Parrothead Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 My cat has what looks like hot spots on her back. Starting about mid way and down to the base of her tail. They almost heal over then she picks again. She had two on her head by each ear. I've successfully treated the ones on her head with a bit of Neosporin and an ointment I got from Amazon called Zymox. I've tried using the same on her back but she keeps licking it off. So it isn't doing much good. I tried a cone collar but she slips it no matter how tight I put it on her head. Any ideas on how to keep her from licking/chewing? She is inside, and 8 years old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cornelia9805 Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 Do you know what they are from? Our male cat is extremely sensitive to fleas and their bites. I have to keep up with his flea medication in order to keep the sores away. I hope you can figure something out. It's so sad when pets have issues. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vettechmomof2 Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 Sounds like flea allergy dermatitus. Ecollar until her skin heals. Possible steroids to reduce itchiness and flea meds. I would recommend a vet visit for this as it could alsobe other things as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieZ Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 Be sure she is free of any fleas whatsoever. Ideally, see a vet. To prevent licking, sometimes you can fit the cat in a onesie, but that really should come after seeing the vet to determine the underlying cause. The most likely thing is a flea allergy. Comfortis, off label through your vet, is the best thing, but OTC fipronil ( generic frontline plus) is often good enough, so if you want to try something before seeing the vet, dose her with fipronil. If that doesn't work, then please see the vet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 is she on any other meds? Some meds cause that as a reaction. (thyroid meds come to mind) Otherwise allergy, or various other things, including ringworm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted July 28, 2012 Author Share Posted July 28, 2012 Thanks everyone. I don't think she has fleas. None of the other pets have them either. But she did spend most of her days on the front porch before all this started. (Everyone comes in for the night.) I was more concerned about black flies which do go for the blood so I started keeping her in during the day. I'll try the onsie over the weekend and see if there is any improvement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vettechmomof2 Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 On many cats you will not see the fleas as cats are such great groomers. Most often you will see small flecks of black dirt. They sell very fine tooth flea combs that help get through the hair and if you find any debris like that drop it onto a white paperwtowel and moisten it. if it turns red that is flea dirt and means that you pet has been exposed to fleas. This would still be my first recommendation. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 On many cats you will not see the fleas as cats are such great groomers. Most often you will see small flecks of black dirt. They sell very fine tooth flea combs that help get through the hair and if you find any debris like that drop it onto a white paperwtowel and moisten it. if it turns red that is flea dirt and means that you pet has been exposed to fleas.This would still be my first recommendation. :grouphug: exactly. The swallow them before you see them, but the flea dirt doesn't lie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted July 28, 2012 Author Share Posted July 28, 2012 (edited) Is it normal for cats to have fleas but not the dogs in the same household? Oh, we got her the onsie. She isn't pleased. But tolerating it much better than the cone collar. This morning when I checked her she was much improved and mostly healed. I thought we had made it over a hump. Then we went out (not that I think it is anxiety, just timing) to get the onsie and a few other things. When we got home I noticed she had chewed herself again. Edited July 28, 2012 by Parrothead Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vettechmomof2 Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 depends, are any of the critters with a flea prev.. Some pets do not react to a flea infestation until they are miserable so fleas oculd still be an issue and you are just not noitcing it yet. It is very simple to check for fleas so I would still do that as a first check. I would still recommend a vet visit. They would normally shave and clean up the sites and they would also be able to tell you if there are any signs of fleas or diagnose another reason such as allergies/ infection/etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted July 28, 2012 Author Share Posted July 28, 2012 depends, are any of the critters with a flea prev.. Some pets do not react to a flea infestation until they are miserable so fleas oculd still be an issue and you are just not noitcing it yet. It is very simple to check for fleas so I would still do that as a first check.I would still recommend a vet visit. They would normally shave and clean up the sites and they would also be able to tell you if there are any signs of fleas or diagnose another reason such as allergies/ infection/etc. Well, the yard is treated. Not specifically any of the animals (2 cats 1 dog). We don't have fleas in the house. The dog sleeps with dd. One of the cats sleeps with me. This all came about during black fly season. If you don't know what Maine black flies are like it is hard to imagine. They are worse than any flea infestation you can imagine. It is like she was bitten several times in a few different areas and just kept picking. Now the black flies are gone, but the mosquitoes are out. They get drawn to the open sores. Which is why we have her in (and begging all day long to go out). I'll do the check for fleas. But I'll have to order a comb from Amazon. The WM here doesn't have a superfine flea comb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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