I had a cat who licked a big patch of fur off his belly, and you could see the skin was irritated. The vet gave him a cortisone shot, which stopped the itching, which made him stop licking. Within a few weeks the fur started growing back and he was fine after that.

Or, might he have fleas or some other parasite?

I'm sure the vet will figure out what the problem is and how to treat it. He's a pretty cat; hope he gets better soon.

he is a sweet, sweet boy.

I was thinking allergy too. No fleas. Major fur balls...seriously gross fur balls from both of them. Some that are four or so inches in length and look more like a poop than a fur ball. I've been combing them but it didn't seem to help. I did switch their food, to a hair ball remedy food...but Hen was having this problem before the switch. The food switch has helped with the hairballs, they are about half the size they were.

Lots of furry friends are allergic to corn/grain...

Cats are very attached to territory, and he is in a new one now. That can be very stressful to a kitty, especially one that is already skittish. A lot of cats will lick themselves bald if they get stressed out. Sometimes anti-anxiety meds can help there.

Our vet gives some to our cats, but we had at least one that was a mean drunk!

My kitty is a mean drunk, too. She does lover her nip! But, lord help any other kitty that get near it.

because of fleas. It's probably something like that.

no fleas at my Mother's house (amazingly)

that is very hard to get rid of. We have a cat that we have to douse weekly in a mild vinegar and water rinse. He has broken open the same spot on his belly over and over. We can't trust him. He has been to the Vet for steroid shots and for antibiotics. But none of that helps put a hold on the development of the hot spots.

There are hypoallergenic shampoos available and we use those about every 6 weeks. Needless to say, he takes a lot of care but without the coat care, he's just a mess. He didn't develop this problem until he was about 8yrs old. We've used all manner of different foods. We haven't found that makes a difference but you might.

We could tell you so much that your head will explode. And we could scare the bejeezus out of you. So just wait and see what the vet has to say. I have had everything from flea allergies to cancer show up as skin problems, so I know how hard it is for us to guess what it might be.

Good luck with this. I hope it is easy to treat.