I have a mystery condition that causes cat to violently scratch at his face constantly. He lives in a cone because once removed he scratches violently. He only scratches at two spots. has been treated for fleas/ticks/mites. Skin was UV light tested. X-rays done when a mass popped up behind his ear. Not ear mites. No infections. Eyes were tested. Awaiting biopsy of a mass (removed)behind his ear & lesion under his tongue. Constant head shaking in that Cone has caused an aural hematoma. Vet is mystified!
A few questions. Can I give my cat metacam and trazodone together ? They were prescribed separate times to treat his destructive scratching at his head and face. We’ve since removed a mass behind his ear and taken biopsy of 3 other lesions. One under his tongue. He has been treated for mites and fleas etc. X-rays and UV testing. He has lived in the cone of shame for about 5 months now. He scratches like mad within seconds of removing it. A bloody mess everytime it heals. It is very localized which makes it hard to be (food)allergies?
He just had surgery to fix the aural hematoma caused by his violent head shaking and cone scratching. (No ear mites either)
So he is in an extreme amount of discomfort. He was given a 2 week injection of antibiotic and sent home with metacam. However. The ear now seems very inflamed. It is stitched down to a piece of surgical ‘plastic’ to keep from refilling I think? He is trying to scratch at it so much. He had caused a severe infection in his back toe from scratching at that cone so intensely. It will need amputation.
It is like taking apart an engine. We are awaiting the biopsy results but until then his poor surgery site seems so uncomfortable.
I’m not sure if I should clean it? His head shaking still causes the ears to tap at the cone edges causing such tenderness the poor guy needs to be so sedated to get rest.
Any advice is great advice! Thanking you in advance.
Symptoms started after he started going outside for the first time, one small wound turned into his face being scratched off. so I got him his first set of shots and an antibiotic injection. Medications tried include: numerous antibiotic injections, metacam, trazodone/tramadol for sedating effects to stop scratching. Cyproheptedine. Advantix/flea tick and mite treatment. His X-rays revealed nothing other than an elongated heart. I had his brother who died suddenly at 15 weeks (heart attack?)
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*** update ~vet visit for biopsy results **^
Hello and Thanks so much for your advice! I saw my vet today for the results. Also because My cat has continued to shake his post surgery ear which split the tip open. Healing post-hematoma has been botched. So they will be removing the ear flap and cauterizing the edges.
As for the biopsies I’ll summarize point form the microscopic interpretations.
Skin: ulcerative dermatitis, pleocellular with eosinophils, low grade to moderate with granulation tissue proliferation with superficial bacteria.
Tongue : ulcerative glossitis, eosinophilic rich with collagenolysis.
Mass from behind bottom of ear: hyperplastic/reactive, draining lymph node.
So basically what he said was its food allergy or an external (who knows what) allergy.
However in the report it noted that these types of allergies usually respond to corticosteroids. He was given about 3 cortisone injections which did nothing.
So at this point we try the vet diet like you recommended.
He will be sent home with prednisone for the recovery of his ear once again.
So basically what we face is should we try the blood test 300$ to narrow allergens down?? Or do we try vet diet first. (I’ve gone into debt with these bills )
The most pressing issue is how to calm the scratching at his cone, head and ear shaking. It is constant. To the point where he doesn’t stop unless we snugly bandage his ear/head. And heavily medicated him. (Trazadone) The pressure helps.
I just want him to be able to get some rest. And not have us constantly bombarding him to clean his wounds. Wrap his head. Clean his cone. Ouff. My poor boy. He’s starting to get real annoyed with all of the fussing over him. However he is actually gaining weight!
I also asked about feline herpetic just in case and he said there are no upper respiratory signs present. And X-rays for the chest and head were all clear.
I pray we find something that works for the itch.
I have a cat, a domestic medium hair mix who is about 3 years old. He is indoor/outdoor and four days ago he started limping. I assumed he had sprained his wrist and kept him inside for a while, but he was adament about being let out so I eventually conceded. The next morning I woke up to find a small pussy wound on the top of his paw. I brought him back inside, it healed up and he was walking on it again within a day, so I let him back out. This morning I found that the wound had re-opened and appeared a lot larger than before. I am currently unemployed and have no credit or money to my name so I cannot take him to a vet. I am worried sick, is this an abscess? I cleaned the wound, applied a minimal amount of diluted hydrogen peroxide to the affected area, and applied some coconut oil to the wound, sterilized my room and he is acting completely normal besides the limp. He wants to go outside, but I won’t let him until he’s healed up. Is there anything else I can do?
Hello Morgan, sorry to hear your cat has this wound. It could be a scratch/puncture from another cat. Even though it healed over it was obviously still there under the skin. You say there was pus present so its infected. Unfortunately unless its treated by a Vet the infection can go into your cats bloodstream. He needs antibiotics to clear it and the wound needs to be kept clean. Please try and find a way to take him for treatment, I know how hard this can be but he doed need a Vet sooner rather than later. Good luck.
My cat was treated for a puncture wound almost two weeks ago and is still not putting weight on the injured paw. The current vet did not give an anti-inflammatory as she feels it may cause kidney problems. Another vet in the group did give such an injection with a previous injury and my cat seemed to tolerate it well. Buprenorphine has not touched the pain. What do you suggest?
Hello,
If your pet is telling you that there is still something wrong beleive them. There is something wrong here. It might be pain, infection, or even nerve damage. I recommend calling the vet to notify them and then seeking a second opinion if this proves not helpful. My first guess is that this is infection. It may help to do a culture and sensitivity of the wound. Ask your vet. Let us know.
My dog went outside alone and maybe eaten garbage food or had contact with stray dogs.Now its skin is turned red with severe etching , wounds all over and severe loss of weight since past one month.
Please let me know chemical names of medicnes , antbiotics , antiallergics etc so that i can buy the same in philippnes.
Poor animal is in grave trouble and early answer can help it.
Thanks Pawbly for your prompt response and advice. We are very poor and we live in a squatter in philippines. We can not buy a dog for pet so people here mostly domesticate stray dogs only. Regardless we care our dog ” SKY ” as a family member only. Its even more expensive to go to a vet with a dog than to take a human to a doctor .No free advice from so many animal rights organizations either about medicines etc. Anyway left with no option i pawned my mobile fone today and sky is under vet treatment now.I… Read more »
I’m so sorry that your dog is in such poor shape. It could be a number of different things which are treated differently. He needs to be seen by a vet as soon as you can get him to one so that they can test to see whether it is being cause by parasites or allergies or a skin infection due to perhaps another cause. Please try to find a vet that can help you so thus can be hopefully cleared up. The longer you wait, the worse it will get and the more expensive it will be one.
Dear doctor,
My dog died today and I was desperately trying to find the cause because it is the second time happening exactly the same signs and symptoms and rapid death. My dog was a lab 7 yr old fit and healthy had swollen paw noticed 3 days ago which was an infected wound for which it recieved debridement along with antibiotics and antacids, next day it had greenish vomitus and dark stools, no dehydration passing good volume urine but today morning died after passing bloody stools
I am so sorry for your loss. I too would contact the Vet who was treating your dog. You may want to have a necropsy done to determine the cause of death. I had a young healthy cat who died in the middle of the night several years ago, we did opt for a necropsy as I needed to know why a young cat would died. Again, I am so very sorry.
Okay, we are crazy but we recently lost our Lab and rediscussed getting a German Shepherd that we wanted to get years ago until we wound up fostering/ keeping the Lab. We also have a nearly four year old Yorkie, eleven year old Pug and a five(?) year old Corgie mix who are pretty laid back. Initial introduction to the puppy went well…but, my question is, how do we handle when the smaller dogs snip at/ growl at the puppy (who does back off). Do we allow this? Or intervene at any point? I understand they need to set limits with her, but when/ should we correct their behavior with the puppy that will eventually outweigh them…We got the German Shepherd so I would have some protection where we live out in the country
Thank you for your response. Thankfully we live in the country and I walked all four dogs (plus one of our three cats that likes to walk around with us) around our property as well as other areas of this tiny community near the river (which we happened to name her). Within two days she’s learned to climb the steps to different levels of our yard as well as learned to fetch, and rapidly picking up on “come”. And I’ve been making sure to – reassure/ give attention to the other three as well.
We have a German shepherd that we rescued and he’s great. We also have a lab shepherd mix and a cat. It really is very, very important that you socialize your German shepherd puppy(I wish our GSD had been better socialized before we rescued him) and not just with your pack. A puppy class would be a fantastic idea and benefit all of you. Also, make sure that your GSD knows her order in the pack. And believe me- they are smart. It’s been my experience that you won’t really need to train her for protection; they just know it… Read more »
Hello,
In general the puppies do learn safe boundaries from the other dogs. But if the other dogs won’t play you need to step in as the playmate and try to relieve some stress on the older dogs and allow the younger pup the time he needs. As a personal note GSs need tons (like more than any others!) of time, exercise, attention and training. Get into a puppy class asap
My cat has quite a wound that has gotten shockingly worse with-in the past week. Until I can get him to a vet, I’d like to put antibiotic ointment on the wound. Any suggestions how I could do this? He’s not what you might call “cooperative”.
Oh, he’s a “barn cat”. I keep the barn clean and his bedding. He’s fed twice daily. Always fresh water. He’s friendly, but never learned that people aren’t kitties too so he tends to get a bit feisty with play. Loves his barn. Hates the house. This wound started as a tiny “spot” but turned to this (photo) in the past 2 weeks. (I’m hoping to be able to get him into a carrier and to the vet by Friday this week but want to do something in the meanwhile since he won’t come into the house.)
Thanks Sarah. It’s the home-owner’s cat. I take care of him when she’s gone (which is frequently). She also has a dog that I tend. I sent her the same photos and told her of the situation. She’ll be back on Thursday and said that if I can get the cat into a carrier, she’ll taken him to her regular vet (who is amazing, I have to say) that evening. I was just wondering if there was something I might do in the meanwhile. Thinking of putting a bit of triple-antibiotic ointment on there. But for the life of me,… Read more »
It looks pretty infected already, if it started out small and grew to this size. I would worry that the more painful it gets for him, the LESS cooperative he will be? I would try setting out the carrier and try getting him into it sooner rather than waiting. Perhaps under the circumstances as soon as you get him in your vet could make an exception and squeeze in an appointment for you.
My dachshund had a small accident and hurt his left hind leg. Xray doesn’t show any fracture as such. But there is a little swelling on its last toe .There is a wound and vet did dressing on the day this happened. Is it safe to give 2½ years old dachshund antibiotics injection daily continues for 6 days. And is dressing required to be done daily for 6 days. Its been 2 days. Today he had loose motions. I think its because of antibiotics 5-10ml injection.vet will change the dressdressing daily for 6 days. And inject antibiotics. I think I should consult another doctor for my pet. I think this will Cause an over dose of antibiotics for my 9 kgs miniature dachshund. Please help
Hello
I typically change the bandage on the foot every day, two at most, and immediately if the bandage gets wet. I also think you should express your concerns about the antibiotic with your vet. If there isn’t an open wound and if your pet is acting normally otherwise you may be able to switch to a topical antibiotic or antibiotic soak.
My 7 year old male cat had scabies on his cheek and neck at the back. Was treating with Kiskin as advised by vet and he was responding to it. Suddenly stopped eating 2 days back. Last night saw there was green puss among the folds of his wounds. Put some Negasunt. Died soon afterwards.
Had a head injury a few months back. Was treated for concussion. Had lost weight.
DRAINING APPT TOMOORROW AT 10:30AM PST 8/1/17 – to drain or not to drain – photo attached taken last friday.
Hello Dr Magnifico, I came across your blog on Seroma’s. My 5.5 year old female Rottweiler love bug had her lower 3 mammaries removed and lymphnodes last wednesday (all benign), they released her on Friday. At the the time of release she had a small goofball sized seroma. She asked I come in for a follow up appt on Monday to check incision, they took her in back and when they brought her back out said they drained the seroma. I asked the surgeon won’t her body just reabsorb it? She said yes, but it can put stress on sutures. She has at least 50 staples.
Now her seroma is 10x the size it was from this past Monday. I am keeping her as quiet as possible, but she feels good, for the most part she is resting but not confined to a cage. I also noticed today a little yellow puss from an area where the incision meets another incison (not there yesterday). I had the donut on her today and found she could reach part of the incision with it on and was licking it. So now the cone is on. 🙁 Tomorrow at 10:30am PST i am to go see surgeon and she wants to drain every few days. She was on Chephlexin for just 4 days post surgery 2 am and 2pm, seems like a very short course.
Anyway, I am concerned and I know how sensitive vets can get but now i am worried about infection, especially now that there is yellow seeping from wound in one spot… Help! I believe in allowing the body to heal itself. Is draining increasing risk of infection and now this yellow puss/discharge from incision site? Help and thank you so much for helping pet owners like myself !!
PS PHOTO WAS TAKEN LAST FRIDAY
Hello, It sounds like you both have very valid concerns. I think you both have very good open lines of communication and a clear understanding of what’s going on. With that I would say that it is probably best to allow your vet to provide the care they think this surgery needs now and allow them to continue to provide oversight and suggestion for direction in the plan ahead. If it helps ease your mind I don’t typically get overly concerned about the size of a seroma as long as the incision is healing well and the patient is acting… Read more »
Thanks so much for your advice! I saw my vet today for the results. Also because My cat has continued to shake his post surgery ear which split the tip open. Healing post-hematoma has been botched. So they will be removing the ear flap and cauterizing the edges. As for the biopsies I’ll summarize point form the microscopic interpretations. Skin: ulcerative dermatitis, pleocellular with eosinophils, low grade to moderate with granulation tissue proliferation with superficial bacteria. Tongue : ulcerative glossitis, eosinophilic rich with collagenolysis. Mass from behind bottom of ear: hyperplastic/reactive, draining lymph node. So basically what he said was… Read more »
Hello again, Here is another update! Surgery has been performed to remove the piece of the ear flap that was split in two from hitting against the cone plastic so often (head shaking) It was then cauterized, and the stitches from the previous aural hematoma surgery were removed along with the piece of surgical flap that was stitched to his ear (to prevent blood reabsorption?) *Sent home with 4 medications -Gabapentin (via dropper) 2x a day for 7 days -Prednisone tab 1x a day 7 days, half a tab 7 days then every other day -Surolan in the affected ear… Read more »
Hello I am sorry to hear about your cat. I think it sounds like you and you vet have done a very good job with the basic diagnostics. I also think that the most likely place for the answer at this point is the biopsy. Your vet should be the only person to advise you on the medications for your pet. Please call them and ask for assistance today with keeping your cat comfortable and further self-traumatization. Here are a few hints based on the description and photos that I would talk to your vet about; 1. Herpetic dermatitis and… Read more »
hello again,
I should also add a note about dietary allergy.. it might help to try a prescription diet like z/d.. please also ask your vet about this.
hello,
thank you for the follow up. I would probably talk to the vet about trying to manage the current infections and itching while minimizing environmental allergens (fleas, household products) and attempting a food trial. I dont usually do the derm allergen trials until everything else fails. Just my opinion. Get your cat comfortable and see if this was just a one time occurrence.. (fingers crossed).