is it ringworm?

[tigger]

I dont know if you ever recall this post I did last year or so, but Fluffy had a scratchy meow. She also had scabs on her near her ears and throat. The vet shaved her throat area down, and their was a deep scab, which he thought Cinnamon might have caused, or maybe Fluffy scratching at herself. I took her back in for her shots and showed the vet the scabs on her ears. At the time, I was feeding her and Cinnamon Iams Hairball/weight control, and we both thought it was an allergic reaction to the food, so I switched back to the ocean/fish formula. End of that.
When we got Winnie and Minnie (our new bengal kittens), Winnie had a lesion on her chin, and the vet suspected it was ringworm, so she did a culture and sent me home with Confite (miconzole .. spelling?) .. It came back negative.
Ok, so last week, I was holding Fluffy on her back, and noticed black specs on her. These specs are round, and some are around her nipples.... However, she has NO hairloss. So, I have been putting the confite on her with a cotton ball twice a day. I've also been feeding her and Cinnamon the Iams Hairball (without the weight control) for the past few months. Is this ringworm, or is it an allergy? I will call the vet tomorrow, if they are open. What are the black specs? I know that when you see the specs, it can mean ringworm.

 

[shell]

To me it sound like Flea Poop (dried blood)...I don't know if it could be ringworm. Luckily, I haven't ever had to battle that.

Good luck!

 

[tigger]

how do you tell? All my cats are indoors .. If it fleas, how do I get rid of it?

 

[shell]

My cats are indoor cats and they tend to get fleas once in awhile. I think they get it from out dog when she comes inside from going potty. Plus, you could have brought them in from your shoes and etc too. I use Advantage right now for my cats & dog. You just apply it once a month and it kills the fleas right away. As for getting rid of the flea poop & live fleas, get a fine toothed comb or a flea comb. When I search them over, I get a cup of hot water with Dawn dish soap in it. After each brush through with the comb, I dip the comb in the soapy water. It stuns the fleas and they can't jump out. After I'm done completely, I flush the water down the toilet. No way for them to come back up!

You could give your cats a bath...my crew won't let me do that though. I'm sure Hissy or someone else could tell you a good brand to use though.

If they do have fleas, you might want to check them for worms. That's how I found out my cats that fleas! EWWW!

Good luck and hope this helped you a bit!

 

[shell]

Found this link for ya too....it's somewhat helpful!
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/pets/fleas-ticks/

 

[tigger]

I know you can buy the Advantage on-line thru the pet pharmacies. Can you buy it at Petsmart of Petco? I also know that Revolution kills them too, because that;s what the vet used on Minnie and Winnie for their ear mites.

 

[shell]

I'm not sure...I buy mine off the internet. I did do a online search with Petco and they do have Advantage on their online catalog. I would assume that they would sell it in the stores.

 

[hissy]

If your vet tested for ringworm and it came out negative, there is no reason to be treating the areas as if it were ringworm. Early ringworm does not appear like you have described. Here is what early ringworm looks like

What you are describing sounds like flea dirt, not flea poop. One way to tell is get a big sheet of white paper, put the cat on the paper and start rubbing the cat a little bit harder than normal up the back, down the tail and over the sides. Lift the cat off the paper and look at the paper, if you see tiny black specs, your cats have fleas. Fleas are coming indoors now as a matter of their survival. They know the hot summer months are ending and they need warmer spots like your carpet to survive the winter.

 

[shell]

Thanks for clarifying the flea dirt/flea poop thing. That's just what I've heard it called before even though it's not really poop at all. Sorry about that!

 

[tigger]

Thanks, Hissy, I will try that. If it is flea dirt, do I treat her with Advantage or Frontline?

 

[hissy]

I use advantage, it works to my advantage to use it.

It has the better price through my vet. Be careful where you purchase your flea treatment from some of them are knock offs (meaning not the right strength watered down) and sold as the real stuff.

 

[tigger]

I'll call my vet on Tuesday and see if I can get some ... I probably will have to because Gizmo has been limping since yesterday

We dont even know what he did .. When he limps, he kind of sticks his back leg out a little farther .... It's gotten a lot better, but still ... He's due for his shots, anyways. If it were broken, would he not be able to put pressure on it? When I touch his leg, he doesn't cry.