Stray Cat - Health Advice

Hi All,

There is a stray cat that lives in my neighborhood, which I have been feeding for the past year-ish. When I first moved here he had a terrible injury on its paw, and I took him to the vet, and luckily he healed very well. He also has had something on the front of his nose, which seems to have gotten much worse, I have also noticed something on his ears which is new. Here are some pictures. Someone thought it might be allergies or something... but I'm beginning to be concerned, and don't want to take him to an expensive vet if there is something I can do for him here at home.

Thanks!

His ear looks like it has been bitten, but I would take him to the vets.  I have no idea what is going on with his nose but it looks nasty.

Could be fly bites. Has he been neutered and vaccinated, at least for rabies?

Yes I believe both, according to my landlord he was owned by the neighbors before they moved away...
 

Oh my goodness, poor little guy! Bless you for caring for him.

I'm not sure what this is, but it does look like either from injuries from a cat fight or an allergic reaction to flies or mosquito bites--maybe even mites, but not convinced on that one since his nose looks so bad. It doesn't look like Eosinophilic Granuloma Complex (EGC), or Flea Allergy Dermatitis (FAD) [I've not seen it present this way on a nose], ringworm, or anything else I could think of right now. His little nose is most concerning because if it gets worse he's not going to want to eat because it will affect his sense of smell.

My advice: Take the little fella to the vet as soon as possible. Please keep us updated...poor little boy.

That nose is looking pretty serious.  I'm not a vet by any stretch but I would say allergies, flea bits or mites of some kind.  I don't know of a home remedy that would help unless you maybe take these pics to a vet's office and hope someone there can give you a guestimate of what it might be and make recommendations.  I'd be afraid to try any OTC meds on him because that nose issue is widespread and getting dangerously close to his eyes and his nostrils.  On the ears I'm guessing some kind of bite.  You might try some type of antibiotical topical on those sores but you would have to make sure it is cat safe because if kitty scratches and then licks it's paws you could make him even sicker.  Gosh, you are a good person to be so concerned and caring.  Have you checked with your local humane society to see if they have any inexpensive vet days there where you can get him checked out?

And welcome to TCS!
 

OrientalSlave said:

His ear looks like it has been bitten, but I would take him to the vets.  I have no idea what is going on with his nose but it looks nasty.

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I wasn't clear - it looks like a cat bite on his hears with those two round marks.  They look just the right distance apart for a cat's canines.

Opps!  Hears, ears - I guess you know what I meant! 

Hi, this looks very serious and I think it means a vet visit for your kitty. If it is a cat bite on the ear, it could easily get infected so I would take him as soon as possible.

As for the nose, I've never seen anything like it. I think it could be a scratch or a fighting injury that got infected.

Good luck!

Did you ever find out what was wrong with kitty's nose? How is he doing now? I think my cat might be having the same thing going on. I haven't found out what it is though.