Needing opinions!

I discovered recently that Angel has a small bald spot on the nap of her neck and I'm not too sure if it's mange or flea bite reaction. We've just washed her as a precautionary and will be calling the vet soon but the problem with our military vet is that they only have 'operations open' 2-3 times a month. I really don't want to go out to the civilian vet market because I don't know what kind of financial cost that will be for a hopefully small problem. I really don't think we have fleas but I can't fathom the possibilities of how we got mange in the house or even if it is mange. Tiger has no problems yet, I've checked him thoroughly. Thinking of isolating Angel as another precautionary too.
I would really like for everyone's opinions and experiences with things like this. This is new for me. Please and thankyous!!!
Here is a real closeup of it. (Washed my hands right afterward.)

Is that a reddened ring?! If so the first thing that comes to mind is a tick bite... I'm not sure if it would show up yet, but if it's a possibility you may want to ask for blood tests.

Could that be ringworm?

oops I posted in the wrong thread

I'm sorry, I don't know much about flea bites. That looks like something to get checked by the vet. I hope you figure it out.

edit edit: oh I just saw, you might not be able to see a regular vet. I wish I could help! That red area looks like it could be caused by something more than fleas. Do you think she got scratched by another animal?

Going to the vet today on another base, whether they like it or not. It could be ringworm but how on earth could she have gotten it if they're 100% indoor cats?! Well, we had to isolate her last night in the bathroom, broke my heart to do so, but it was necessary because if it is ringworm, it's pretty contagious.

It looks like ringworm to me, but I'm no vet. The spores are quite common, and you could carry it in on your clothing or shoes.

There are both topical and internal treatments available.

The closest appointment I could get is next Tuesday. I've called up civilian vet places and they run about $150-$200 for a complete workup. Ouch. And with DH away on TDY for 3 weeks, we had to buy him a lot off gear for the field and grocery shopping for the time away from him, leaving me with not much. (Not that I needed anything until now.) Hind sight's only 20/20 but I'm kicking mine right now. So, one week until the vet... Better than 1 1/2 months like last time. For the meantime, I'm washing my hands more and moved Angel's bedding to the floor. It kills me though because both kitties don't understand what's going on. Angel was meowing pathetically all of last night.

When my cats broke out in ringworm, the lesions were all kind of scaly/crusty in the middle. I'm not sure what that spot on your kitty might be, but until you know try to keep your kitty isolated. I ended up with ringworm too when my cats had it. Good luck with the vet, and let us know how it goes!

You CAN get a little tube of athlete's foot treatment, usually with micanozol or tolnaftate in it. You can get it at Wal-Mart for less than four dollars, maybe less at the PX? The generic stuff is just fine. You can rub it in thoroughly on the spot, so you don't leave any of the cream showing, then wash your hands thoroughly. This is what a lot of shelters use on ringworm. If it's something else, it won't hurt it. If it is ringworm, it should show improvement by the time you get to the vet.

Originally Posted by NinaCaliente

When my cats broke out in ringworm, the lesions were all kind of scaly/crusty in the middle.

Click to expand...

The same when Sho had it. On humans, in areas that do not have hair it makes a ring. This is not the case in more hair covered spots and in animals. It makes a more sore like looking spot.

Honestly, I think it looks like a bite from something. Ringworm, while icky, is harmless and can usually clear up on it's own if it runs it's course (a few weeks). A bite transmitting a bad bacteria can kill.

Well, the question still remains on how we got anything in the first place. I'm suspecting the air ducts in the bathroom. They run through the whole apartment building and I can tell easily when people smoke illegally in their bathrooms. I can't stand the smell. And if it is ringworm, the spores could've been blown in that way. Even though Angel hates water, she loves being in there with me as long as it's dry, lol.

Going for the foot cream in the meantime! Thanks for that tip!

My vet told me that it's possible to have ringworm in the environment all the time, but not actually be infected by it until a person/cat has a period of stress/immunosuppression. Just one possibility!

Well that's certainly interesting to hear.

Take a look at this web site:

Ringworm

If you go on down the page, you'll find photos that look very similar to the one you took of your cat.

Originally Posted by mrblanche

If you go on down the page, you'll find photos that look very similar to the one you took of your cat.

Click to expand...

Do you mean the picture of ringworm infecting a human? Because as I said, it looks different depending on where and what has it.

Could someone else that has had lots of experience with ringworm please weigh in here? And if you have pictures, link to them.

My Sho has only had it twice and both times it was red raw looking sores with crusty/scabby stuff on them. No distinct rings at all. In his case, trying an OTC cream as the vet suggested caused the sores to get worse - he was sensitive to the cream. Anywhere it touched his skin, it would cause it to redden and looked inflamed. It's something I wouldn't suggest trying without a vet knowing/agreeing and making sure an animal does have ringworm.

Actually, I don't. I've never had to worry about yeast infections, yet. -knock on wood-

Guess what?! The redness is ALL GONE! Thanks to everyone for helping me! Something worked obviously and I bet it was the athlete's foot stuff along with a special soothing cream for pets that I found at PetsMart. It's still bald but that will grow back eventually. This morning, it was still a bit red but it looked like bite marks. Maybe she or Tiger did that, I don't know but it's healing thankfully. Still going to the vet though, they need their checkup anyways and I want to make sure that nothing's wrong 100%.

^ If it actually was ringworm it would have taken a couple weeks to clear up. Look up past threads on here, it's not something so easily treated and dealt with.

I'm still betting it was bite related, either from a flea or tick as that would fade on it's own.