We have a two-year-old female cat who, whenever she's let outside for some fresh air, starts licking the cement. We don't know if this could mean there is some type of vitamin or mineral she might be lacking. She is very small; she weighs about 5 1/2 pounds. She also scratches herself a lot, and has been treated for dermatitis from the scratching. Any help in this would be great.

From: Georgette, via the Internet

Dear Georgette,

Thanks for writing. This is a curious problem, for sure. I've consulted with Sally Bahner ("Dear Sally"), the CAT CHAT behavior consultant, to make sure I had an appropriate answer.

A few questions need to be answered before a diagnosis and solution can be found, and the facts that the cat is also scratching herself (is this being addressed by some kind of flea control program?) and has dermatitis (what's causing the dermatitis?) suggest a possible nutritional deficit.

What your cat is exhibiting is called "pica" -- the act of eating (or chewing or sucking on) non-food items. Some cats like to lick plastic bags, or photos. Siamese cats are prone to chewing wool. So let me ask you:

1) What are you feeding the cat?
2) Are you leaving her outside to lick the cement unsupervised?
3) Did this behavior just start?
4) Is there anything going on to cause the cat to be stressed?

Let me know more specifically what's going on, and we'll try to narrow it down.

Tracie Hotchner