Bald patches on cat's head/neck

October

Hi,

I got a two year old cat two weeks ago. Within a couple of days I noticed her ears looking dirty and saw a couple of sores in one ear. That cleared up in about two days and I thought no more of it. Then a few days later I noticed a small bald patch on her ear, wasn't sure if it was there all the time and I just hadn't noticed it. Then on Thursday I found another bald patch on the other ear and three under her chin on her neck. She also has two small pimple like sores on her neck, under her chin. I tried to get her in the cat carrier yesterday to bring her to the vets but I couldn't and I spent the rest of the evening putting Savlon cream on my arms and hands . Was goint to try again today but she is weary of my every move and I don't want to upset her anymore because she had been settling in so well! And I've run out of Savlon!!
I'm not sure what to do! If it is ringworm, the vet said I have most likely built up a resistance to it over the years and my 5 year old cat used to be a feral cat so most likely she has built up a resistance too so I'm not very worried about her. Is there anything I could buy in a pet shop to try and treat this without really knowing what it is? I think it will be at least a week before the cat starts to trust me again:o

Blueprint

You could try getting a flea and ear mite treatment from the vet like Stroghold in case it's flea, tick or mite related until you can build up her trust enough to bring her to the vets.

Try feeding her in the carrier so she builds up a positive association with it!

Taltos

Tip our vet gave us on getting our cat into the carrier is to put the carrier on its end and to lower the cat down into it so that their hind legs go in first and head last - be ready to close that door though...

Once this is done though I suggest leaving the carrier in the room your cat spends the most time with the door off so they are not spooked by it. Our little one goes in and hides not sometimes...

anniehoo

I dont think its ringworm(Microsporum canis etc). She'd have more obvious all over hairloss/skin lesion signs by now and the fact its isolated to one area confirms that. Is this "irritation" only at her head end OP? Has she lost weight? Has her coat gone dull? Has her behaviour changed? How old is she and what is her diet? Wet food only?

So many things need to be taken into consideration. On a domestic cat you will very rarely find fleas (Ctenocephalides felis) as they're generally fastidious about cleaning themselves.

It sounds to me like a food allergy mixed with a grooming problem and could be a case of simple cat "acne".....a bit more info would be great!Hyperthyroidism is another issue in "older" cats at the min too

October

Hi,

Thanks for the replies, much appreciated.

anniehoo, I don't have much information on her as I only got her two weeks ago. I don't know what they fed her at the rescue centre but most likely she's had a complete change in diet over the past two weeks. I feed her Whiskas dry food and Felix pouches wet food. How would I go about figuring out if she has a food allergy? Should I buy a better quality dry food?

She is scratching and over-grooming all over her body but the bald patches and sores are only on her neck - under her chin. I was able to have a closer look last night, there is a little pimple like sore in the middle of each of the four bald patches on her neck. The bald patches on her ear are just that, bald patches, no sores and the skin looks find.

She is in great form and very playful and her coat looks fine to me. The rescue centre gave her worm and flea treatment in May. They had her since April. The only other information that may be relevant is that she was spayed a couple of days before I got her and she had just finished weaning her kittens.

I think she is starting to forgive me for trying to put her in the cat carrier

MaryK666

Any pic's, October?
Someone may be able to point you in the right direction if we could see what these sores look like. The poor little mite.

My little man got acne which caused some sores on his chin and around his mouth for which he's on a course of antibiotics. He used to groom and scratch like a maniac but he is much better and scratching less now that it is improving.

It could be diet, it could be fleas, it could be an allergy or so many other things. He'll be used to a basic diet in a shelter but my advice on diet for cats is - feed the very best you can afford - and a little bit of raw food occasionally like chicken necks is also a good idea.
I'm a big fan of zooplus online for buying my dry food and they often have special offers and postage is free if you buy in bulk. Look for something with a high meat content like Orijen or Applaws.
Hopefully he'll settle in soon and your war wounds will quickly fade but like the other posters suggest, leaving his cat carrier down as a bed with the door taken off is a great idea as he'll learn not to be afraid of it and if you feed him in it regularly, then it'll be a doddle to just shut the door and whisk him off to the vets when needed.

October

Hi MaryK666,

I haven't been able to get any pictures but it doesn't seem to have spread any further in the last couple of days. I bought Royal Canin dry food which I presume is better than Whiskas dry food. She still seems to be over-grooming.
I have tried putting food in the carrier but she looks at me as if to say "I'm not falling for that one"!!!

anniehoo

October wrote: »

. She still seems to be over-grooming.

Im still a bit unsure about what you mean by this. Do you mean consistently cleaning the same area over and over.....and OVER? Cats are cleaners so am just curious. Some cats are "baldish" or have thinning hair around their ears and is nothing to worry about. How much has this progressed since you last posted?

If you cant get a pic, any chance you could get her weight if you have a weighing scales in your bathroom?

MaryK666

The fact that it hasn't spread, October, is a good thing but if it's still there, I'd advise going to see a vet asap.
The fact that she's still vigorously cleaning this area more than others indicates that there's still a problem. The issue now is finding out what that problem is. It's going to be better in the long run if you get your cat seen by a vet as soon as you can, in case it does turn out to be something more serious.
So many times, you hear of pet owners who put the vet visit 'on the long finger' in the hope that the issue will resolve itself and the problem only gets worse or leads to complications which may result in a much higher vets bill that the original treatment might have cost and a lot of distress to their pet.
I realise that trips to the vet can sometimes be expensive in these hard times, but you can't put a price on your pets health.

The food in the cat carrier can often be ignored if your cat has a fear of going in there but keep at it. If you put a blanket or something with your scent on it in there, remove the door and leave it out for the cat to get used to, in time they will come to learn that there's nothing to be afraid of. You can also try putting a treat or some of his favourite food in there to see if that'll entice him in but do it regularly when you don't need to take him anywhere so that he stops associating the carrier with danger.

The Royal Canin food is far better than Whiskas. I have a friend who works in animal rescue who has remarked that giving cats cheaper cat food on a regular basis is like feeding your children McDonalds every day and she's got a point. Always feed the best you can afford and you'll always do alright by your cat. There are theories that dry food alone can cause urinary tract and kidney problems down the line so if you add in some good quality wet food and occasionally some raw food, your cat should be happy and healthy.

I hope your poor little kitty is doing better and that it does turn out to be something minor like a food irritation but please do let us know.

October

Hi,

Sorry for taking so long to come back.

Things have improved a lot. The little sores that were there are gone and she is just left with the little bald patches - they are about the size of the top of a thumb.

I've spoken to the vet a couple of times and he said to bring her up if it flares up again. She has calmed down on the grooming too. I woke up at 3am one night and there she was still busy grooming!

Perhaps it was just a reaction to a change in her diet. She is continuing to settle in well and I just saw her rubbing heads with my other cat so looks like they are going to be friends!

I weighed her and she is 3.2kg. I will continue to keep a close eye on her skin but hopefully it was a once off event!

Thank you to everyone for their help.