Sore that isnt Showing Signs of Healing

I first noticed some sores on my cat at the very beginning of July. She is a 4 year old female weighing about 9-10 pounds. She is healthy - no known health issues and the vet always says she is healthy at her checkups. This is actually the first time she's even had a sore on her and I have never had to take her to the vet for anything other than annual vaccinations and checkups.

I took her to the vet on July 2nd because I was worried it was an abscess resulting from her being bitten by our other cat (he is a very fiesty 4 month old kitten that tends to play too rough). The vet immediately said it wasn't an abscess. He went straight to saying said he thought the sores were multiple spider bites. However, he did practically nothing to check (he just looked at the sores for a couple of seconds and felt said he saw no abscess). I told him I thought she was bitten by our kitten because I've seen him bite at her before in rough play (not aggression). He dismissed this as even a possible cause. He gave us some antibiotics and an antiseptic was for ten days. I took her back on the 20th of July for a recheck and to get her rabies and other annual vaccinations. He said the sores were healing fine and that she was in good health. Inhadnt noticed any real change other than the swelling had gone down and the heat had left the wound area. It is now a month and a half after the initial incident and there still apears to be little to no change since her last visit to the vet. The sores are still there (scabbed over) and the fur isn't coming back around the sores because it keeps coming out in clumps with the scabs. She is eating and drinking normally and she doest appear to act sick or in any pain (she's acting normal). I haven't seen her scratching a lot at the scabs/sores, but that doesn't mean she isn't. I'm only worried because the sores aren't healed and the scabs have been there for nearly 2 months now. I don't think it should take that long for some small sores to heal. I called the vet to check if this is normal and he don't seem concerned that they weren't healing. I would take her to another vet, but I live in a very rural area. There are no other vets for more than 75 miles and the closest animal hospital is about 3 hours away.

Is there any reason you could think of for the bites to take this long to heal? If they really are spider bites, do spider bites just take an abnormally long time to heal in felines? Shouldni be more seriously concerned?

iheartlife said:

I first noticed some sores on my cat at the very beginning of July. She is a 4 year old female weighing about 9-10 pounds. She is healthy - no known health issues and the vet always says she is healthy at her checkups. This is actually the first time she's even had a sore on her and I have never had to take her to the vet for anything other than annual vaccinations and checkups.

I took her to the vet on July 2nd because I was worried it was an abscess resulting from her being bitten by our other cat (he is a very fiesty 4 month old kitten that tends to play too rough). The vet immediately said it wasn't an abscess. He went straight to saying said he thought the sores were multiple spider bites. However, he did practically nothing to check (he just looked at the sores for a couple of seconds and felt said he saw no abscess). I told him I thought she was bitten by our kitten because I've seen him bite at her before in rough play (not aggression). He dismissed this as even a possible cause. He gave us some antibiotics and an antiseptic was for ten days. I took her back on the 20th of July for a recheck and to get her rabies and other annual vaccinations. He said the sores were healing fine and that she was in good health. Inhadnt noticed any real change other than the swelling had gone down and the heat had left the wound area. It is now a month and a half after the initial incident and there still apears to be little to no change since her last visit to the vet. The sores are still there (scabbed over) and the fur isn't coming back around the sores because it keeps coming out in clumps with the scabs. She is eating and drinking normally and she doest appear to act sick or in any pain (she's acting normal). I haven't seen her scratching a lot at the scabs/sores, but that doesn't mean she isn't. I'm only worried because the sores aren't healed and the scabs have been there for nearly 2 months now. I don't think it should take that long for some small sores to heal. I called the vet to check if this is normal and he don't seem concerned that they weren't healing. I would take her to another vet, but I live in a very rural area. There are no other vets for more than 75 miles and the closest animal hospital is about 3 hours away.

Is there any reason you could think of for the bites to take this long to heal? If they really are spider bites, do spider bites just take an abnormally long time to heal in felines? Shouldni be more seriously concerned?

 

Click to expand...

This is a very common spot for cat's to get infections and it may need a change to the antibiotic and possible a different type of topical wipe.  Given that this is an existing condition that the vet has already seen, it would be normal practice for him to talk to you on the phone as a follow up and then call in prescriptions to a local pharmacy for you.  This is where I would begin.

OKay, based on those pictures, it looks to me like Feline Acne.  Does she eat and/or drink out of plastic dishes.  This is a fairly common thing, usually brought on from eating from plastic dishes. 

Here are a couple of threads on it: 

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/134324/feline-acne

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/284498/stubborn-feline-chin-acne

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/226488/feline-acne

I agree that she seems to have feline acne.  While food dishes are the commonly-cited culprits, water dishes also breed bacteria.  Remember, cats drink by repeatedly dipping their tongues into water and each dip introduces food and bacteria to the bowl.  Electric water fountains filter food particles but do not kill bacteria.  Try treating her acne with peroxide and a q-tip or paper towel and return to using a water dish that's cleaned daily.

Her food and water bowls are both stainless steel. I change her water multiple times daily because she does frequently drop food into it. I usually wash them with soap and water 2-3 times a week and wipe them out well each time I change the water. But I will try the acne treatments you have suggested and see if that does anything to help.

Yes, I agree. This does look like feline acne. When my cat had it I used Stridex pads for acne and just kept cleaning her chin with them. It did clear up.