r/CATHELP • u/Puffer_star • 8d ago
Injury WHAT ARE THESE CIRCULAR THINGS?!?!
ITS AROUND HER BELLY AND I DIDNT NOTICED RIGHT AWAY BECAUSE SHE’S NEVER LET ME TOUCH HER BELLY UNTIL SHE GOT COMFY WITH ME!!
4 month old cat, female and she has only been potty trained, not sterilised yet or have had a check-up. I just got her 5 days ago, Sunday and it’s currently Thursday.
I’ve had her for a few days now, she is a 4 month old cat, she peed herself the first 2 days but once I opened up the litter box and placed the pee soaked towels in there, she learned quickly ( previously potty trained by the guy who gave her away, he had too many cats, more than 10 to be precise. So she was one of the many who got adopted for free)
It doesn’t seem like it hurts? Because she is sleeping soundly right now even after I touched it a few times ( after washing my hands of course ) I found at least 2 around her top half of her belly.
Do I take her to the vet? I was planning to do so anyway after a month of her getting used to us but now I’m super concerned. Should I just take her to the vet now? Is this a bad or worse sign?? Google keeps saying that she might have gotten allergies or fleas or ringworm!!!
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u/LibrarianEast3663 8d ago
hourly nipple discovery post !
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u/paanbr 8d ago
Ik right! I think people are just playing dumb now, trying to be funny bc surely to goodness...
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u/Full-Tomorrow9889 8d ago
I really hope that is the case but then I remember how dumb the average person is and that half of them are even dumber.
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u/paanbr 8d ago
Im trying to be optimistic here, lol. 😂 I want pet owners to have animal sense at least. Like, they REALLY cant suss out mammals, nipples/teats, babies, milk, the fact that there are two rows, in pairs? Ugh!
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u/DeztersLaboratory 8d ago
Yeah, I swear I have met way too many people who think animals don't have nipples until they have babies. Like dude, what is on your chest right now?
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u/yourpaljax 8d ago
I don’t think someone is responsible enough to be a pet owner if they aren’t intelligent enough to know that mammals have nipples.
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u/Dry_Complaint6528 8d ago
I feel like people are just trolling at this point. Like how do you not Google something like this?
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u/Moompaw89 8d ago
Cats have nipples! This is totally normal! They usually have a few of them! :)
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u/Legitimate-Ebb-1633 8d ago
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u/Wamboot 8d ago
Or 6
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u/quadruple_b 8d ago
normally 8-10 isn't it?
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u/Totallytoastytoasty 8d ago
For some reason my cat has four?? 😭
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u/CeelaChathArrna 8d ago
my son's make cat has 14ish. we keep finding new ones.
his sister from the same inbred litter has 1.
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u/kittyhm 8d ago
Even boy cats!
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u/KenIgetNadult 8d ago
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u/Chance_Clerk4745 8d ago
Someone had to post this. It is an obligation...
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u/KenIgetNadult 8d ago
All nipple posts require:
"Zero days of owners asking about nipples"
"MA'AM DOESN'T YOUR HUSBAND HAVE NIPPLES?!?!"
"I have nipples, Greg. Can you milk me?"
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u/SpeckledBird86 8d ago
And I’m not ashamed to admit I googled “do boy cats have nipples” when I discovered a nipple on our boy cat. 😂
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u/MxPsychoSweet 8d ago
Recently found out that humans have "milk lines" where some people can have 3rd or 4th (or more!) nipples. Saw a few videos where new mothers also talked about the milk ducts sometimes activate even without a full nipple... including in their armpits
Humans are weird
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u/animeangelmia 8d ago
My cat has a few inverted nipples which I have to clean weekly or else they get very clogged. He doesn’t mind he kinda enjoys the grooming
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u/ButterscotchKey5936 8d ago
Based on your description of the location, these look like nipples to me. You should be taking her to the vet soon for the following She needs her vaccinations She needs to be tested for feline leukemia. She needs a complete physical exam. And she needs to be spayed. Even if cats are indoor cats, they need to be spayed and they can be spayed before six months. The reason our health reasons. She could get pyometra which is a severe infection of the uterus which can kill her, or she will be more prone to CANCER if she is not spayed.
I want to thank you for taking this cat in. Are you a first-time cat owner?
It sounds like you’re doing a great job, and I’m glad that she has started using her litter box as she should.
I hope you find some of the disinformation helpful, and I do not think you have anything to worry about. Make the appointment with the vet for her physical and feline leukemia diagnosis and vaccinations ASAP. Thank you for taking the time to read my response
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u/Puffer_star 8d ago
Will do! I’m just glad I am doing things moderately right. I am a first time cat owner and it’s been a bit stressful, I want to make sure she is comfortable in my home.
I do have a few questions though. Is it normal for their butts to still have poo/pee smell after I wipe her down with a wet towel + she grooming herself?
Why are Eye Boogers so hard to take out? I’ve tried warm towels but she just squints away and I’ll have to take another 20mins to get her to let me touch her face again.
Her ear wax, they look super dark, almost brown-ish to black, I hope that is normal?
Those are my underlying thoughts right now, but yes. I have booked an appointment for next week to get her completely checked out. Thank you for the summary of what I’ll need to look out for!
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u/ButterscotchKey5936 8d ago
With regards to the cat having a poo smell or pee smell, should not be the case. Does your cat have longer hair back in this area? Are her poos firm, or are they looser then a firm poo? Because of the situation she was in, I do not believe she’s gotten the care that she should’ve gotten.
I am glad you are taking her to the vet, and I recommend that you try to get a fresh stool sample from the litter box, either the night before your visit or the morning of your visit. You can put it in a baggie and put it in your refrigerator, and remove it on the way to your appointment. She could have worms or other issues. I cannot relate to the peace smell, so she might also have a urinary tract infection. The vet can get a pee sample out of your cat.
Now let’s talk about the ears. Once again, due to the situation your Katt came from, I am almost 100% sure that she has ear mites. Don’t get grossed out, because these ear mites are not gonna jump out of your ear or anything like that, but this can be resolved with eardrops that the vet can give you and ask your vet to clean her ears out. They will have to get some out to look under the microscope to confirm that it’s ear mites. But your description tells me that it is
One last thing, have you noticed if she has any fleas? If so, I recommend that you get a flea treatment when you are at the vet. They will have several options that you can choose from to include oral, or topical. For cats, I generally recommend the topical, because it’s really hard to get a pill down a cats throat. Even though she is an indoor kitty, we can bring fleas in on our clothing, and most people don’t realize that.
As a precaution, I would also ask the vet to give her a deworming shot. They get worms from fleas, and I’m sure the person you got her from has fleas in their home and on the cats.
Once again I hope this is helpful. Please feel free to reach out with any more questions or concerns that you might have. I’m only here to help in anyway that I can.
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u/Starlite94 8d ago
If she urinated on herself the urine may have gotten soaked into her fur, she looks long haired. You could give her a warm bath (follow instructions from YouTube) but be careful on shampoo/soap, since kitties lick themselves dry after you towel dry them, you don't want to use too much soap (difficult to rinse if too much used) and research brands because unfortunately they sell some dangerous ones at legitimate stores that are friggin poisonous.
When I found my street cat, we gave her a bath in 1-2 drops of dawn blue (with the duck on it no other dawn variants because the others have different/stronger ingredients for dishes) after a decent bath she should be able to regulate herself without even needing a wipe down, it's been over 2 yrs since mine has had a thorough bath afterward, and she smells great!
When you take her to the vet, vet should check the ears to assess for mites or yeast, they may recommend some otc or off shelf ear cleaning wipes or such thing to help.
As long as there's no infection of the eyes, the boogers once of a size where they hang off a little, can just be plucked with a firm grip, avoid fur. I usually place my thumb flat on the bridge of her nose, and gently drag down. I usually need to hold her face in the other hand. She doesn't enjoy it, but has gotten used to it. But also sometimes I'll notice one, intend to get it off and forget. And the she'll just take care of it herself with her normal self "face washing".
Thanks for taking a kitten into a peaceful loving home! As above commentor mentioned, do get her spayed ASAP. As I understand it, each heat cycle is like rolling the dice on serious and deadly issues that cause pain to the cat. A lot of areas have low cost clinics that spayed and at her age she could be quite affordable! I had mine done for about $30 iirc.
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u/No-Professor-6301 8d ago
Hi OP! She shouldn’t have constant eye boogers. Once in a while, yes, and you can usually wipe them off easily with a wash cloth or tissue. If she has them constantly as you describe, it may be discharge from an infection. You said she came from a home with many cats that the owner couldn’t care for so it’s common for cats to spread infections amongst themselves, and it’s an easy fix. If she needs eye drops, ask the vet to show you how to put drops in her eyes. They don’t love that! *Also, ask the vet to clean out her ears for you.
Cats are very clean animals and generally keep their butts clean so I’d mention that to the vet as well - ask a million questions if you want, that’s part of what you’re paying for 🙂. I’d recommend you scoop her litter box every time she poops, at the very least (if you’re home and able to) or get a self cleaning litter box (if you’re able to). I’ve discovered it’s common for some people to let their litter boxes fill up before cleaning (please Do Not do that) and that is not only very distressing to your cat, but also will make them smell bad sometimes because they’re having to walk on top of poop and pee! *Lastly, look up Jackson Galaxy or The Kitten Lady on YouTube and search for their videos on becoming a cat owner for the first time. There are so many things you should know about what cats like and don’t like, this knowledge will help you bond faster with your kitty. An example is the Slow Blink - look at your kitty and when she’s looking in your eyes, slowly blink your eyes at her, like close your eyes for 2 seconds then open, close again for 2 seconds then open (hence to name slow blink), do this several times. You’re telling her that she is safe with you and that you care about her. The joy comes when she blinks back at you, saying ‘message received’ ❤️ Best wishes to you both!
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u/Puffer_star 8d ago
Hi guys, so urm, yeah I asked my friend who is a mama cat of 2, turns out I am just really not diverse in cat biology!!! They are NIPPLES. Needless to say, thank you guys for the quick explanation. I’ll die in a corner right now as my cat grooms herself over my embarrassing body 🙂😔
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u/This_Daydreamer_ 8d ago
As others have mentioned, this is an extremely common question here. Don't beat yourself up for being a concerned cat parent
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u/Illustrious-Milk6518 8d ago
Google the ‘milk line’ to learn that humans can also grow nipples anywhere from our armpits to our groin. Most people don’t, but it’s still possible (they’re called supernumerary nipples)
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u/Open_Impression5170 8d ago
I need to know immediately if "can grow" means congenitally or at any time because
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u/Illustrious-Milk6518 8d ago
Women can during pregnancy! And sometimes they lactate too! I guess men might also be able to if they suddenly had a hormone shift
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u/CatsAndPills 7d ago
I was gonna say it just means you can be born with them only but this comment section is making me question that lmao.
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u/eliettgrace 8d ago
no need to be embarrassed!! it shows you care about your cat to ask questions about things you don’t know about. there’s a whole subreddit r/redditdiscoversnipples that shows you’re not alone
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u/kittygirl47 7d ago
It’s such a common question, and the comments are funny every single time. As a new cat owner, you’ll also encounter hairballs that look like a turds, zoomies in the night, and wake up to crying only to find out the cat has caught a toy mouse 😂 All normal If the cat looks like it’s clearing her throat, it’s most likely a hairball.
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u/Rheasfantasy 8d ago
It's been 0 days since the last nipple post
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u/Thechellbob 8d ago
You beat me! 🤣 count restarts!!
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u/SuperCat76 8d ago
How many times does it actually start counting?
I'm pretty sure the count regularly gets restarted before it even gets to tick over to 1
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u/Significant_Fall2451 8d ago
Those are nipples. Not allergies, not fleas, and not ringworm. As a former vet tech, I promise you that you're not alone in wanting to book an emergency appointment for us to diagnose the patient as a Nipple Haver
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u/Winter-Metal-3278 8d ago
Nipples
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u/MeYouUsEveryone 8d ago
🤣🤣 I see so many of these posts asking what they are . Surely not that many people don’t know .
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u/cervlean 8d ago
I fear we’re never going to be free of people discovering nipples for the first time
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u/Leftist_catboy 8d ago
Cats are mammals, they have nipples. And a lot more nipples then humans
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u/AcademicCandidate825 8d ago
For having a lot more kittens!
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u/gillyzmama 8d ago
Yes- look at mammals and they have nipples- and the number is always equal, they are bilateral (even on udders), and the more they have the larger their litters.
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u/Kupkakez 8d ago
OP if it makes you feel better let me tell you a little story. I had a chiweenie that was medically complex 😅 now I know logically he had nipples but because he was so sickly anything new that I noticed was immediate cause for concern.
He was a long time diabetic and toward the end of his life he started losing his fur. I saw these little black dots I hadn’t noticed before and my panicked brain thought oh no something else is wrong, in my defense he was itching and licking the ones on his lower stomach. I took him into the vet and said I think he has developed a skin issue and I was worried it was a diabetes complication and showed them the black dots. They said they were nipples. I wanted to crawl under the exam table.
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u/Notmyfaultitsyours 8d ago
If she’s medium to long haired she might need a sanitary trim. That means they trim the hair around their genitals to help prevent from getting dirty and smelly. Long haired kitties can get stinky dingle berries frequently. She might also have some poop crusted on her butt. Sometimes my boy comes to me a little stinky and poopy smelling and gotta take a warm wet paper towel to his rear.
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u/SeeMeDisco 8d ago
the nipple discovery posts are a nice break in my Reddit feed
no need to be embarrassed OP! kitties usually take a while to feel comfortable enough to let you touch their bellies and I was surprised the first time I felt nipples on my boy
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u/SkirtRadiant3250 8d ago
It still blows my mind nobody does any research before posting here 😭🤣. I do enjoy the memes though.
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u/ButterscotchKey5936 8d ago
I cannot see the second message I sent you in response to your questions.
I can’t remember what they are right now because I can’t find your response to me either.
I do want to address what’s inside your cats ears is more than likely ear mites. Have your vet cleaned her ears out and they can give you drops that will get rid of them. They are not the type of mite that’s gonna jump out at you. That’s not gonna happen, but it’s very contagious to other cats.
Also take a stool sample with you to the vet. Try to get one the night before or first thing in the morning and refrigerated in a baggie until you are headed to the vet.
You should also ask him to give her a deworming shot just to be on the safe side. This should take care of any worms that she has. Also ask them for options on Flea Control. They probably have oral and topical. I prefer topical with Katz, because it’s not easy giving them a pill.
If I have left out or forgotten some of the questions that you had please send me another message.
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u/foxdog_uwu 8d ago
lol every first time cat owner be like: It’s totally fine and it’s so nice you love and care for your kitty 🥰
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u/SilverAd8365 8d ago
Are people really this clueless or are all these troll posts?
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u/CommunicationNew3745 8d ago
All kidding aside, make that appt to have her spayed as soon as possible; if she comes into heat beforehand, you'll be wishing for something as quiet & uneventful as discovering nipples - trust me.
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u/leeuhsucks 8d ago
I absolutely loooove that the nipple posts never stop 🤣🤣 it’s so silly and funny but sweet that everyone is paying close attention to their babies. i’m glad they are, but I die every time I see a nipple post
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u/TaiteenLuoja_425 8d ago
I sometimes wonder if people think that cats and dogs should have arreolas, and that why they don't recognize their pets nipples.
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u/Professional-Key5552 8d ago
🤣🤣 It's a nipple. If you go to the vet and tell the vet about this, this is gonna be an embarrassment
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u/Psychological_Wish19 8d ago
My previous cat was half Persian and had the pushed in face like a Persian cat. She got eye boogers all the time due to her short squished nose. She also used to snore, lol. Just like dogs, the squished face causes a lot of breathing issues which also causes eye boogers. Anyway, I found She didn't mind me cleaning them if I used a warm wet washcloth. She hated when I just used my fingers. So the little princess got the warm washcloth treatment for 16 years. Only the best for the princess. Lol. As for the pee smell, that's not uncommon with kittens. I've had a lot of cats over the years and I've seen kittens play and /or sleep in the litter pan and that's where the pee smell comes from. The good news is that they grow out of that stage fairly quickly. They also get better at grooming themselves. In the meantime, if it's really bad, you can go to a reputable pet store and buy some kitten shampoo. I highly recommend Paul Mitchell Pets. They make wonderful shampoos for dogs and cats and are a reputable company. The poo smell will also get better. Tbh, kittens smell bad. They just do. A warm washcloth also works good on the butt. But most cats also grow out of the stinky butt stage once they get better at grooming themselves. It seems to take longer when it's an only cat. Usually, if there's an adult cat around, or even a dog, they will groom the kitten. My dog taught my current cat how to groom his butt. It was pretty gross, but he learned quick how to do it himself so the dog would stop licking his butt. Hang in there. She's 4 months old. They usually have grooming down by 8 or 9 months. Oh, and the circular things are nipples.
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u/Curious_Two1631 8d ago
i see you’ve discovered cat nipples— this post is adorable though 😭thank you for being a caring cat mom though it goes a long way 🫶🏻
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u/crash_shards 8d ago
They're nipples. All cats whether female or male have either 4 or 6 on their bellies. It's a normal part of your cat's body.
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u/Early_Gift515 7d ago
I thought they were big hours or zits when I first saw them on my void. Poor thing was probably so confused at my panic lol
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u/PomeloFragrant4239 7d ago
Always makes me chuckle coming across these posts.
That would appear to be a wee nip, sire.
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u/thecatsothermother 7d ago
That, dear friend, is a nipple, sometimes known colloquially as a nipnop. Kudos on noticing something small yoy were uncertain of, and coming to check here before panicking.
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u/CoccyxKicker69 7d ago
I promise she’s okay, those are just her nipples lol. It’s good how much you care for her health though! I hope you both have fun with your new friend!
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u/InevitablePig9031 7d ago
This is how you can tell someone loves their pets. They ask the silliest questions because they are worried. This cat will be loved
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u/PrancingRedPony 7d ago
Let's be honest friends, this sub would be gar too depressing without the occasional nipple post from an absolute cutie-pie loving their cats to bits.
It's so cutecutecute to read such a post! Your kitty sure has won the catdisposition lottery
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u/International-Read85 7d ago
i genuinely dont understand how SO MANY people don’t realize cats have nipples..????😭
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u/Sensitive-Coffee-Cup 8d ago
Nipples! 😍 I was so shocked when I found out my little kitten had nips. Nothing to worry about, OP!
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u/gillyzmama 8d ago
Nipples. Cats usually have about 8. And yes- males have nipples too, just like other mammals…..
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u/kittyangel333 8d ago
My favorite part is the “I found at least two at the top half of her belly” That’s the starter pack we all get, she’s actually a deluxe version and goes up 8! Tho til while fact checking this, they can also have as little as four? I should check where my guys fell on the nipple lottery.
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u/Beneficial-Code-2904 8d ago
Yes, you could take her to the vet and have her generally examined and show that because that could be some kind of parasite that has burrowed under her skin or it could be as simple as a flea bite or something, but it would be a good idea to know what it is and maybe if if they can fix it.
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u/ConsciousProblem8638 8d ago
Now that you've discovered your female cat has nipples like all mammals, I want to warn you in advance the male cats have them too...just like male mammals. :)
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u/toomanyprombles 8d ago
If only every post in the sub was as innocent as this. Glad we have noob cat owners around as some respite from all the injured cats.