Like humans and dogs, cats are subject to allergies. With dogs, the symptoms of allergies can be a little easier to interpret. They may excessively itch, whine, and do anything they can to let you know that they are in some sort of discomfort. Cats, as we know, can be a little harder to read. They tend to be more independent, stubborn, and will often hide their discomforts, leading some cat owners to miss the allergy signs all together.
What can we do to help our feline friends with their allergies? What are the most common cat allergies?
Common Types of Cat Allergies
Cats tend to have allergic reactions to the same type of things that dogs and even humans do. We can essentially break cat allergies down into 4 different classifications: Environmental allergies, flea allergies, food allergies and atopic dermatitis.
Environmental allergies are something we can all relate to. Pollen, grass, mold, cigarette smoke, cleaning products, and even your mother’s perfume. As the name suggests, these allergies can be thought of as anything in your cats’ current environment that has caused a reaction.
Flea allergies aren’t mutually exclusive with dogs, cats too can be affected. Flea bites can be extremely irritating for cats, often times affecting their entire body, not just at the site of the flea bite(s).
Food allergies are pretty self-explanatory, they are caused by different foods and food additives.
And finally, atopic dermatitis. Atopic dermatitis is a skin condition often accompanied by symptoms such as redness, inflammation, hot spots, sores and hair loss.
