Redness on my cat's head glands

Hello!

Over the past couple of days, I have noticed that there are crusty red patches located only on her head glands. There are a total of three; two of which are about the size of a grain of rice on the left and right side  of her head and the third is quite a bit larger on her right side.

I've checked them out and she doesn't appear to be in pain when I touch them nor does she seem to be bothered by it as she isn't scratching. However, I have seen that if the scab is broken, there's a small mixture of blood and clear fluid. Not a lot but it pools right on the surface which will likely reform the scab.

Oddly enough, this isn't the first time I've noticed scabs on her head glands. Could it be allergy related? I doubt it's flea-related because she is on Revolution. Her kitten is free of this as well and they basically shadow each other everywhere they go.

Thanks!

Isenhart said:

 
Hello!

Over the past couple of days, I have noticed that there are crusty red patches located only on her head glands. There are a total of three; two of which are about the size of a grain of rice on the left and right side  of her head and the third is quite a bit larger on her right side.

I've checked them out and she doesn't appear to be in pain when I touch them nor does she seem to be bothered by it as she isn't scratching. However, I have seen that if the scab is broken, there's a small mixture of blood and clear fluid. Not a lot but it pools right on the surface which will likely reform the scab.

Oddly enough, this isn't the first time I've noticed scabs on her head glands. Could it be allergy related? I doubt it's flea-related because she is on Revolution. Her kitten is free of this as well and they basically shadow each other everywhere they go.

Thanks!

Click to expand...

Hi

What do you mean by "head glands"?  Can you take a photo?  Has your cat had contact with any cats outside of your home?

I'm not sure what head glands are either. A picture or a more detailed description could help 

Hello and sorry for the wait, our internet has been finicky the past several days.

Here is a picture of the condition:


What I meant by head gland was her scent glands where she'll rub up on to objects in order to leave her scent to mark ownership. In this case, as you can see, her glands have developed these rash-type markings and seem to come and go as of late. One side will appear fine and then the next day it'll begin to break out until it scabs over and heals. In this case, both sides are affected with her right side being worse.

She sometimes (rarely) has small breakouts which pass without issue although this is certainly more noticeable.

As I said, she doesn't appear to be in pain and there's no sign of feverish conditions or infection (the fluid under the scab is clear but mixed with a little blood when broken). She eats, drinks, and plays with her kit just like every other day.

Since these are located specifically on her scent glands, I'm thinking it may be an allergic reaction but I can't quite pin it on the cause. We recently took out Christmas decorations and she has been hanging around the short artificial window tree but even when she is away the breakouts continue. The food I am providing her is something she has had before without issue so I can't see that being the cause. We do have a very cranky neighbouring cat who has given her issues in the past to the point of puncture wounds in the head-region. However, because of this, I keep her inside for most of the day and only let her out with supervision. To my knowledge, the neighbours cat has not been a problem for some time.

I've been applying some Polysporin to the area and it seems to sort of help but I definitely feel like there is more that I can do for her although I suspect it'll end up with a trip to the vet unless there are other home-based remedies to try.

Thanks

The scent glands are your cat's head are located on and closer to her cheeks. I don't know what you rightly call the spots you're referring to, I usually call them the in-front-of-the-ear-bald-like-patches. Looks to me like they're itchy and she's scratching at them for some reason. Or maybe another cat was mad at her and boofed her real good on the face a few times. 

Isenhart said:

 
Hello and sorry for the wait, our internet has been finicky the past several days.

Here is a picture of the condition:
 
Thanks

Click to expand...

Thanks for the photo!

The picture helps and i agree these aren't glands.  But it is a problem, it probably does hurt or itch, they look infected or about to be, and regardless its a medical problem that needs a vet's attention.  If she is rubbing excessively here that could cause the wounds, but it doesn't explain why she's rubbing there, unless it an allergic itch, and if they just appeared out of no where, then even stranger.  I would get a vet to look at it before it becomes deeply infected. 

As soon as I saw where you said your cats has had some issues with a neighboring cat to point of puncture wounds, bells and whistles went off! 

Back in April, Kricket (my Maine Coon) bit Keeker (my DSH)  in the head and I took him to vet because the area over his eye became puffy and red. He was put on antibiotics and three days later, he ended up looking just like your cat. The vet said it is a fungal dermatitis resulting from the oral bacteria in Kricket's mouth. Even though they are 'brothers' and very up-to-date on all vaccinations, a cat bite can be just as serious to a cat as it is to a human. 

The drainage that you are seeing is called serosanguinous drainage. Basically, it is a mix of serum plasma (sero) and blood (sanguin). The 'clear' serum usually has a slight yellowish tint to it. And, yes, it will scab over - but until the dermatitis is treated, it will continue to appear and can get worse - eventually getting into the ears. I suggest you get her to the vet and get it treated. Because it is a fungal infection, the Neosporin isn't going to treat it. She needs and antifungal.

Here are pictures of Keeker:

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