What causes excessive grooming in cats?

Medical causes that may lead a cat to over-groom are usually those that make the cat feel itchy. One of the most common causes is an allergy. Just like people, cats can have allergies to food, fleas, or anything else in the environment – natural or not.

Overgrooming is when a cat spends an abnormally large amount of time obsessively grooming itself. This can result in hair loss and skin sores.

Why Do Cats Compulsively Scratch, Lick, or Chew? · Parasites. Fleas are often the culprits behind compulsive cat scratching or cat licking behaviors. · Allergies.

1Grooming is a normal behavior in cats, but some cats take it to the extreme and cause hair loss or skin damage · 2The causes can be medical or psychological,

Parasites like fleas also need to be treated. Allergies are typically the most common reason for over-grooming, which can be controlled. Allergies