Endocrine, metabolic, internal, and neoplastic causes of pruritus in the dog and cat

Many of the etiologies of pruritus presented herein have been discussed with a view to promoting an awareness of less common causes of pruritus in the dog and cat. For those differential diagnoses that have as yet not been described in our companion animals, the purpose is to stimulate us to look. Of particular interest are the diseases that may cause pruritus without obvious cutaneous pathology. In these instances, the challenge is to make the association. To this end, Table 1 lists those differential diagnoses that would be considered in human beings who have generalized pruritus unassociated with significant cutaneous pathology. Those diseases described to date in the dog and cat have been identified.