Hello and thanks for researching this important question!

Cats do express a variety of allergic skin conditions. Milder forms include the so-called Milliary Dermatitis...a bumpy, sand-like feeling on very sensitive skin.

There is a severe form of allergy in cats known as Eosinophilic Granuloma Complex (EGC).

Eosinophils are a type of white blood cell that is found, among many places, in great numbers in these itchy, blistery bumps. A granuloma is a clump of inflammatory cells. These blisters are now thought to be a form of immune dysfunction. The most common cause of the skin form of EGC is flea bite allergy, although other allergens (pollen, mold, food ingredients) can cause problems as well.

Do be sure to protect your cat from flea bites--a single bite is enough to cause a complete reaction in a sensitive body for up to three weeks! You may need to use Frontline Plus, or Advantage for Cats along with products in and outside of the house.

***When the skin is severely affected, as in your dear pet, the most effective initial treatment is steroids to stop the immune reaction, and antibiotics to keep infection from invading the deeper skin layers. It is the best course of action to have this dear pet examined as soon as you can arrange it.***

Once the original severe reaction is controlled, you may be able to avoid acquiring side effects in the kidneys and liver by using a tablet form instead of subsequent injections...oral medication can be used in smaller doses to keep the body in balance, instead of a large dose that lasts for several weeks at a time.

Cats that have seasonal allergies to pollens and molds can be greatly helped by antihistamines...chlorpheniramine is an antihistamine that cats tolerate pretty well. Benedryl is not the antihistamine of choice in cats.

Here are some links to other articles about EGC that you can investigate, and details about methylprednisolone and chlorpheniramine that you can use in your talk with the veterinarian:

http://www.cat-world.com.au/EosinophilicGranulomaComplex.htm

http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_eosinophilic_granuloma.html

http://www.petplace.com/drug-library/methylprednisolone-medrol-depo-medrol/page1.aspx

http://www.petplace.com/drug-library/chlorpheniramine-maleate-chlor-trimeton/page1.aspx

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