I was just doing a little research online and wanted to specify that I meant "elizabethan collar" and not "electric collar!"

It is definitely worth trying but I'll warn you, kitty hated hers - probably not a surprise.

Have you clipped his nails short on the hind feet? Maybe adding soft paws to his nails might help? I'd also call the vet to see if they have any other recommendations or ointment that you could use over the area to reduce itchiness.

Sky

An e-collar might help. I agree with Sky, that the vet might be able to give something to reduce the itch. Good idea.

It was kind of funny when my girl kitty had an e-collar she didn't like it but her brother freaked out and ran like she was from Mars! Your girl kitty may react worse to it than your boy. Best of luck for him.

Has the vet checked to see if there is ab abscess of infection? Maybe the vet has some ideas?

I second elly_nj, better to be safe than sorry.

The elizabethan collar significantly affects the cat's balance and your cat will become much less coordinated and much more miserable from wearing it. I've been there - it's not pretty. It does protect their face. But it is hard to watch the cat go through the abject humiliation of wearing one, in fact mine hid under the bed for the entire time he had to wear it.

I was at someone's house recently that had a lab with an inflated tube around his neck. It was an alternative to the e-collar. I have no idea if this would work with a cat - in fact, the more I think about it, it probably wouldn't since cats have wet noodles for bones.

The times I've tried using those collars on my cats, it hasn't worked. I think cats really depend on their whiskers, and probably their peripheral vision, too, so that those collars really mess them up, as Naturegurl said.

Sally

I just did a search for alternatives to Elizabethan collars, and here's what Google found.

Here is a link that might be useful: Alternatives to E-collars

Thanks for all the ideas. We didn't get the e-collar- for 2 reasons. For one thing I don't think he'd tolerate it real well, and secondly I discovered the real problem- he has an isolated bald patch of between his hind toes on that side- which immediately made me think of mites. Looks like he's probably had the spot between his toes for a while and just spread them to his cheek recently. He's being treated for mites now, and hopefully this will be just a memory before very long.