Gerald to the vet’s (symmetrical alopecia)

“Symmetrical alopecia” sounds almost frightening, except it isn’t. It means balding in a symmetrical fashion!

Operasi 4 Kucing started at 10.40am this morning…

…with little Jayden’s help!

We carted all four mewing cats to the vet’s, but not before mildly sedating them with transdermal Gabapentin. Still the Gabapentin did nothing to quieten Gerald down. He was orchestra-mewing all the way there!

Gerald was seen last, but I shall write about him first.

As it turned out, my worries were put to rest. Gerald is balding!

His flanks only look white because he has lost fur, so that’s the colour of his skin! A skin tape cytology and hair pluck microscopy were done and there is some bacterial infection in the hair roots. It could also be due to an allergy, but as with allergies, it is almost impossible to pinpoint what the cause is. It could be due to the environment or even to food because I have no control of where else Gerald goes for food. So I am not able tell the vet exactly what he eats elsewhere. I only know what I feed him which is raw food and canned food, as per his asking. The vet says both flanks is probably itchy too, so he bites off the fur, thus causing the balding on both sides.

It is called symmetrical alopecia. 

So Gerald was given an Advocate spot-on, a lose-dose steroid injection (Vetacortyl) for the itch and a Convenia antibiotic injection (a little more pricey but it is effective and suitable for a free-roaming cat as it will last for 2 weeks without having to worry about missing a dose of oral antibiotics).

Another foll0w-up Advocate in one month’s time and hopefully, the balding stops.

Gerald’s weight is 5.09kg today. It has increased since April 2023.

We’re home now. Off you go, Gerald. You’ll be okay!

By the way, the vet says Gerald is such a good-natured cat, better than many indoor cats.

I agree!!

Coming up next, Rey.


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