Cat nose has... a scab?

[gabicards]

Well, he still looks very handsome! I have DouxoS3 on a dog with pressure sores, prescribed by his vet, and I was happy with it. They do sell slightly different products, but similar as I recall, and I believe that the pads you have are for fungal conditions so hopefully they will work. Can you tell the French vet that you want to give this a trial period?

Ah yes, I did see their different products too! They seem to be mostly for dogs - I thought it was interesting that they advise not to use their mousse on cats because they tend to lick themselves, but I've read that Chlorexidine is pretty safe for ingestion if you don't overdo it. So much so that in smaller concentrations it's used to clean cats' teeth. But I don't understand it very well so I wouldn't risk it... the shampoo I have is an even higher concentration and, mercifully, he's never reacted poorly to it. I've certainly not overused it.

The vet is meant to call by Wednesday if the test results point towards a fungal infection. She asked me to send her a picture 10 days after Convenia, which would be 8 days from now, for an update. I suppose I could ask for a trial period for Duoxo S3 + the shampoo if by the time she calls it looks significantly better than it did when she last saw him, otherwise I think I wouldn't feel confident in doing so.

One thing the brazilian vet mentioned is that it's a very good sign he's not itchy, she says that a fungal infection itches a lot (which I can actually attest to, having had to deal with one myself about 5 months ago - I was miserable). I've kept a close eye on him since my arrival and he doesn't touch his face except for the regular grooming, which he's never overdone. Also, regardless of what it is, it has not spread. He's had it for about a month now and it's been on the same area of his nose and above his mouth. These are making me hopeful.

 

[fionasmom]

He does not look bad at all, although I am not trying to say that he is fine. Some fungal infections take off like wildfire; since he seems to be under control I wondered if you could hesitate on the oral meds. I know that on one of the Duoxo products they specifically say not to use it on a cat's feet.

 

[gabicards]

Ohhhh my god, I was looking at a thread I made back in July/August about how he had an inflammation on his chin, so that I could compare the pictures: https://thecatsite.com/threads/fur-under-mouth-looks-slightly-off

I think it looks pretty much the same. BUT! I was gonna compare it in order to say that, when that happened, I just kept the area clean and it eventually stopped bothering me and I stopped paying attention - it was gone. And looking at the thread I realized there was something else:

Back then, it was recommended to me that I change the oil in his food to an organic version of it. I did. In December, when I prepared food for him before my trip, I ran out of the organic oil, and one of my batches (which was for 22 days) was made with regular oil again. The timing is very suspicious, I'm now thinking this could potentially have been the cause, in association with the temporary change of household. I can't believe I had forgotten it!

Here's a pic of his chin back then - I didn't know using the flash was better to show the skin, so it's not as clear as the pictures I've been using here. The area had less fur, and the fur that was there looked a bit worse for wear (yellow-ish), which is the case now as well (with the exception of his nose, which is hard to compare due to the color of the skin and fur on the bridge).

 

[fionasmom]

I do remember that thread. Maybe you are onto something with the change in the oil, as subtle as that sounds

 

[gabicards]

I do remember that thread. Maybe you are onto something with the change in the oil, as subtle as that sounds

It really is so subtle! It's literally the same kind of oil, only one is organic and the other is not. The location is different, though if he was fed mostly with an automatic feeder, which is not elevated and tilted like his ceramic bowl is, I could see how his chin would not be the main affected area. When he eats out of the elevated bowl, his nose doesn't get very dirty, but, as he eats soup, it almost always means his chin and muzzle get very oily. When the bowl is on the ground, it's essentially his entire face and maybe the part of the chin that's the closest to his mouth.

Well, I've ordered a tray for the automatic feeder that's made out of stainless steel. I don't know if it's food grade (although one would hope so, given that it is literally made for food...), but that's the best I can do for the days where I work from the office. It's usually just lunch, so at most he eats out of the automatic feeder a few times per week. Maybe a couple of extra times when I'm out on the weekend.

Thanks for your responses to the thread fionasmom <3 It's nice to be able to throw my thoughts in here so that I don't just obsess over Topaz's health by keeping it all in my head. There's a lot going on over here, on a personal level, and whenever this coincides with even the smallest thing going on with Topaz, I tend to channel my focus to him. Sometimes it makes it worse as I end up blowing small issues out of proportion. Writing here helps!

 

[gabicards]

Update: skin looking good today! Acne (assuming that's what it is) is still there, but I wasn't expecting it to stop appearing after washing it a couple of times with shampoo, otherwise no one would ever consider it an actual problem. But it definitely does not look infected to me, and it seems that the irritation is reduced on both his nose and his mouth - you can see the outline of his nose more clearly now, which has always been darker. The dark triangular patch is still there, but more subtle now.

The whole thing improved immediately after the first wash with chlorexidine. It's made me even more bitter about that Convenia shot.

 

[fionasmom]

I agree he looks much better! It seems that he has not reacted to the Convenia, or certainly not in a big way, so that may be all behind him. He has such a cute little lion face.

It is possible that it might have just needed the special cleaning which in the long run would mean that this might be resolving.

 

[gabicards]

I agree he looks much better! It seems that he has not reacted to the Convenia, or certainly not in a big way, so that may be all behind him. He has such a cute little lion face.

It is possible that it might have just needed the special cleaning which in the long run would mean that this might be resolving.

We're on Day 4 after Convenia, so I think we're okay. No changes at all.

I really think his face was just kept dirty for a long time and became inflamed, then infected. I still can't make sense of the original vet advice of not cleaning it - it took one gentle cleasing with a chlorexidine shampoo to have it look infinitely better than it had for the 2 weeks prior. I wondered if it would go back to looking bad the day after, but nope. I'm not saying Convenia did not help at all, but I won't give it most of the credit because there's a clear before and after the shampoo, and that was 2 days after the shot. Hopefully the medication will prevent it from becoming infected again until it heals fully.

By the way, since I've started cleaning him, I've been suspecting the fur on his nose is actually stained from the dirt. When I cleaned it saturday night, a lot of brown gunk came out, and since then there's less and less of it each night, and now it looks significantly lighter than it was 10 days ago. Not much comes out anymore but there's still a faint mark - I really think it's a stain, like the yellow tinge some of the fur around his mouth and his muzzle has due to the oil in his food.

 

[fionasmom]

I did not have a recurrence of the stud tail that Rikki had (which I still have no idea how it happened in the first place). It is odd that cleaning it was not the first step. As for the oil, who knows? You can pursue the line of thinking that non-organic means that there are pesticides and additives, but in reality that seems like a long shot, even in a non organic product.

 

[gabicards]

I did not have a recurrence of the stud tail that Rikki had (which I still have no idea how it happened in the first place). It is odd that cleaning it was not the first step. As for the oil, who knows? You can pursue the line of thinking that non-organic means that there are pesticides and additives, but in reality that seems like a long shot, even in a non organic product.

It could very well have been a coincidence, of course. I do think that lower immunity due to stress + more frequent use of plastic + poor cleaning might have played a big part in this - not because my friend has poor hygiene, but because cleaning a bowl that's been used for home cooked meals is different than cleaning a bowl that was used for kibble.

I think most pet owners that only feed kibble also don't have the habit of cleaning the bowls after every meal, specially if their pets don't have timed meals at all, so I wouldn't rule out the possibility that on some occasions the cleaning of the bowl was forgotten, or that it was only rinsed.

All of this is guess work, we won't know because when it happened he wasn't with me. And because my friend did not notice, otherwise she would have told me. Her own cat has a lot more to deal with - she went through surgery while Topaz was there, then a subsequent jaw infection - so I'd never fault her for it either.

I'm just relieved to see a major improvement in a span of 2 days. I will continue to keep the area clean while Convenia does its thing, and hopefully not only his skin, but his fur will also go back to normal.

 

[fionasmom]

Your friend did have a lot on her plate, and in the end Topaz was safe and cared for. Even kibble only dishes start to get a residue if they are not washed. Some combination of cat saliva and food particles begin to build up, even if the dish looks clean. Lots of people probably do not wash kibble bowls regularly.

 

[gabicards]

Your friend did have a lot on her plate, and in the end Topaz was safe and cared for. Even kibble only dishes start to get a residue if they are not washed. Some combination of cat saliva and food particles begin to build up, even if the dish looks clean. Lots of people probably do not wash kibble bowls regularly.

Absolutely, and I also think Topaz is more sensitive. I wonder about the immunity situation - do you know how parents are told to let kids play on dirt, for instance, to build up immunity? Topaz is a cat that came from a very clean cattery, has only been outside a handful of times, and lives in an apartment that I keep very clean also. Because my previous cat was sickly, I got used to cleaning all of his stuff really well, from food bowls to litter box to cat tree... I feel like the consequence of this might be that he reacts to stuff other cats might not. I've heard many times that strays are much stronger, for instance.

This friend he stayed with fed her cat wet food for a while, back when she was adopted, and she'd put 2 sachets in a bowl and leave them there all day while she was at work - during summer, no less. She had no idea there was an issue with this until I told her, but her cat never reacted to it, either. This is just one of many examples I have with my own friends doing things I've been strongly advised against, with zero consequences. It's why, when I'm asked, I usually just tell them to not mess with what's working - particularly when it comes to food, because they know I make Topaz's myself.

 

[fionasmom]

Topaz needs to be treated the way that you care for him, not a doubt about that, and expecting cleanliness and a certain procedure is not unreasonable. As for ferals and strays...in my experience many of them are very hardy in situations which would seem guaranteed to open them up to danger or infection. There are even theories about this, about high immunity, healthy immune systems and the like.

I have had ferals outside for years and while they do eventually develop old age diseases and are certainly at risk from cars or coyotes, their health is generally remarkable. I know that there is wildlife and while I try to watch that their food is not eaten by skunks, possums, or raccoons, there is no guarantee that there is no interaction with them, along with other cats in the area who are not part of their colony.

 

[gabicards]

Vet was supposed to call until today if she had a positive test for the fungal infection - it's past 8pm, so I guess we're clear on that too!

I think we might have covered all of our bases, then... it's not fungal, he was given an antibiotic shot, and there are no signs of any viral infections either - meaning no coughing, no sneezing, no laboured breathing, no lethargy or lack of appetite. All is as normal apart from the skin that's slightly inflamed. I will just have patience, clean and keep an eye on it while it heals.

... on a less pleasant note, ever since the Convenia shot, Topaz has been pooping every 4 days again. It took us sooooo long to get to his every other day schedule, I hope we can go back to it soon. Literally none of the vets care about this, but I do.

 

[fionasmom]

That is all very good news and it sounds like he is on the mend! Anecdotally, Convenia is often said to cause diarrhea; I never saw this with my boy, but only the extreme and almost comatose lethargy. That is not to say that it cannot though.

Graycie has a history of constipation and I literally watch every day for signs that something is amiss. Her own vet told me once that "she could handle it if she wanted to" which I found pretty dismissive.

 

[gabicards]

That is all very good news and it sounds like he is on the mend! Anecdotally, Convenia is often said to cause diarrhea; I never saw this with my boy, but only the extreme and almost comatose lethargy. That is not to say that it cannot though.

Graycie has a history of constipation and I literally watch every day for signs that something is amiss. Her own vet told me once that "she could handle it if she wanted to" which I found pretty dismissive.

Honestly, it seems that nothing other than kibble causes Topaz diarrhea. No meds, no actual meat, nothing, just dry food.

And every single vet I've ever seen for Topaz has been dismissive of the frequency in which he poops, mostly because there are no symptoms of actual constipation. They're like:

• Does he cry? No
• Does it look like he's trying to poop unsuccessfully? No
• Does his poop come out in little balls? No
• Does it affect his appetite? No

"Then that's just his normal"

But it freaks me out, naturally, because if something is ever wrong with his intestines I won't know for a very long time. I'm never at peace when he goes every 3-4 days. Since October 2023 he had been going (more often than not, with some hiccups) every other day... since Convenia it's been every 4 days. Today was Day 3, I've given him Clearlax so that it won't become too dry... it's hard not to associate that with the shot.

 

[fionasmom]

Of course it is hard not to make an association. I finally got Graycie to some kind of every-other-day regularity and I work on keeping her there. It is very odd about those four questions and how they lead nowhere with a lot of vets

 

[gabicards]

Picture update of the little snow lion.

Skin above mouth looks very good, same color as everywhere else now, just with a little less fur. When I clean it, the pad comes out clean as well. The nose looks the same, though... after a few days of not washing the affected area with chlorexidine shampoo, just using the Duoxo S3 pads, I noticed the brown tinge on the pad again. Barely any brown dots, just the brown tinge.

I'm thinking the Duoxo pads aren't really cleaning the area, tbh. Might ditch them and wash the area daily with the shampoo instead, as many articles online recommend.

 

[fionasmom]

He looks wonderful! I love the tufts on the ears!

 

[gabicards]

He looks wonderful! I love the tufts on the ears!

Topaz thanks you for the kind words!

He's in his Rudolph (but grey) era now, but still looks dashing.