My cat is clearly now allergic to chicken. What other protein should be avoided?

Thank you for your question. If your cat does not tolerate chicken, any poultry would be best avoided. There can often be cross reactions between similar proteins. I hope that all goes well for your cat.

I think my cat has allergies to chicken but my mother keeps giving her food and treats with chicken. Normally it causes smelly farts and diarrhea. Now she is also crying occasionally and her stomach is sensitive to touch and feels harder than normal. What can I do? Right now I don't have a ton of money to bring her into a vet.

Without examining her I cannot say whether the cause is down to an allergy to chicken, another ingredient or another cause; if you believe that a chicken allergy may be a factor you should speak with your mother about limiting or changing the diet/treats given. Without an examination I cannot be sure of the cause or recommend any specific course of action; cat food with restricted ingredients may be useful and stop giving treats for a few weeks to see if there is any improvement. Regards Dr Callum Turner DVM

Can it cause cat to scoot on carpet. Been to vet for months anal glands expressed white granular substance then infected now okay. Still scoots so taking her off chicken, trying duck food. Not 100% on duck but still scoots

Food allergies may cause scooting and you should always give it a few weeks after changing any diet due to allergies to ensure that the allergen is out of the system before moving on to the next possible cause. Scooting may be caused by allergies, anal gland disorders, parasites, tumours, anus trauma among other causes; give it a few weeks and if there is no improvement on the duck diet return to your Veterinarian. Regards Dr Callum Turner DVM

I have 2 littermate male cats — just a little over 1 year old. Since October, they have been shedding like crazy!! We thought it was the crazy weather we’ve been having, or the humidy in our home. We purchased a 4 gallon humidifier but it did not help. My cats were on Instinct food which is grain free; no corn, wheat or soy. They drink plenty of water, and get wet food 2x per day. We brush them regularly, but nothing seems to work. We’ve also tried supplements but they are too smart and won’t eat their food. Very picky eaters! We brought them to the vet and they do have a little dandruff as well. The vet recommend switching their food to sensitive stomach/skin food so we did. Still loosing a lot of hair. Luckily there is no bald spots. We are at a loss here. Don’t know what to do! :-( I wish I could upload pictures to show

It can be difficult to determine the cause for shedding which may include environmental factors, allergies, infections, parasites, hormonal conditions, diet among other causes; further investigation is required by your Veterinarian but may still be unrewarding in finding an underlying cause. I cannot think of anything else which may cause this level of shedding. Regards Dr Callum Turner DVM

How can you tell between an allergy and over grooming? My cat has licked most of the hair off of her lower stomach. She does vomit sometimes but I was thinking that could be because of the hair she is ingesting? She does scratch other areas but doesn't seem to be more than my other cat?

It can be difficult to distinguish the cause of hair loss, allergies are a possibility but we generally see itching more than licking; there are various different possible causes and would be best to visit your Veterinarian to narrow in on a specific cause since hormonal conditions, allergies, infections, parasites, behavioural issues among other causes may lead to this issue. Regards Dr Callum Turner DVM