), Boudinot's ruff is beginning to get noticeably thicker, especially at the back of his neck where it was looking so thin and scruffy.

I guess this is just a new shedding cycle for him, probably brought on by the drying heater that goes all winter long - the house is usually about 3 to 4 degrees warmer on average than in the summer.

Thanks for all your help,

Jessee


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