bald spot where he was vaccinated

[volia]

We took our little dog and our 9-10 year old tabby, Oliver, in to the vet 2 days ago to get a check up. While there we learned that Oliver was way overdue for his distemper and rabies shots. Aside from this Oliver was given a clean bill of health. So we had him vaccinated and when home. He seemed fine for the last two days, but today I woke up and found a spot on the floor with alot of hair. At the time I didn't think to much of it, until the cat came in and I saw he was bald in the area that he got the shots.

Before I go on, I should say that yes I know I should keep him in and we do have a indoor cat, but Oliver was from the pound and had always been a indoor outdoor cat, and we would always let him out before I realized it was a bad thing (that was how my mother had her cats and her mother and so on). I tried to keep him in and he spent the whole time howling and crying at the door.

We live in a area with a low population and alot a farms. So he does get into fights from time to time with the locals, and when we took him in, he had a sore from one of these fights and alittle of the hair was gone from the site of that (though not much). Because of this, the vet gave him the shots more toward the side of the back of the neck. He did look at the sore and he said it wasn't anything to worry about.

My question is, should I be worried? I've never had a animal go bald from a shot before...I would call the vet, but they are closed until Monday...

Thanks for any help you guys can give

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I have not heard of cats losing their fur from vaccinations, but are you absolutely certain he got the shots in that spot...toward the side of the back of the neck?!  These days, most Vets give vaccinations in the leg, just in case there are complications. 

I would just give a call tomorrow and ask them about the bald spot.  Does it seem to bother him?  Maybe the existing sore was itching a little and he scratched at it.  You know how sores can itch when they are healing? 

 

[mollymoomoo]

when my cat has a bald spot its either molting or a bite from a bug.... the very best thing for that is to take a q-tip dip it in colorless iodine and rub it in the spot once or twice a day for a few days.... problem solved..... i dont think your cat is reacting to the shot though.... when you take a pet to the vet it is possible the pet got a flea from another animal.... try the colorless iodine.... it ALWAYS works on my cat....

 

[volia]

Thanks for replying guys.

I just thought I would let you know what it turned out to be incase anyone else has this problem and is searching through the site.

I ended up calling monday and was told to put a warm cloth over the area for 5 mins at least 2 times a day and see if that helped. It didn't help much but I kept trying until yesterday (Friday) and then took him in. The vet took a look at it and told me that it was a reaction to the injection, one that he had seen before, and they can take 5 to 6 weeks to clear up (I should mention that there was a large lump under his skin in the area that was bald. I thought it was just swelling but was wrong). He also told his that after it clears up, most of the time the cat will grow back the hair, though there have been cases where they didn't. It doesn't bother the cat and it's safe to treat them the same as always. Before taking him in, I had hear about sarcoma and was worried it might be that, but the vet told it it's very rare for it to form so soon after the injection. So far Oliver hasn't really noticed it and it doesn't bother him when we touch it, so we are trying not to worry about it and just give it time.

Thanks again for trying to help guys

 

[mollymoomoo]

did you try the colorless iodine???? it really works....glad nothing to worry about...

 

[barbb]

I've had a cat lose hair reacting to revolution before, as you said they don't really notice it but it's scary. I'm glad your kitty will be ok.

Find out what kind of shot that was (modified live virus, or some other concoction) and ask the vet if there is another kind of shot that is made a different way and will not give the same reaction next time.

I would also find out if there is anything you can give your cat before getting those shots in the future, i.e. benadryl or whatever, because the reaction next time could be worse if cats react to allergies the same as people. Maybe don't give the shot at all after this, considering there was a reaction. 

Here is an interesting article, it's a little technical and focused on dogs but also discusses cats, and it is worth a read; it lists reactions more towards the end and it suggests it is best not to do shots in the future if there have been reactions previously  http://www.dogs4dogs.com/blog/2009/08/06/treating-adverse-vaccine-reactions-by-jean-dodds-dvm/

 

[volia]

@mollymoomoo Thank you for the suggestion. I'm planning on trying it in a few weeks once the lump goes down. Right now the area that doesn't have any hair is the area where the lump is, and I got the impression from the vet that the hair wouldn't grow back until his lump was gone. But I'm looking forward to trying it, thanks for the idea!

@BardB Our vet told us that his suggestion was to not give him shots anymore. He said that since he would be about 13 by the time he needed more, that it would be safest to just risk it and not use the shots. But he keeps going out the way he is now (though he is starting to stay in more and more) then I think I will do just what your suggesting. Thanks for the advice ^_^

 

[Cato74]

We took our little dog and our 9-10 year old tabby, Oliver, in to the vet 2 days ago to get a check up. While there we learned that Oliver was way overdue for his distemper and rabies shots. Aside from this Oliver was given a clean bill of health. So we had him vaccinated and when home. He seemed fine for the last two days, but today I woke up and found a spot on the floor with alot of hair. At the time I didn't think to much of it, until the cat came in and I saw he was bald in the area that he got the shots.

Before I go on, I should say that yes I know I should keep him in and we do have a indoor cat, but Oliver was from the pound and had always been a indoor outdoor cat, and we would always let him out before I realized it was a bad thing (that was how my mother had her cats and her mother and so on). I tried to keep him in and he spent the whole time howling and crying at the door.

We live in a area with a low population and alot a farms. So he does get into fights from time to time with the locals, and when we took him in, he had a sore from one of these fights and alittle of the hair was gone from the site of that (though not much). Because of this, the vet gave him the shots more toward the side of the back of the neck. He did look at the sore and he said it wasn't anything to worry about.

My question is, should I be worried? I've never had a animal go bald from a shot before...I would call the vet, but they are closed until Monday...

Thanks for any help you guys can give

This happened to my cat this week after his annual vaccine. I couldn’t visit my normal family veterinary practice as they were booked solid so I had to go to a multinational chain type vet and I didn’t like the way the vet treated him at the time. He was quite rough and brusque in manner and didn’t seem interested in my cat and didn’t weigh him until I asked and didn’t ask any questions.
Anyway, the next day, my cat had a bald spot the size of a 10p piece and a visible swelling and sore looking hole where the needle went in. His ears also felt red hot and he wasn’t eating though he was drinking normally.
I called the vet where I went and he said rudely ‘Classic signs of ringworm, I suggest you treat for that’
I replied that he has had Advantage spot on treatments monthly since being a kitten despite being an indoor cat as it’s easy for visitors to bring a flea or whatever in with them and I don’t want them on my beloved cat or in my flat.
He just said ‘bring him back and i’ll Have to see him again I suppose but you’ll have to pay for the consult’
I was fuming.
I called for an emergency appointment at my usual vet practice and they fitted us in. They examined him nose to tail and he had a high temperature (hence the hot ears, the good vet said if you don’t like putting a thermometer up your cats erm.. chocolate starfish, this was the best indicator of body temperature) and slightly rapid heartbeat. He phoned the other vet and came back to me and said ‘he was rude to me too’ he confirmed it was a cheaper version of the annual vaccine that my cat had had an allergic reaction to despite me being charged £13.50 more than the better alternative he’s always had and never reacted to at my normal vet practice. He’d seen it many times before. He gave him a shot of antihistamine for the reaction and paracetamol for his fever and some complimentary ‘gentle on the tummy food’ for 2 days as he wasn’t eating. He also took a skin scrape of the spot and said most definitely it was not ringworm and if I had given additional treatment for this I could have poisoned my baby by overdosing!
I have allergies too and carry epipens so I knew how my poor little soldier must have felt. No wonder he was off his food.
By the time we got home 30 minutes later, the lump and redness had gone leaving just the bald spot which my good vet said would grow back in. He’s an oriental cat, very short haired so it’s very noticeable which in a way is a blessing or it may have gotten worse and I may not have noticed.
He wolfed the gentle food down and slept pretty much solid for 2 days but was super clingy and wouldn’t let me out of his sight, even insisting on sitting on my knee on the loo!
By the morning of Day 3 I was woken in his usual healthy manner by a paw in the face and a loud MEOW.
I got up to make his breakfast and there was shredded toiled roll all over my flat, he was back! Back to his naughty little self and oh so pleased at his mess.