Tip Of Cat's Ears Turning Black

[m935]

My cat was at the vet about 2 months ago. I asked if he had ear mites - she said no. She said it looked like he was losing hair at the top of hte ears. Hes an orange cat... So im not sure why the ears would turn black. I believe its getting worse.

I read somethign about skin cancer. He is an indoor cat only. However, I have let him on my porch for maybe less than 10 hours tops in his 15 years. AND he would sleep under my chair so the sun didnt even hit him most of that time.

Any ideas... since MY VET IS USELESS! He seems fine. He does take methomazole for hyperthyroidism.

thanks

 

[Azazel]

Can you post a picture?

 

[duckpond]

Can you find a different vet for a second opinion? Cats shouldn't loose the hair on their ears unless there is a problem. Their ears definitely should not turn black.
Did she do any kind of test for bacterial infection, fungal infection, treat for mites or anything?

 

[m935]

NO... she did not test. In fact, I was there for his yearly exam and once she knew blood work was needed she said let's not focus on his ears right now. I was there to have my cat checked and tested for every possible issue. ANYWAY he HAS been back due to his thyroid testing. The other vet just cleaned his ears - but had no opinion either. (Ive seen all 5 vets in my area - all horrible)
THANKS!!

 

[Azazel]

NO... she did not test. In fact, I was there for his yearly exam and once she knew he was losing weight... she said let's not focus on his ears right now. I was livid! I was there to have my cat checked for every possible issue. I wasnt going to go back and pay another $60 to have her check his ears specifically - thats not fair to me or my cat. ANYWAY he HAS been back due to his thyroid testing. The other vet just cleaned his ears - but had no opinion either. (Ive seen all 5 vets in my area - all horrible)
THANKS!!

Hmm these almost look like the black freckles that orange cats are known to get on their nose, but I've never seen them on the ears.

I just did a quick google search for black spots on orange cat ears though and it seems to be common. I would still get it checked by another vet but this may give you some peace of mind that they could just be freckles. The condition is called lentigo simplex.

 

[duckpond]

I dont know what it might be, but it does not look right. Maybe someone else will have a better idea than i do. But i would think it is something a vet could, and would want to find out what it is.

 

[Azazel]

Just found another older thread similar to yours: Black patches on cats skin

 

[Margret]

I just found an explanation at Melanosis in Cats – Dr. Nelson's Veterinary Blog:

The color orange in cats is the result of a genetic mutation on the X chromosome from black/brown to orange. As orange cats age, the genetic mutation will sometimes mutate back to its original black/brown color causing pigmented spots. The reverse mutation occurs most commonly on the ears, eyelids, nose and lips of orange cats. Males and females are both affected.

The reason I checked the site is that the tiny quote I got in my search on "lentigo simplex in cats" seemed to indicate that it can be confused with melanosis, which sounded worrisome, but the actual description of melanosis is nothing like what's happening with your cat.

Margret

 

[m935]

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND HELP!!! As always you've done more to help me and Tigger then our vet.

 

[Margret]

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND HELP!!! As always you've done more to help me and Tigger then our vet.

We're good on the little stuff, and giving context and experience on the big stuff; what we're not good on is substituting for actual medical care on the big stuff. Sometimes the best we can manage is to say "Your cat is sick and needs a vet now!" which is valuable, but not more valuable than the actual vet visit. But thank you.

Margret

 

[furmonster mom]

Hey, I learned something new today!

Very interesting about the mutating mutation, lol. Nice to know it's nothing too serious.

 

[Juan Barron]

My orange twin boys after years suddenly had an Alpha male moment years ago. Now my Alpha male twin suddenly has black skin ear tips.

 

[danteshuman]

I'm feeling better about freaking out over my peach cat's dark spots on his gums! I had to look up what it was to.

 

[smittycat]

NO... she did not test. In fact, I was there for his yearly exam and once she knew blood work was needed she said let's not focus on his ears right now. I was there to have my cat checked and tested for every possible issue. ANYWAY he HAS been back due to his thyroid testing. The other vet just cleaned his ears - but had no opinion either. (Ive seen all 5 vets in my area - all horrible)
THANKS!!

Wow! Your kitty’s eats look just like mine! I was just at vet (he’s an old timer with asthma, thyroid and renal failure!)! She seems to think it’s a skin cancer. I’m
Not entirely convinced. But I’m not certain it’s reverse pigmentation. He’s not well enough to have it removed if it’s indeed cancer. Wish I could be of more help.

 

[Daisy6]

Hey, I learned something new today!

Very interesting about the mutating mutation, lol. Nice to know it's nothing too serious.

Actually I did not know that either. My last cat was a brown and white classic tabby and gained little more black fur than she was born with. I asked the vet why she had a mew black spot on her nose. He said it is called lentigo and "very common" in older cats.

 

[smittycat]

I realize this is very late, but I had asked a friend who used to be a vet tech...she said it looks like yeast infection. She suggested I try wiping his ear tip with an apple cider vinegar solution. Well, it worked! The black is almost gone! So for my cat, it was not cancer. Hope you have a solution for your kitty.

 

[MCHA]

My cat was at the vet about 2 months ago. I asked if he had ear mites - she said no. She said it looked like he was losing hair at the top of hte ears. Hes an orange cat... So im not sure why the ears would turn black. I believe its getting worse.

I read somethign about skin cancer. He is an indoor cat only. However, I have let him on my porch for maybe less than 10 hours tops in his 15 years. AND he would sleep under my chair so the sun didnt even hit him most of that time.

Any ideas... since MY VET IS USELESS! He seems fine. He does take methomazole for hyperthyroidism.

thanks

I am having the same issue with my orange. My cat has hyperthyroidism and the methomazole cream gave him black ear tips. I am also looking for an solution. The Vet ignored when I asked. Is it ear kites? I have indoor car as well.

 

[MCHA]

 

[ChusMom]

I am having the same issue with my orange. My cat has hyperthyroidism and the methomazole cream gave him black ear tips. I am also looking for an solution. The Vet ignored when I asked. Is it ear kites? I have indoor car as well.

My white kitty Penelope has little black spots on her ear tip. Just one ear. Feels crusty like a scab. I’ll check in after I ask our vet.

 

[Caspers Human]

Any ideas... since MY VET IS USELESS!

One of my biggest pet peeves about vets is when they don't explain things!

While I'm sure that your vet recognized the reason for the change in the color of your cat's ears, I think they should have explained the reason. Whether the cause be from melanosis, lentigo or something else, the vet should have just said so.

Our vet is really good about explaining things. When we first adopted our cat, Casper, we took him to the vet for his first visit and we asked about the black "goobers" he was getting in the corners of his eyes. They turned out to be nothing. Any other vet might have said just that. "Oh, it's nothing..."

Our vet explained that when a cat's tears collect in the tear ducts at the corner of the eyes, exposure to air and sunlight makes them turn black. She said that, because Casper is an all-white cat, it's more noticeable. It made sense to me because I've never had white cat, before. Further, she said that, if Casper will tolerate it, we could use a wet cloth to wipe his eyes to remove his "eye boogers."

This whole conversation took, maybe, ninety seconds! Quick, simple and informative. Nothing more, nothing less. But, that ninety seconds is one of the main reasons why we go back to that vet. Whenever we go there, we get answers. If our cat has an issue, it is explained. We know what the problem is. We know the cause. We know the treatment, the expected outcome and we have a reasonable estimate on the cost. If we have to give our cat any medicine, we know what it is, why it's given, how it works and how to use it, before we leave the clinic.

When you asked about your cat's ears, he could have said something like, "It's something called 'lentigo' which is common in ginger cats when they get older. As long as you don't see any bleeding, sings of infection or other problems, it's mostly normal and there's nothing to worry about."

How long would it take a person to speak those two sentences? Fifteen seconds? Twenty max!

The next time you talk to your vet, I think you should tell them that they need to start explaining things better or else you're going to find a new vet who will.

Our current vet is not the first vet we took Casper to see. The first place was the same vet that my family took all of our pets to seesince I was a little kid. Well, the original guy who started the practice retired and turned it over to his son but, when he retired the business got sold to some kind of partnership. When we took Casper there, the place was nothing like it was, back in the day.

The place had been redecorated with fancy furniture and pictures of dogs and cats on the walls. All the receptionists sweet talked everybody but didn't really say anything meaningful. All the doctors and employees always fawned over people's pets and pretended to be all "nicey-nice."

One of the things we took Casper to the vet for was to have a microchip implanted. While the vet was getting everything ready, I asked a question: "Is this an ISO Standard microchip?" I literally got the brush-off!

There are a few different standards for microchips and not all microchip scanners can detect all the different types of microchip if they aren't ISO compliant. If your pet doesn't have an ISO compliant microchip, there is a chance that, even though your pet has been chipped, an animal shelter or vet won't detect it because it's not compatible with the scanner they use.

That would be a bad thing! Don't you think? My cat gets lost but nobody knows who his owner is because he was implanted with a non-compliant chip!

All it takes to prevent that from happening is to ask one simple question! All they would have had to say is, "Yes."
(BTW: The chip was ISO compliant. I looked it up when I got home.)

Anyhow, we finished the procedure and I paid the bill. I took my cat, turned on my heels and never went back.

The vet we take Casper and Elliot to, now, is a million times better!

When we took him there for his first visit, our vet told us that she used to have an all-white cat that looked just like Casper!

I'm pretty certain that we got the right vet, this time!