Wound on my cat's neck, spider bite?

jquerin

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I found this on the underside of my cat's neck tonight, it doesn't seem to be causing him much pain, but he is aware of it, he tries to lick it, and tries to scratch, but not too hard, so maybe it is causing some discomfort.  Has anybody seen this, can anybody give some insight? It looks like it could be a bite of some sort.

 

feralvr

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Welcome to TCS :).... oh dear - that look's like a puncture of some sort - could be an infected spider bite or another type of bug OR did you cat get into a tiff with another cat ?? There is a lot of missing hair around the wound too. I would definitely take your cat to your vet for this. It also looks like it could become an abscess and your cat might need antibiotics for this. :vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes:
 

gardenandcats

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It looks like a puncture bite from another cat..Does you cat go outside? or do you have another cat that this one could of gotten bitten from? I would have the vet take a look..It seems to be getting infected looking..
 
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jquerin

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Yes, he goes outdoors, and there is another cat in the neighborhood that he sometimes gets into fights with. The area is swollen up and firm to the touch, he didn't flinch or pull away when I was touching the area either.
 

carolina

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jquerin

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that looks pretty similar, but why would he lose the hair in the area, also it was under his neck, i have to lift his head just to see it. and his collar covered it before i took it off.
 

carolina

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that looks pretty similar, but why would he lose the hair in the area, also it was under his neck, i have to lift his head just to see it. and his collar covered it before i took it off.
Well.... My cats have bitten each other and none have ever lost hair either, so I can't answer that question..... But to me, personally, that does not look like a cat bite. IMHO a cat will not stop, twist the neck, then bite with only one fang, that deep, and have no signs of the other one..... no scratches, no tearing..... IMHO not a bite.... But again, that's me.....
The hair loss can be due to an abscess, maybe? That I can not answer..... Sorry :slant:
As far as the position..... You would be surprised how cruel people can be - including, getting your kitty and giving a close range shot right there.
 
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mrblanche

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I'm going to go with it looking like an abscess.  A vet should take a look at it to be sure.
 

mrblanche

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Untreated, abscesses can get very nasty. Definitely get your baby to a vet on this one.
Yes, and the description sounds very typical, with a small central wound, a hard area around it, and the cat licking it, pulling out the fur.
 

orientalslave

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Hair lose round an abcess is normal.  If he was mine he'd be on his way to the vets.   BTW I have seen abcesses from cat bits with only one puncture wound - my Havana used to fight a lot just after I moved to this house and whilst there was quite often a second mark if I looked really carefully, there was usually only one puncture.  He had short fine hair so it was easy to find wounds compared with a more average moggie coat.  I have a really yucky photo somewhere of the one he had over his eye one time, complete with hair lose!
 
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linda knight

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My cat has the EXACT same thing on her back hind leg. First is was just discolored. Some hair was missing. Then as weeks went by it seemed there were puncture wounds or something..then they started to get just like what your picture is showing which makes me think SPIDER BITE. My cat does not flinch when it is touched and it does not seem to hurt her either. BUT..she also lost her fur in that spot those marks are in....and yes, I am sure it is a spider bit or something of that nature. IT CANNOT BE A BITE FROM ANOTHER CAT OR THE BITE WOULD HAVE SHOWN RIGHT AWAY. The puncture marks became bigger and opened up and got just like that on my cat as well. Did you take your cat to the vet and if so what did the vet say? I think it is a spider bite. Absolutely. I was bitten by a spider about three years ago....and the puncture did the same thing...it turned nasty. So...spider bite is my guess as well.
 

mrsgreenjeens

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My cat has the EXACT same thing on her back hind leg. First is was just discolored. Some hair was missing. Then as weeks went by it seemed there were puncture wounds or something..then they started to get just like what your picture is showing which makes me think SPIDER BITE. My cat does not flinch when it is touched and it does not seem to hurt her either. BUT..she also lost her fur in that spot those marks are in....and yes, I am sure it is a spider bit or something of that nature. IT CANNOT BE A BITE FROM ANOTHER CAT OR THE BITE WOULD HAVE SHOWN RIGHT AWAY. The puncture marks became bigger and opened up and got just like that on my cat as well. Did you take your cat to the vet and if so what did the vet say? I think it is a spider bite. Absolutely. I was bitten by a spider about three years ago....and the puncture did the same thing...it turned nasty. So...spider bite is my guess as well.
Linda, is your cat fully recovered?  Hope so, whatever it was.
 

ana jones

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my cat has the same thing. i want to take him to a vet but my mom says we dont have the money.
 

marathon08

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My cat has the same thing but bigger, I was treating it w/betadine and neosporin and it healed and now just yesterday I noticed he got bit again an inch below the previous one right above his hind leg.  He seems okay, he's eating and doesn't seem bothered by it.
 

angelrose

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my cat has the same wound under her neck, no other pets and she does not go outside.
 

furmonster mom

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Whether it is from a spider, another cat, or a BB gun, it looks to be getting infected. 

Cats skin does not always heal very well, and infections can get really nasty.

Vet visit is best.
 

graythecat

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I would not let the cat outside again,  we don't.  After being a loyal indoor/outdoor cat, our two-year old Nebulung came home with the same kind of hair loss but with a deeper and longer (2 inches) wound and we could see his bones and meat.  After a call to a vet, we were able to confirm that he wasn't bleeding profusely and was just laying there, in his comfy spot, showing us his wound.  He allowed us to treat his wound with water, hydrogen peroxide, and a spray bandage designed for both cats and dogs.  After nursing his wound, it closed up after about a month and his hair around the wound grew back.  After two months, he was happy just to look out all of our open windows and big screen doors, and he even catches critters if his prey dare to come close to the two inch openings under our steel screen doors.

We are convinced that a human tried to slash his throat either with a knife, a weed-eater, or perhaps he was caught in a car fan and escaped.

Gray the Cat, is Indoor for ever now and he is extremely happy.  On another board, I read that any cat would be happy just live another day.  Gray is here.  He's fine.

Love this Board!
 

ck2d

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My cat has the EXACT same thing on her back hind leg. First is was just discolored. Some hair was missing. Then as weeks went by it seemed there were puncture wounds or something..then they started to get just like what your picture is showing which makes me think SPIDER BITE. My cat does not flinch when it is touched and it does not seem to hurt her either. BUT..she also lost her fur in that spot those marks are in....and yes, I am sure it is a spider bit or something of that nature. IT CANNOT BE A BITE FROM ANOTHER CAT OR THE BITE WOULD HAVE SHOWN RIGHT AWAY. The puncture marks became bigger and opened up and got just like that on my cat as well. Did you take your cat to the vet and if so what did the vet say? I think it is a spider bite. Absolutely. I was bitten by a spider about three years ago....and the puncture did the same thing...it turned nasty. So...spider bite is my guess as well.
Just want to point out that cats and people operate differently.

Cats skin heals very quickly. So there could be a puncture caused by another cat you never noticed. It's good their skin heals over quickly, but if the wound wasn't cleaned thoroughly, then an infection can fester under the skin, until it ruptures. AKA, an abscess.

Whatever that is, it looks serious enough to me to see a vet. I know prices can be really high. Call cat rescues in your area, tell then what's going on, and see what they recommend. There might be a Cleo fund set up in your area to help.

Good luck!
 

shannong06

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It could could be could be a warble. I had a cat that had a single puncture, and it kept geowing, one day in kinda squeezed it and out comes this grub worm looking thing. Looked it uo, it's a warble. Very common with outdoor cats, or cats that chase/eat rodents.
 
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