Our cat Ziggy has got - well basically a round patch about inch wide of fur missing from the back of him. Its down the the skin and bright pink and sore looking. He went out to play in the morning - i let him out and didnt notice it - its where his ginger patch of fur usually is!

Theres pics here -

from a distance - http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/pp150/sarahandnickswedding/DSC04215.jpg

Up close - http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/pp150/sarahandnickswedding/DSC04211.jpg

My OH noticed this this afternoon, (Didnt tell me till 2night tho!!!!!)

So i guess firstly - should i be taking him to the vet? He doesnt seem to be in any pain, is running around, eating, drinking, sleeping as normal.

and secondly - any idea what could it be?

Im thinking it could be:

1) Frontline - he was frontlined on Saturday - BUT he's frontlined 4 weekly, and it was near there but not exactly there, and his head had a spot too - and he has no fur loss on his little head

2) He had an oil spot there....could this have caused it? He regularly has black marks from "playing" under cars -we live on a quiet road but Ziggy loves cars :(

3) Maybe a "helpful" neighbour has tried to clean it off and he's had a reaction - he goes into at least one house on the street - they have a teenage son who loves him and might have cleaned it off with bleech or something daft

4) A cat fight? No scratches or marks on it though

5) A humans hurt him deliberatly :rant: If so, ill end up killing someone....

and i just dont know.

Any idea and advice appreciated -he seems fine and dont think it warrents rushing to the emergency vets, but then maybe he needs checking over?

Any advice appreciated

Oooh that looks sore :( I've no idea sorry but hopefully someone will be along soon with some advice for you.

He could have done it to himself or another cat could have had him, it looks like that to me.? I would get it checked at the vet. Its not an emergency job as long as you keep it clean or it will get infected as its an open wound.

If you bath it with a warm salt solution that will clean it. Cat bites are horrendous and liable to infection as cats have some terrible types of bacteria in there mouths.

He doesnt seem bothered looking at the pics.:hihi:

Sarah

I'm no expert, but in my opinion, that needs checking by a vet.

If Ziggy's not showing any signs of distress or being ill, then I'd ring your vet first thing in the morning and ask for an emergency appointment. Vets usually have some set aside each day in case short notice appointments are needed.

I wouldn't put anything on the area, but if there's any discharge, you could gently bathe the area in warm water with a small amount of salt dissolved in it. Don't use human treatments such as TCP or anything as that could potentially make Ziggy seriously ill.

Good luck xxx

Any idea how this has happened to my boy? :huh:

I thought this thread was probably about an animal causing injury to a child!

Ive had a closer look - im 100% its not from a fight, as daft as it sounds he's soft as a brush and doesnt fight at all, theres 2 girls cats that play around our garden, but he just plays with them. Its totally clean, like no swipe/scratch anything.

Im going to ask next door if hes cleaned him - im sure its a reaction to something, and thats the exact spot his blackish oil patch was.

I'll see what next door say and update! x

and yeah he's 100% himself and fine - the usual like he will ONLY drink from a running tap :hihi:

Any idea how this has happened to my boy? :huh:

I thought this thread was probably about an animal causing injury to a child!

in the pet section? that would be odd wouldnt it.

Ive had a closer look - im 100% its not from a fight, as daft as it sounds he's soft as a brush and doesnt fight at all, theres 2 girls cats that play around our garden, but he just plays with them. Its totally clean, like no swipe/scratch anything.

Im going to ask next door if hes cleaned him - im sure its a reaction to something, and thats the exact spot his blackish oil patch was.

I'll see what next door say and update! x

He may not necessarily had a fight, but a cat may have had a go at him unprovoked if you like. I have a tap monster too its really annoying when trying to wash the pots though. :rolleyes:

Let us know what the neighbour says.... or will they admit it?:suspect:

in the pet section? that would be odd wouldnt it.


No actually. I noticed it was in the pets section, but thought you'd posted about scratches, bites, cuts or some other injury to your child - which you suspected might have been caused by someones pet animal.

I read the OP as I have some expertise in recognising non-accidental injuries to children - only to discover that you were not discussing an injury to a child, but your concern is about your cat, i.e., "my boy" , which has some hair missing.

Calling your cat a boy just seems very odd to me - but then I'm not a cat owner (but if I were, I'd call a cat a cat, and not a boy).

Hope your cat soon recovers by the way.

It sounds as though it might be a hot spot. There is a site which tells you about it here

http://www.cat-health-guide.org/cat-hot-spots.html

No actually. I noticed it was in the pets section, but thought you'd posted about scratches, bites, cuts or some other injury to your child - which you suspected might have been caused by someones pet animal.

I read the OP as I have some expertise in recognising non-accidental injuries to children - only to discover that you were not discussing an injury to a child, but your concern is about your cat, i.e., "my boy" , which has some hair missing.

Calling your cat a boy just seems very odd to me - but then I'm not a cat owner (but if I were, I'd call a cat a cat, and not a boy).

Hope your cat soon recovers by the way.

Well - the pet section posts will always be about pets, any kids posts moved to the relevant section...

I guess its cos he really is like my child....in a crazy cat lady type way!!

Im sure he'll be fine, but ill get him to the vets tomorrow.

Personally I'd clean it, look for puncture wounds or other wounds and then clean it daily and watch for signs of healing or infection.

If there's one sore then I'm not sure that I would take him to the vets. It could be anything from a hot spot to him having a good old scratch (I've got one who opens himself up just like that- and I don't think that it's any coincidence that he's mostly white), so if there's only one of them and there's no sign of infection then I'd treat it as a wound and make sure it's healing.

If it's infected, or if it's growing, or there's more than one of them or it's repeated somewhere else once this one heals- THEN I'd go to the vets.

EDIT- my opinion about not taking him to the vets is limited to this cat in this circumstance, understanding that he's otherwise well in himself and nothing else is giving cause for concern. If he's at all off colour in a way which could be an illness or a systemic infection then it needs veterinary attention quickly.

It sounds as though it might be a hot spot. There is a site which tells you about it here

http://www.cat-health-guide.org/cat-hot-spots.html

This is what happens to my cat Oliver, he gets lots of sores like this around his neck, chest, legs and tail, all caused by himself...and it might well be caused hotspots because his skin feels extra hot where the sores are, the vet thinks that it may be an allergy.
It is treated with anti inflammatory drugs and steroids when it flares up, Oli is completely white :sad: