Cat has sudden red/black bleeding spots all over body, Emergency?

[stinkgecko]

Hi, My cat has developed many red and black looking patches all over his body and I'm really worried. I'm going to make an appointment with my vet as soon as they open tomorrow morning but was looking for more information on what they might be. He has them literally all over his belly- on his ears, back, legs and belly. Some like the ones on his ears are smaller, and look almost like blood blisters? And some of them he's been scratching and are bleeding, but there are also some that have developed that look like small, black or dark red spots that are appearing. He has a large one on his back that has been bleeding, but I'm not sure if it's because he's been licking it or not. He also has one on his belly and inch or two above his privates that is much larger and that I just noticed a couple minutes ago, but I haven't seen him licking or biting there at all. The big ones have raised bumps, like scabs or maybe accesses, and the skin around them is red or dark red. I've put a cone on to try and keep him from grooming and making it worse, but I don't know what to do and I'm incredibly anxious. Do you think this is an emergency? He's under my bed right now, but I'll attach photos as soon as I can when he comes out. Thank you so much for your time and help.

 

[stinkgecko]

I'm sorry for the graphic image, this is the one on his back that was bleeding

The second photo is from the one on his belly, it's not actually right above his privates but more towards the center of this abdomen.

The rest are spots where his skin is red, they seem to be much larger areas, rather than smaller spots, where his skin is reddened. And the last picture are spots on the back of his ears, he also has red spots on the inside. I hope these can help.

 

[stinkgecko]

I also forgot to mention that he is eating, but is growling at me when I try to touch him.

 

[vince]

It's some kind of systemic bleeding. He's growling because he feels bad. Definitely an emergency, and he needs to get to the vet ASAP!

 

[stinkgecko]

It's some kind of systemic bleeding. He's growling because he feels bad. Definitely an emergency, and he needs to get to the vet ASAP!

we called an emergency vet last night at about 1, and they said to take him in the morning to our regular vet. He's there now, so hopefully they can do some testing and find what's wrong.

 

[Maurey]

All the best to your boy! Hopefully it's something easily treatable. Do let us know what the vet tells you!

 

[stinkgecko]

All the best to your boy! Hopefully it's something easily treatable. Do let us know what the vet tells you!

Thank you for your kind comment! He was at the vet all day yesterday, and they did blood workup, a FELV/FIV test, and took xrays. He was negative for FELV/FIV and the xrays didn't show anything. The blood test results say that his platelets are low, and that it could be causing issues with clotting and maybe less of an ability to clot blood, but they have no idea what could be causing it. It could be anything from an autoimmune disease or disorder to different cancers or maybe bone marrow cancer. His doctor said they are all pretty rare and it's basically taking shots in the dark right now, but they're putting him on steroids for about two months to see if they help since it's the easiest option and we don't really have the 1k+ for an ultra sound and further more specialized tests. I really hope that this helps but I don't even know what to look for moving forward.
He was really tired last night when he came home, but perked back up and wanted cuddles which was really good to see and this morning he seems like he's feeling better and is eating and acting normally. I really hope that the steroids help and help maybe point us in a more focused direction.

 

[Maurey]

Steroids are generally good at reducing inflammation and discomfort associated with it, yes! Here's hoping they're able to pinpoint a cause soon, since steroids are sadly not the best option for longterm use. I'm sorry to hear it wasn't more of a cut and dry case, but it sounds like both you and your vet are moving in the right direction! It's great that he's already perking up and doing better, you should hopefully keep seeing that same improvement for the next few days.

 

[vince]

When I wrote earlier, I thought it might be some kind of thrombocytopenia, or loss of platelets from some reason. I also have it. Doesn't hurt, but you bleed very easily. Anemia from blood loss is generally what makes the patient feel bad--not the disease itself. In your cat's case, it looks life-threatening (which is much worse than what I have). It can have various causes, which is the point where the vet is now--determining the root cause. It takes some effort to figure out what the problem is.

 

[LTS3]

Your vet can consult with a veterinary school for more info on what your cat's condition may be.

 

[carebearbaby1]

Any chance he got into rat poison or ate a mouse that could've eaten it?

 

[vince]

Any chance he got into rat poison or ate a mouse that could've eaten it?

That's a decent possibility. Rat and mouse poison often contains anticoagulants to make the rodents bleed to death.

 

[di and bob]

I was thinking a poisoned mouse too. Or some other kind of poison, I would round up all plants and put them in a room that can be closed off until you can research them and make sure they aren't poisonous, and ANYTHING lying around that could be mouse/rat poisoned related. Keep him inside, there is a BIG risk of ingesting something there.

 

[stinkgecko]

Any chance he got into rat poison or ate a mouse that could've eaten it?

There's no chance. We don't have any strong chemicals in the house except for under our sink, and there's not really any chance or evidence that he got into it. I have a really busy household and someone would definitely have noticed if they were disturbed at all

When I wrote earlier, I thought it might be some kind of thrombocytopenia, or loss of platelets from some reason. I also have it. Doesn't hurt, but you bleed very easily. Anemia from blood loss is generally what makes the patient feel bad--not the disease itself. In your cat's case, it looks life-threatening (which is much worse than what I have). It can have various causes, which is the point where the vet is now--determining the root cause. It takes some effort to figure out what the problem is.

He's going back in tomorrow to recheck his blood to see if there are any changes. I'm really, really scared. When he went in on the 25th they shaved him to get a better look at it, and since then it really looks like the bruising on his belly has spread so much and he still had blood in his stool yesterday. He's still eating but he hasn't been purring or sleeping in his normal spot during the day, instead choosing to sleep in my little sister's closet on a blanket. I don't know what to do, and the vet said they don't either until they know what's wrong. I feel so helpless right now

 

[stinkgecko]

I was thinking a poisoned mouse too. Or some other kind of poison, I would round up all plants and put them in a room that can be closed off until you can research them and make sure they aren't poisonous, and ANYTHING lying around that could be mouse/rat poisoned related. Keep him inside, there is a BIG risk of ingesting something there.

He's an indoor only cat, and we aren't keeping any plants that are poisonous right inside. I've been really on top of that for a long time after one of my family members brought lilies into the house and I was scared he or his brother ate them. I'll do a double check though, thank you so much for the advice!!

 

[stinkgecko]

Again, sorry for the graphic photo. I wish I had taken a photo when he come home a couple days ago to compare what it looked like shaved, but I feel like its gotten a little bit bigger. I can't tell if the other skin around it is like, less pink? than it should be, but it doesn't look bruised quite yet. I don't know what to do, he literally means everything to me is this possibly life threatening?

 

[LTS3]

I don't know what to do, and the vet said they don't either until they know what's wrong. I feel so helpless right now

I'll repeat my other post above, the vet can consult with a veterinary school and even with other vet hospitals for ideas on your cat's strange condition. It's worth a shot and doesn't cost your vet anything.

 

[vince]

If the area surrounding the bruises is pale (and my geriatric eyes aren't all that good), there's a possibility he could be anemic from all the blood loss. Generally, an examination of the gums is a quick test a vet will do to check for anemia.

The fact that he's having such severe bleeding is definitely life-threatening. The doctor may prescribe a transfusion if they can't get it under control soon.

Other possibilities: Although he's an indoor kitty, is there any chance he could have received a venomous bite, say, from a snake, scorpion or spider? Also, could he have gotten into medications you have around the house (on occasion, one of my cats has made a grab for a dropped pill in the bathroom)?

 

[stinkgecko]

If the area surrounding the bruises is pale (and my geriatric eyes aren't all that good), there's a possibility he could be anemic from all the blood loss. Generally, an examination of the gums is a quick test a vet will do to check for anemia.

The fact that he's having such severe bleeding is definitely life-threatening. The doctor may prescribe a transfusion if they can't get it under control soon.

Other possibilities: Although he's an indoor kitty, is there any chance he could have received a venomous bite, say, from a snake or a scorpion? Also, could he have gotten into medications you have around the house (on occasion, one of my cats has made a grab for a dropped pill in the bathroom)?

The vet took a look at his gums and did say he seemed anemic : ( I live in the northwest US, so we don't really have anything venomous or any spiders that could do that. My mom and sister are both on thyroid medication, and she actually did bring up the possibility of dropping a pill and him eating it with the vet, who said it wouldn't really do anything and wasn't really anything to worry about/not likely. The vet we took him to and that he regularly sees went on vacation the day after we took him in, so his information is going to be passed to another one who works at the same clinic. I guess I just have to wait to see what they and the blood test say tomorrow and hope everything goes okay, maybe we can get a new perspective on everything going on with him.

Also, I want to say thank you so much for your advice throughout this, it really means a lot to me that there are kind people willing to try and help me and my kitty through this