could this be stud tail?

[taliagallo]

hi all! i am new to the community and kind of freaking out with my cat

i noticed while brushing my cat that there is a dark area by the base of his tail on his lower back. i've never heard of stud tail but i googled it and it didn't seem like flea dirt to me. the whole area is dark and full of black specs. the fur on this particular area of his lower back has also always been greasy. if this is the case and he's always had stud tail, is it worth going to the vet? thank you <3

 

[berbie]

wiping with damp paper towel or tissue can tell you if its flea dirt.. my guess would be blackheads. My greasy boys are all a darker color, so I can’t offer much comparison if its stud tail they will only rx meds if there is significant infection, otherwise will just direct you to a shampoo

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

It very well could be stud tail. If so, you should use a specific shampoo for it. If your Vet will allow you to send pictures, I would send yours and then ask what type of shampoo you should use, or if there are a certain wipe you can use vs shampooing. Seems like I remember one poster years ago saying she used Stridex pads for it, but I cannot find her posts anymore.

Oh, I take that back. Just found a very old post that discusses using Stridex or (if you can believe it) Listerine! Here it is: Any experience with stud tail?

 

[silent meowlook]

Hi. Not a vet. It looks like stud tail. Please don’t use any over the counter products. Many contain ingredients that could kill your cat if he licks it off his tail. Just get a wipe from the vet. It’s called Duoxo or something like that.

 

[taliagallo]

thank you all so much