Cat acne and vaccinations

lala6

Hi all, I brought my 8 year old cat to the vet a few weeks ago with a fairly mild dose of feline acne. They gave her an anti-inflammatory injection and told me to come back in two weeks for her vaccination. I did and then 2 weeks later for her booster, while I was there I pointed out that the acne had got really bad again, worse in fact than it was to start with! They told me she had got an infection and needed anti biotics to the tune of €25!! Then said 'if it's not gone in three weeks, bring her back for another shot'. I'd like some of your opinions on this as I'm nearly €200 down and my poor cat is no better off .

Incidentally, her bowls are ceramic and cleaned daily. I give her 1 whiskas sachet a day and some dry whiskas food in another bowl and she has been eating this her whole life.

Any help or advice would be appreciated.

Nody

You're feeding her the equivalent of a poor version of McD every day by giving your cat Whiskas (I'm not even going to start on the food content itself); read through this thread (esp. last one) and pick at least a high quality brand instead and see if it does not improve.

Themadhouse

If you can get Forever living aloe vera jelly
https://www.foreverliving.com/retail/shop/shopping.do?task=viewProductDetail&itemCode=061

this the best stuff to use on feline acne. put a half pea sized amount on your finger, rub it in and it will act as an anti inflam and gentle massage will lift the dirt. gently wipe the chin with a damp piece of cotton wool then.

Wet food will cause it, laziness to clean chin after eating will also cause it and some cats are just prone to it.

I have used hibiscrub in the past but i found it very harsh on the skin.

I have used this product regularly for about 7 yrs now and find it fantastic.

But yes I would suggest a rethink of the food. Whiskas is crap tbh. I would look at something a bit better.

boomerang

Did the vet give you any advice on how to clean the chin?

All the anti-inflamm shot will do is reduce the inflammation temporarily to ease her discomfort. I am sure they would have also given her the antibiotic shot at that time, if it were warranted then.

I don't think the vaccination would hugely challenge her immune system if she's healthy in every way otherwise. She may have acquired a secondary bacterial infection through rubbing the chin, if it's been persistently itchy and bothering her.

Has she finished the course of antibiotics? How is she now?

You might find this helpful:


"Chin acne has recently been extensively reviewed.
Acne is considered a follicular disorder and varies in
presentation from scattered comedones to severe chin
furunculosis. This is a clinical diagnosis.
It is important to remember that facial pruritus
is a common clinical sign in cats with many diseases,
and repeated rubbing of the face will result in hair
loss and plugging of sebaceous glands or comedones.

Useful diagnostic tests include cytology of the skin to
look for bacterial and yeast overgrowth; often, the underlying
trigger of the disease is gone, and the clinical signs
will resolve with treatment. Skin scrapings and hair
plucking should be performed to look for demodicosis.
Rapid onset of chin acne in a household of cats can be
caused by a bacterial infection, dermatophytosis, or D.
gatoi. Oddly, the latter can develop in a stable population
of pet cats in the home. Skin biopsy is not often necessary
for diagnosis or as a part of the diagnostic evaluation
but may be helpful in refractory cases.

Facial washing with a mild antibacterial and antifungal
shampoo can be helpful; in many cases, washing with
plain warm water combined with systemic antimicrobial
therapy is effective. Topical mupirocin ointment is very
effective, but cats will lick this solution off the face,
causing rupture of the hair follicles in the dermis and
worsening the disease. Some cats have been reported to
respond to cyclosporine. Manual expression of the
lesions is never helpful."

From The Cat: Clinical Medicine and Management by Susan Little, DVM pp.398-399.

lala6

Thanks so much to you all for the advice. I will stop giving her whiskas immediately....found a tin of tuna in the cupboard this morn ans gave her half, which she devoured! They gave her an anti-biotic injection as she hates tablets! They said it would last 3 weeks and we are at week 2 now, with a very slight improvement. I saw two different vets on my visits, one told me to wash her chin with a saline solution and the other said to use diluted savlon. She doesn't mind me using either tbh - she loves me cleaning it with anything really. It doesn't seem to be bothering her as I never see her at it and she is an indoor cat so she's in my company most of the time. I use certified 99% aloe vera gel myself from Holland and Barrett so could I use this on her instead?

lala6

Or better still.....could I use gel straight from my plant?

anniehoo

lala6 wrote: »

Or better still.....could I use gel straight from my plant?

No. While there is some conflicting info out there, it is purported that aloe vera in its raw state is toxic to both dogs and cats if ingested. It contains "saponins" which can cause anorexia,diarrhoea and vomiting. So do read up on in what state (liquid,cream,gel etc) and quantity it is safe to use in cats first.