Shortly after the previous update, we decided that we wanted to know for certain that Alex’s skin condition was “just” an allergic reaction and not something more serious (e.g., cancer).
So one of our vets did a “punch biopsy” of his skin in two areas.
(A “punch biopsy” is done using a small surgical tool that cuts out a small section of skin, much like taking a core sample from a tree.)
The biopsy was done under a local anesthetic and Alex was quite well behaved during the procedure.

We were all relieved when the biopsy report came back indicating that there was no malignancy and that the condition was, indeed, allergic in nature.

Even though Alex was already on a special diet, we decided to add a treatment that we have used successfully on several other cats with undiagnosed skin conditions.
Alex will be dipped in a lime-sulphur solution once per week for six weeks.
Lime-sulphur is used as part of our ringworm treatment protocol and is superb at killing fungii (such as ringworm) and many kinds of parasites.
While we have found no sign of fungus or parasites on Alex, it is possible that they have just gone undetected so far.

If you’re wondering whether cats like this treatment … the answer is a resounding “no”.
The truth is that they hate it (as do we).
But it is a safe treatment and worth a try in difficult cases.

After all of this,I am happy to report that Alex is finally getting a break: his skin has improved greatly since the previous update.
The open sores are entirely gone and the scabby areas are greatly reduced.
We don’t know if it’s the diet or the lime-sulphur treatments, but we’re so happy to see him improving.