Sudden appearance of round bald spot on cat's hind leg - what could have caused it ?

[chippy2011]

Hi,
We have been caring for many years of an outdoor cat, whom we spayed a long time ago. Three years ago ago a male cat appeared. He is not neutered. We have been feeding him too. They are friends and hang out together quite a bit. There were no other outdoor cats in the neighborhood. Pinocchio is meowing , obviously looking for a cat. I noticed three days ago that he is limping and that he has a perfectly round bald spot on his hind leg, in the knee area. The spot appeared suddenly. About a week ago we noticed another gorgeous tomcat ( he is big, can't be a cat), around. Absolutely out of the blue, yestererday I noticed the same bald spot on his hind leg, slightly higher than Pinocchio's. He is limping. He was perfectly OK two days ago. Any ideas what could have happened to them ? It is too big of a coincidence. This is not a wound from a fight. The shape is too regular.

Thank you,
Dana

 

[mani]

Hi Dana, and welcome to TCS!

I'm really unsure what is going on here.. when you say 'a perfectly round bald spot' I immediately think of ringworm, but it wouldn't make them limp.  It is, of course, very contagious. 

Are the spots flat or raised?  Red?

 

[chippy2011]

It was too sudden for it to be ring worms. One day OK, next not. And the limp is suspicious.. Could it be that someone shot them with a pellet gun ?? This has never happened before. The wound is clean. A perfectly round spot. Maybe smaller than a quarter coin....