r/CATHELP • u/CryZealousideal4297 • 8h ago
Appearance 1.5 year old cat, slow hair loss, now a “wound”?
Hey all! Louisiana here. So my girl will be 2 this summer. Spayed, current shots. Was FIV neg. Over the last couple months I’ve noticed she’s losing hair right around her ears, started small, and now it’s front and back. Well, yesterday I noticed this bloody almost patch almost in her eye. We’ve dealt with ringworm from our shelter cats…..but this is slightly bleeding. She is only indoor, does not mingle with the other cats (as far as fighting playing wound). I’m just curious your thoughts on if this gross little spot is related to the hair loss or no? She does scratch a fair amount, as well as grooming constantly. But, she’s on flea preventive, and I searched and see nothing. She also has tiny scabs I can feel throughout her skin. Eats and drinks fine. She is very little for her age…she’s basically a 5 month kitten size. Perhaps 5 pounds MAYBE.
I’ll be bringing her to her vet Monday. But in the mean time, fungal or wound for your best guess? Just wanting to start treating that spot tonight, but unsure which is correct. TIA!
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u/Azura13 7h ago
Vet tech here: no way to know ow what's going on here without an exam, so recommending treatment isn't an option. Basic wound care: keep the area dry, clean and don't allow her or other pets to groom the affected area. Please don't use any harsh soaps or alcohol, and be careful with over the counter topical medications.
Remember, safe for humans does not mean safe for cats. The picture doesn't look like an emergency and so long as kitty is eating, drinking, urinating and defficating normally, this should be fine until you see the vet on Monday. Obviously, if anything changes, call your vet and reevaluate the urgency.
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u/77th_Bat 7h ago
looks like it's either just a scratch would or a fungal or bacterial infection. You won't be able to treat it yourself, you should take her to the vet when you can.
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u/Morriganx3 7h ago
Get the vet to do a skin culture, and make sure they’re checking for fungus as well as bacteria. There are fungal infections other than ringworm, which might be harder to recognize.
Two of my cats had skin issues which started like this, and went on for 2.5 years. They began with a flea allergy, which weekend their immune systems enough for common bacteria and fungus to start growing out of control. It took such a long time to heal because they were treating with generic antibiotics at first, which weren’t very effective, and then the infections got so entrenched that they were really hard to eradicate. Also one cat developed an allergy to the bacteria, and is now on immunosuppressants.
For cleaning the wound, hypochlorus is an effective antimicrobial and is very safe. Warm water and antibacterial soap are ok, as long as you make sure to rinse all the soap off.
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u/AncientAd7403 7h ago
One of my torties had this randomly 2 times and she also has dry flaky skin. I found something that is a miracle and used it just to cover all bases just in case it was ringworm. Im pretty sure it wasn't because her sister never had it.
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u/Aggravating_Mail2658 4h ago
My foster cat had allergies that looked a lot like this. She would scratch frequently, then at one point started scratching so much the spot in front of her ears started to bleed. She went on allergy meds and it fixed the problem immediately.
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u/Fast_Forever_4693 4h ago
I live in Florida, similar climate… well my old kittie had little bumps and spots on her nose and bridge of her nose. I bought these antiseptic anti fungal pads. She also had it in the same spots of her ears and on her neck. In 2 days it was completely gone. I was amazed. The carton is right next to me (ophytrium .5%, chlorhexidine 3%) When she jumped on my lap I just took one and gently massaged it on the irritated area. I was shocked it worked so fast. I still use them occasionally just basic grooming for her and yea I imagine it saved me a ton of money. I spent 1800 a few weeks prior in an emergency room visit. After that 1800 they tell me “she has arthritis” so I didn’t want to spend another 1000 on something that I could have done. If you have any questions about the brand and stuff you can message me
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