Kitten shoulder wounds ??

My kitten is 6 or 7 months old, neutered and fully vaccinated. His last topical flea treatment was around October 1.

I first noticed these wounds beginning the first week of October.. Shortly after, two similar wounds showed up in the same area around his scruff/shoulder blades. Those were almost completely healed when I saw another one on October 17. Then another even worse one on October 19. That's when I took him to see a vet the next available day on October 23. The vet said she had no idea without tests, gave him a 2 week antibiotic shot and something that I think was to stop the itching (he won't stop scratching at the wounds). She said come back in 2-3 weeks if the problem persists. The newest one showed up October 29, much bigger and worse than the others and appears to look even worse today (November 1). These wounds show up out of the blue with no clear cause.


My first theory was an allergic reaction to the topical flea treatment because of the area and a similar wound around the same time on one of my other cats. But the other cat healed completely with no further issues while the kitten continued to get worse.


My second theory is an issue with fleas. I first noticed a flea on myself September 30, at which point I applied adult doses to my 2 cats and a double dose of kitten meds to the kitten (which the vet told me to do because he is over 6lbs). I also sprayed my house thoroughly with an pet-safe spray composed mostly of clove extract and peppermint oil. The fleas seemed to disappear until today (November 1) when I found one flea on myself. I have not witnessed any of my cats scratching themselves (except the kitten scratching his wounds).


My third theory is my oldest cat might be attacking the kitten. A couple of my friends have said the his wounds look like the kind caused by being bit by another cat. I have not witnessed any rough play or attacks on the kitten. The two older cats play rough with each other but there are no wounds. This seems the most likely to me, but like I said I haven't actually seen any rough play or even much interaction at all between the kitten and other cats. The kitten is rather skittish, especially lately.


Some other details: all of my cats are indoor only. They are all eating and drinking and using the bathroom regularly. The kitten has had past issues with worms and coccidia and bad diarrhea from those but that was resolved months ago. We have been applying neosporin to the wounds occasionally. I tried making him a shirt out of a sock but it didn't cover high enough so I will be trying again.


 

Hi @cupcakaholic

Welcome to The Cat Site.

What you are describing sounds a lot like what one of my cats went through. I put a collar on her when she was six months old and she scratched her neck raw. The vet thought she might have a metal allergy and be reacting to the metal tag on her collar. We took the collar off and she healed up. We didn't have any problems all winter, but at around the same time next summer she started scratching again.

She does the same as your kitten; she'll scratch and scratch until she bleeds for no apparent reason. After several trips to the vet we've worked out that she's allergic to mosquito bites. We now use a flea medication that also prevents her being bitten by tick, gnats and mosquitoes. It seems to have worked pretty well this summer, only one really nasty raw patch under her chin this time.

There are lots of things that a cat can be allergic to. If your cat is allergic to fleas it only takes one bite for the cat to start scratching like crazy. It could also be something in your kittens diet that makes him scratch like this.

Our vet prescribed a low dose steroid which worked pretty well, but really the best way to deal with this would be to find out what, if anything, the kitten is allergic too.

Are you able to clip his claws? I wonder if your vet could apply those Soft Claws claw covers to his back paws so he can't scratch himself so badly.

Thanks so much! I'm saving up to get him tested for allergies or whatever else could be causing it. I am def thinking about getting some soft paws and a sweater to protect him

Apparently all my imgur links were edited out so here's a pic of.the most recent and worst wound

Has the vet seen one of these lesions when it was this advanced? I wonder if this could be cuterebra infection, though I doubt a vet would not be able to diagnose that by sight. Hard to tell from the photos. 

As for the theories you brought up, my thoughts are - 

1 & 2. Allergies either to fleas or flea medications are less likely to be so localized. You would also be seeing the cat scratching all over its body.

3. Hmmm possible but abscesses usually have other symptoms. The cat is usually somewhat lethargic, runs a fever and seems generally done in the days before the abscess ruptures. Has this been the case here? 

The vet has not seen that particular wound, but has seen others. I'll attach a picture of the worst one she saw. The kitten is not lethargic, thankfully. He is eating, drinking, using the bathroom, and playing normally. Occasionally his ears feel hot which j thought was sign of a fever but its not often. The vet said his temperature was slightly raised at the exam but not actually a fever. Maybe I should see the vet again even though I can't afford treatment right this second? I could afford the base exam fee, but no tests unfortunately. Payday seems so far I noticed today he has been licking himself a lot, all over. Not like grooming, though, at least it seems different or I could just be paranoid. Thanks so much for your help!

You said something about abcesses rupturing? These wounds don't appear to be abcesses. There is no "bubble" or pus/fluid. They appear to be superficial, like scrapes or burns almost.

Here's a picture of the previous wound that is still healing now, the one the vet saw

Here's some more pictures, if it helps


the most recent worst wound

also the most recent wound, but this is when it first showed up. This is the only wound that has gotten worse since its appearance


this is the first wound from October 8

this is a reference for the first couple wounds locations