Originally posted by smokey the elder
Wow, that looks scary. Please make sure your vet can figure out what it is or get a second, etc. opinion. Isn't Peanut a
"senior" cat?
Yes, she is 14 1/2 now, so you could describe her as a nice elderly lady.

Well, the vet looked at her "growths" and said they are some kind of skin growth. He didn't seem overly concerned as if it were cancer or anything, but said to keep an eye on them and if they change in anyway to let him know right away. He said he couldn't burn them off because they have "roots" and go deeper into the skin. He could cut them out if I wanted, but he said we'd try the least invasive procedure first. So what he suggested was Feliway (yes, Kelly, I thought of you and your gang when he said this ). He said he thought Tubby's licking on her sounded more behavioral since he wasn't licking on these particular spots. So I said why would Tubby start this now after they've been together for 13 years and he never did it before. He didn't have an answer for that one. I told him the whole story about how the other vet said she had allergies and all, and he didnt' think that was the case.

He said I should spray the Feliway on a damp cloth and rub T & P with it. I should use the same cloth for both cats because then they will smell the same and there will be no reason for him to come over and start sniffing and licking her. So I did this when we got back home, and no scuffles all afternoon. Then I did it again before we went to bed, and all was quiet all night - yipee!! Then Sunday morning I did not rub them down because I wanted to do a little test, and sure enough Sunday afternoon there was a scuffle, so out comes the Feliway and they both get rubbed down again. Nothing last night and they both got rubbed down this morning, so we'll see what Terry says about them today. He said the Feliway was supposed to calm them down - which might also help Peanut and her stress licking (her one front leg is still bare underneath and her tummy has never filled in again, but is not as bare as it was last year).

They did seem calmer, but all they did was sleep, so I thought to myself, how much calmer can they get then this? Although I don't want them sleeping all the time, and I don't want cats that seem like they're doped up all the time, so we'll have to see how this goes. He said I should call back in about 2 weeks and let him know how it's going. If it seems to be working we'll keep it this way, or we'll try something different which might included cutting the growths out - which I would only do as a last resort. He said he wouldn't want to put her out to do it because of her age so he would only give a local anesthetic, and she would be terrified the whole time, so I hope we don't have to do that.

So anyway, she was a good little girl the whole time - basically too terrified to move. When I was at home I couldn't get her in the carrier, then at the vet I couldn't get her out of it! But she did real good and got extra treats when we got home, along with a good rub down of Feliway.

Thanks everyone for all your thoughts and caring.