At my WITS END!!!!!!!!! (UPDATE!!! POST #19)

I'm sorry, this might be a little long, but please bear with me and read it all.
Some of you may remember when Mooky had this sore on him back in October.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...MookysSore.jpg
The vet said that it looked like he scraped it on something. In a matter of days, he got 4 more of these exact same sores. He was on antibiotics from the first time and gradually they went away as long as he didn't lick them.
The other cats, except for Sades & Chipper, had these little sores on them which I pinned down to the rough play with each other. But the sores would get bigger as time went on. Last month I had to bring Lindy Lou & Mooky to the vet. Mooky had these types of irratated sores from the neck, right down to the base of his tail and Lindy Lou had a sore on the side of her neck which got worse because Nugget kept licking it and kind of biting down on it, but she also had sores on her body. Upon examining them, the vet said that it was flea related even though they didn't have fleas. Didn't make sense to me at all. They both got a cortizone shot and Lindy Lou was also put on antibiotics. I had to treat all the cats, plus the dog with Advantage last month and they had another treatment last week. Lindy's sore came back in the same spot, so we put a little turtle neck sweater on her that we made from one of the hubby's sweatshirts.
Here is our little sweater girl.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ictures005.jpg
The sore is almost healed up now and we take her sweater off for a bit to let her clean herself. Well tonight, when I went to put it back on, I felt she was wet on the side of her body. This is what I saw. Sorry the picture is blurry as she wouldn't keep still.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ictures020.jpg
Plus I noticed this one
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ictures022.jpg
I still have some antibiotics left over, so I started her on them again and she will have to keep her sweater on longer. The more she licks them, the worse they get.

Has anyone else experienced something like this with your own cat or heard of anything like this before. I have to bring in Poppy & Nugget now because they might need a cortizone shot also. The both have quite a few scabby sores on them. My first thought was ringworm, but the vet confirmed that it wasn't. This has been going on for months now and I am at my wits end about it. Willy & Chipper are the only ones who do not have any sores. Sades had about 2, but they are gone now.

Any thoughts on this.

Oh NO!!! this is terrible.Just what you need right now.AND hopefully it isn't something catchy and it is JUST from fleas...even though that is bad enough.My Goodness...I'll start looking online to see if i find anything.
i hope this all goes away very soon for her and you.
Hang in there Lorraine :(

Poor kitties...and you!

Has the vet done any scrapings for mites?
Could it be pesticides sprayed around the house or food allergies? If not pesticides, I'd look to cleaning products and maybe change the diet (bland diet of chicken, rice and lamb) for at least 6 weeks.

My gut says it's mites as I had a kitty in my past that had patches very much like those.

Maybe this could help, but please consult the vet first! http://www.petsmart.com/product/inde...ductId=2754474

I told my oldest son about this and he looked it up on the internet and said that if he didn't know any better, he would swear that I wrote the article because it said almost to a tee what I told him what the vet said. That it's flea related and the treatment is a cortizone shot and antibiotics, BUT, that it could come back in about 6 months time.
What I don't get is how can this can be flea related when they don't have fleas :confused:
Apparently is isn't contagious from what the vet said anyway.

Thank you Fuzzybums. I will definitely ask the vet about mites when I bring Poppy & Nugget in. I had asked him if it could be allergies and he said no. Also, my guys don't go outside and we live on the second floor and as far as I know, there is no spraying for pesticides around here.

Can you try whatever it was that your son saw in the article he found online?? Can you get a 2nd opinion at another vet?? I'd be skeptical if he said fleas, and there are none.

Hope you can figure something out!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jenn_librarian

Can you try whatever it was that your son saw in the article he found online??

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The article didn't say to try anything. Just that it is treated with a Cortizone shot and antibiotics.
I will have to see what my vet says this time with Poppy & Nugget. If i'm not satisfied, I will bring them for a second opinion.

Back in the 1970's, my brother had a cat who had similar looking sores. They turned out to be spider bites. I can't remember what kind of spider and how the vet figured it out, though.

I found this article from a British website about skin sores and it also says it can be either flea related or mites. Judging from the answer, it's pretty hard to pinpoint what a cat can be allergic too, but it seems as it's more than one cat they are definately having an allergic reaction to something in the house?

The article is here:
http://www.petplanet.co.uk/vet_answe...?thread_id=509


I hope you get to the bottom of what's irritating the kitties, bless them, they're in my thoughts.

WOW! How frustrating that must be. I can't imagine what is happening. And how could so many kitties be allergic to fleas? (only animals that are ALLERGIC to fleas would have such a severe reaction to them.) But if they ARE truly allergic to flea bites, then as little as 1 flea could be causing all the problems.
Checking for mites does seem to be a good idea, though.

Ouch, I've never experienced this with any of my cats.

Please keep us updated on him.

Melissa

That is so scary! I think it is TO odd that suddenly that many are having them so it has to be something they all are exposed to... We can carry fleas in on us from outside but it just sounds to odd that suddenly so many are allergic.

:confused: I am puzzled as well, Lorraine! That first picture of Mooky sure looks like ringworm to me and the last one of Lindy Lou does too! It's quite red and sore looking so that has me puzzled. Maybe she was just scratching it too much? Do they have any of these around their faces and ears? Do they look dry and scaly at all? Did your vet use the Wood's lamp test to be sure it isn't ringworm?

I'm so sorry about all of this! I know it is very frustrating and worrysome for you!!!!

HUGS,
Kim

My guess is sarcopic mange. Get a second opinion and have them take a skin scraping.

Have you thought about contacting a vet who specializes in dermatology (or even the vet school in QB)?

[QUOTE=kimlovescats]:confused: I am puzzled as well, Lorraine! That first picture of Mooky sure looks like ringworm to me and the last one of Lindy Lou does too!

Kim, I really don't think it is ringworm because this seems to have started back in October with Mooky and no one in the family has gotten any sores, rashes or bites. Nothing at all for that matter.

It's quite red and sore looking so that has me puzzled. Maybe she was just scratching it too much? Do they have any of these around their faces and ears? Do they look dry and scaly at all?

The second picture is from a hard scab, that when you feel it, you swear there is a piece of claw stuck in their skin. When they pick the scab off, that is the type of sore that appears. But when they stop licking it, it scabs over again. They don't scratch as much as they do lick. No, they don't have any on their face or ears. The sores are mainly on the back of their necks, down the spine and some on the side of their bodies. Nothing on the tummy or legs. Once they stop licking the sore, it becomes dry and scaly.

I'm so sorry about all of this! I know it is very frustrating and worrysome for you!!!!

[I]It is very frustrating, but it's nothing compared to what others are going through with their babies, especially poor Jen. That's why I hadn't mentioned anything until now.

Donna; I looked up Sarcopic Mange and I don't think it's that as it is also contagious to humans. Like I mentioned above, no one has gotten any kind of reaction from this and everyone has been in close contact with the cats.

I want to thank all of you for your thoughts and ideas in regards to this. I really appreciate it and will bring up your suggestions to the vet tonight when we bring in Poppy & Nugget. I will update you later.

Have you had a skin scraping done? Forgive me if you've answered this already, I tried skimming :)

If it is related to mites, then you will not be able to see any bugs on the skin as they are very very tiny and live underneath the skin in the hair follicles. A skin scraping can be done at the vet and usually get your results in a matter of minutes.

We recently had a dog with MUCH larger (read HUGE) itchy spots on it that looked similar to those. Skin scrapings indicated mange (mites) with a secondary Staph infection from scratching so much.

If skin scrapings have not been done on your pets I'd highly recommend them. Otherwise a second opinon may be in order just for your own peace of mind if nothing else.

Good luck.

Wishing you and your kitties all the best and praying for you all that the vets figure this out and come up with treatment that will clear it up.

Pat and Poppy and the gang

PHEW!!!! Finally got back about 15 minutes ago from the vet. We had an hour and a half wait.

Anyhoo, well like most of you thought, it is MITES!!!!!

The vet took a skin scraping from Nugget & then from Poppy, to be on the safe side, because sometimes you can't see the mites in one scraping. I asked him how could they get mites if they are indoors? He said the "DAWG" could have brought them in. I better not let the kitties know this because they will most likely gang up on the old fella. :eek:

So each cat will get 3 drops each of Revolution for the next 3 months and one pill of Prednisone a day for the next 4 days and after that, only if needed.

Oh how I pray that this will be it for them as it must be uncomfortable for my babies to go through this, especially little Lindy Lou.

Thank you all again for your replies and thoughts.

THANK GOD!! Now they can get cleared up and stop that blasted itching, you can stop worrying and things can get back to normal! I know that is a big releif for you. GREAT NEWS!

So glad to hear you got a proper diagnosis! Don't you just hate it when vets guess wrong! Get better kitties!!

Does the DAWG need to be treated too?

I hope this clears up for you real fast.

Whew, glad I came along when the problem was solved! How frustrating for you though -- 6 months of this and no resolution til now.

This topic surely had me guessing. I felt so sorry for you and your furry friends. I have never had a "mites" problem, but I do know that when one of my Abys arrived, as a kitten, I was given "Revolution" to treat her for a few months to make sure that she didn't come down with ringworm. My breeder used this treatment to prevent, rather than treat the problem after the start up. Catterys are special little breeding grounds for things other than cats. My guess is that you have had bad luck. Having a few cats increases your odds for having multiple pets having the same thing. Something we are (well nearly all) subject to. Is there anyone out there with just one pet? Oh yes, Karen and Paul! Who would have figured that?

I hope the recovery happens quickly and the cats begin to feel some relief immediately.

I had one cat, Mandy, my first Aby, that was a ringworm "carrier" although she never had an active case. Guess who got a case of ringworm? ME! My vet and doctor were sure Mandy was the source. She was my only pet at the time.

Again, I hope this torture for you and your kitties ends soon and you go back to your happy go lucky life.

Get rid of that dog. (Just kidding, of course).... :) :D

Lorraine, I'm sorry that your cats have had to go through this for so long:( but I'm so glad that you now know what's causing this.:) I read this yesterday but didn't have time to comment. I was also going to suggest that it might be mites because when you adopted Nugget didn't he have them? Maybe for some reason his never cleared up or some how some of the mites continued to live in some where in your home. I hope that everyone will clear up and feel better very soon. Good luck.:)

I came into this topic kinda late...everything was all figured out...thankfully!! I never would have guessed mites. Glad you finally got the right diagnosis and the poor kits can get on the mend. All that itching must be madness. Poor poor kitties. Isn't it funny how the poor ol' dawg always get the blame. :p Give that poor guilty puppy a cuddle for me anyway. I am sure he didn't mean to give the kitties mites. Give the kits some rubs for me too. All that itching should be gone soon and they will start to feel normal again. Poor sweeties.

((((HUGS)))) to you too Lorraine for hangin in there and not stopping till you got an answer, good kitty mommy that you are. :)

Michelle

WOW, Lorraine, I'm so relieved to know it was something fairly simple to remedy! I am still learning something everyday about kitties and their "issues"! I've never had to deal with any skin mites (yet) :rolleyes: ... only ear mites!

Hugs to you and your babies and your poor widdle poochie too! This will immediately get better with the revolution! The little varments will die quickly and the itching will stop quickly with the pred!

Kim

Oh wow, I'd never guessed mites either. So glad to hear they are being treated and on their way to recovery.

That would have driven me crazy too Lorraine. How strange!

i never would of dreamed it would be earmites with the way the wounds looked(being that big).
i just adopted a cat and after reading this i doused her ears with mineral oil and cleaned out the dirt in case she still has live ear mites.
hoping the mineral will drowned the earmites.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jazzcat

Oh wow, I'd never guessed mites either. So glad to hear they are being treated and on their way to recovery.

That would have driven me crazy too Lorraine. How strange!

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There are different types of mites actually; some skin mites can cause mange ;) They are nasty little buggers and nearly impossible to see with the naked eye since they are TIIINY and live underneath the skin in your hair follicles.

I didn't join in on this early but I'm glad that you got a proper diagnosis and that they're well on the road to recovery. What a mind bender!

When I first saw the picture I assumed mites, and as I read on I saw I was right. Only because we just went through all of this - oh what fun you are in for!! - :rolleyes: -


You too must be careful, if it is ringworm, then you too can catch it. It stays airborne for up to a year!! - :eek: -


If you look back into my threads, you will get a lot of information from everyone here. Every one was extremly helpful to me during my infestation.


Off the top of my head: WASH your hands a LOT! ; do your laundry in hot water; wash all pets beds, blanekts, etc. ; try to keep the infected animals away from the non-infected ones (yeah right, I know...) ; and did I mention.....wash your hands??!!!

Have fun, and good luck!

OOPS!!! I missed the eventual diagnosis!!! I'm glad that things are going better...poor babies!