Obsessive licking, please can someone help me!

[Marie]

Well Maisy's bloods have come back fine.  She went in for her biopsy on Friday and when I went to collect her the vet said while she was there she has taken off the whole liaison.  She has 5 stitches and has to wear the collar for 10 more days until the stitches come out and then we take it from there.  She has also been put on special allergy food.  The strange thing is Maisy is now more happy and more playful than she has been for weeks!  If the biopsy comes back ok we will be on the long road of looking for a food allergy if the removal of the whole liaison has not worked.

[Gill (sneakiefeline)]

Good luck I hope they can find out what the problem is.

[Marie]

After another week of licking/scratching we went back to the vets again last night and finally they agree we need to do more than anti-biotics, steroid injections.  Maisy had bloods taken last night and is booked in for a biopsy on her neck of Friday.  She will be sedated and the vet will also have a look inside to see if anything is there.  This vicious circle of healing then taking the collar off for more scratching/licking has been going on for over 4 months, maybe finally I will get an answer as to the cause.

[Marie]

Thanks Ela that is something I had not thought of I will ask them about that tonight.  She has been seen by a vet about 6 time in the last 4 months for this problem as well as having the operation to remove the cyst in case this was causing the scratching (although the cyst was about half cm away from the scratched are).  She keeps being given anti-biotics and inflamatory injections and told to wear the collar for a few more weeks until it heals up again but then as soon as we take it off within a few days she has licked it raw again.  We feel like we are getting nowhere.

[Ela]

Do you think the vet should x/ray to see if there is anything embedded?

[Marie]

Some of you may know the trouble I have been having with Maisy from my postings on CC.  It has been going on for nearly 4 months now and to be honest it is really starting to get me down.  The problem started with a scratch on her neck which she licked and scratched raw.  Then a lump came up just above this which the vets said was a cyst and removed.  The vet said he did not think the cyst was causing her to scratch but gave us no other reason for the scratching.  After wearing the collar for 2 weeks after the operation we took it off and Maisy scratched it raw again.  We have now taken her to another vet and after 3 weeks and 2 long lasting anti-inflamatory injections we were told we could take the collar off she has now licked it raw again.  We are going to the vet again tonight!  Maisy has now been wearing this collar for nearly 4 months, everytime it heals up and we take it off she licks it raw again.  Does anyone have any idea how I can stop this as my poor little baby has been wearing the collar for so long now it is depressing her and it is starting to feel like very hard work.