What is this: fleas/mites/old age or what?

rita-rabbit

My two are approximately 10 & 8 yrs respectively. One is a housecat & the other an ocassional stopout. They are treated regularly with spot on flea treatment (currently Advantage).

Recently the fat one (housecat) Mia has presented with an abcess/boil on her chin which burst on it's own. I dabbed disinfectant on it but the spot is now bald & there are black dots on her chin. Is this fleas or some othere thing?

The other cat - a tom has similar dots in his ears.

I will take to the vets this week (quaking at the general hassle & expense in advance - they are quite clean cats & in the past have not been quickly diagnoses/sorted) but just any natural remedies/comments really.

Note Mia does hava partially bald belly due to overgrooming - before anyone accuses me of neglect. She was prescribed steriods & I prefer her with a bald tummy than dopey & not herself. If they are left for long periods & make sure Feliway is plugged in, leave the catflap unlocked & all interior doors left open so they don't get on each others nerves (oh & the cat feeders - i have a clockwork & mechanical one - set with food).

Fire_Fox

The chin might be feline acne ... ?? Plastic feeding bowls are known to be one cause of this, stress another. AFAIK you can't normally see ear mites, but you can see the resulting dark wax. My habit will with my human clients is to look for an underlying link when they have more than one condition. Why is Mia overgrooming, do you know what is stressing her? Has she been fully allergy tested? Are you unhappy with your current vet, if so are there any others you can use?

rita-rabbit

Hmm - food for thought.

Read somewhere that plastic feeding bowls were better than metal.

Mia - she likes alot of attention & the overgrooming started when I wasn't home much & the other cat used to bully her (if the catflap was unlocked) or leave her on her own. I am home alot more now & she is much happier in herself - however she (being greedy) is extremely fond of her belly: eating, having it tickled - methinx she licks alot when I'm not there for comfort! I only live in a 1-bed flat (no garden) & getting another young cat that has her wish for play isn't an option (nor is staying home more).

Neither cat is keen to leave the flat: I take them to parents when I holiday & they don't like the car journey. Note: the ocassional stopout is happy to jump the balcony to go on his walkabouts & the housecat wandering the exterior walkways of the block but that's of their own accord.

To be honest this chin thing maybe linked to my recent forays into giving different food or - her awful habit of eating crystal litter: I chucked some on the external walkway to stop snow forming (I have swept it up but it does the job & I do use it if I am away for longer than 24 hours in their litter - normally I use clay or Ott plus).

Anyways am off to wash the cat basket (fur fabric) interior cotton exterior & I have put Canural in the Tom's ears & on her chin & Surolan in hers. It won't do them major harm - they both have a love/hate relationship & groom each other!

Will also bleach the feeding bowls, china water dish & rinse with boiling water & make an appointment with the vet for next week

Fire_Fox

Plastic bowls are fine unless they are sensitive to it, the same with food really. China or glass feeding dishes are inert so should never cause a reaction. It doesn't sound good that Mia eats the crystal litter; I find OkoPlus excellent for smells, disposal and economy!

Have you tried any solo play toys? Now I have a really good set-up with the Turbo Track including flashing ball, Noah plays with it multiple times each day! He grooms an awful lot and has a tiny thinning patch above his tail. He is booked in for a general check up with the vet very soon - have been quoted £25 plus any meds which seems very reasonable.

rita-rabbit

For everyday litter use I also use Oko plus & clay - the crystals stay in the `cat cupboard' for use when I am away for more than a day or two - which is now a v rare occurence. I was using it as `grit' outside. Mia is a bit like a baby & likes to investigate everything sometimes nibbling it - I have seen her eating it & also Worlds best (I have kept the crystals for long term use) which I won't buy again specifically for that reason.

There isn't any crystals for her to eat currently - that is it is in the cupboard not on the ground outside or in their litter trays.

I don't have cut flowers or indoor plants for the cat eating reason too & outdoor walkway plants choice is limited due to cat nibbling. I will grow some cat grass sometime soon - I tried catnip plant but she killed it from eating & pulling up roots etc.

I haven't bought any toys recently - it was a bit of a thankless in the past so I gave up - ie they ignored them or expected me to waggle for them! Can you post links for these `new' solo toys please?

spike7451

Fire_Fox wrote: »

The chin might be feline acne ... ?? Plastic feeding bowls are known to be one cause of this, stress another. AFAIK you can't normally see ear mites, but you can see the resulting dark wax. My habit will with my human clients is to look for an underlying link when they have more than one condition. Why is Mia overgrooming, do you know what is stressing her? Has she been fully allergy tested? Are you unhappy with your current vet, if so are there any others you can use?

Here's the thread I posted on Purrs about plastic bowls. FF.
http://www.purrsinourhearts.co.uk/index.php/topic,28459.msg502895.html#msg502895

Fire_Fox

That is probably where I read about the plastic bowls, Spike!

Rita: some cats seem to only like toys that move of their own accord, others will happily flick around a ball of foil or 'dead' toy mouse. Moving toys that I haven't tried include Panic Mouse; you might also make an intelligence board out of toilet rolls, string, egg boxes and yoghurt pots and hide food in it! Loads of ideas on YouTube if you search for 'katzenfummelbrett'. There are also cat DVDs on the market or you could try leaving a talk radio show on for company?

Bergan Turbo Track only available in the UK from here:
http://www.purrsinourhearts.co.uk/catalog/bergan-turbo-track-interactive-cat-toy-p-170.html
The YouTube that persuaded me to try it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIgdVucDeVU

I now have two full sets of track and two sets of straights plus flashing ball, about £45 but not all bought at once! The straights make the ball go faster and the ball is great for playing at night, both have definitely increased interest. If Noah gets bored I just pack it away: he is in my face when I put it together again!

rita-rabbit

I don't think it is acne - I think it's some kind of parasite tbh because of the black dots (which I am not too happy about because of they are already on Advantage & I had hoped it covered for more than fleas - I used Stronghold in the past for this but for some reason was persuaded out of it). It was a large swelling on the whole chin & the current affected areas are not swollen but are a bit patchy/baldy - or is cat acne a different `beast' to humans? Ages ago I tried putting essential oils (cedar wood & pine) in water & giving them a wipe down for a natural flea repellant & it gave the Tom an allergic reaction (it crossed my mind to put it on Mia's chin but decided against it)

Water is served in a ceramic bowls

Wet food - premade cat food & raw is served in stainless steel bowls

Only dry is served in plastic bowls (although 9/10th of their food is dry)

Fire_Fox

"What causes feline acne?

The exact cause of feline acne isn't known. There are several possible causes however including

• Stress
• Plastic food bowls is commonly discouraged, especially in cats with feline acne. This is because they are porous & trap bacteria, which is then transferred to the cat's chin. It has also been suggested that an allergic reaction to the plastic food bowl is a cause.
• Poor grooming habit.
• Over active sebaceous glands
• Food allergies

What are the symptoms of feline acne?

• The chin & possibly lips have black spots (comedones) on it, which look like dirt.
• Secondary infection may lead to swollen, red, pustules, leading to bleeding due to irritation.

As there are other conditions with similar symptoms to feline acne, it is important to take your cat to the veterinarian for a proper diagnosis & appropriate treatment."

http://www.cat-world.com.au/feline-acne

IIRC you shouldn't use pine or cedar oils for cats, these are normally dried or heated out of any wood-based litter. ETA: Having just checked the net, pine oil is apparently toxic to cats, some sites say cedar is a flea-repellent others say it's an irritant. Are you sure the disinfectant you used on the chin was suitable for cats? Does it go cloudy in water?

rita-rabbit

Ok - ceramic or glass bowl buying tomorrow - why on earth do they even sell plastic bowls then (!!!!!!)! Also proof that plastic shouldn't be used to heat things in microwave or oven for humans either... Mia spends alot of her time with her face in the bowls..

Proof that housecats are less healthy methinx - initial reason for changing from wet (felix & ocassional GoCat) to Burns was Mia's dandruff (which cleared up immediately the food change took place). Chi's teeth were being attended to via toothpaste (logic).

Fire_Fox

There are a million products on sale that a minority of people or animals are allergic to: those that are allergic to one substance are often allergic to others. She obviously still needs to be checked by the vet, but changing the bowls is an easier fix than trying to get her to swallow tablets!