2.29.2012

Purrs for Casper Please

Hi all, I need some purrs for Casper and a little advice too...

We took Casper to the vet on Saturday because I had noticed about a week earlier he had developed an odd black mark on his chin.  I had looked online and read about "chin acne" in cats and figured this was what he had.  It wasn't until the vet shaved his chin to get a closer look that we realized how much black there was.

Casper's chin
The vet said it was a topical bacteria growing on Casper's chin although we have no idea where it came from.  After his fur was shaved she cleaned the area with an antibacterial/anti fungal soap and Casper also got an antibiotic jab.  We were given the soap to take home and instructions to bathe the area every second day for ten days.  It is quite difficult to tell what is bacteria and what is dried blood from the shaving because his chin was very red and raw after that was done.  I know we aren't at the ten day point yet, but I haven't seen one iota of improvement in Casper's chin. 

Has anyone out there experienced this or something similar?  Please let me know and please purr for Casper to be better soon.  Thank you!!!!

47 comments:

Sparkle said...

Poor Casper! I've never seen anything like this (and neither has my human), but I will purr lots for him - I really hope it starts to clear up soon!

Fuzzy Tales said...

Oh, poor Casper! No info/advice from us, just healing purrs.

HH and The Boys said...

We are purrring for Casper. That's for sure.

To answer your questions... yes and no. I had acne on my chin a few years ago. And HH had to wash it with some special stuff. Unfortunately it was so long ago, she can't remember the name of it, but there was not bleeding involved. sorry we can't be more help. Hope Casper feels better soon.

Have a great Leap Day.

pawhugs, Max

looloo said...

I am so sad to read you, but never faced such a thing... Did the vet say something about his experience coping this bacteria?

Anyway, I am praying for sweet Casper!

Becky said...

Oh poory kitty.My cat had some acne a few years back.But it didnt look that bad.I made sure his feeding dishes were always clean and that seemed to help alot.Meow hugs for him.

Angel Simba said...

That does not look good. Have you notified the vet that he does not seem better? I think I would. The only black skin thing I have had any experience with was a mast cell tumor my sister's black cat had. Lots of purrs and prayers.
Simba's Mom

Catherine said...

Poor sweet Casper! Not fun! I have no advice but I am with Simba above. I would check back in with the vet.

Sending lots of love and good thoughts for Casper!
xo Catherine & Banjo

Marg said...

So it has been 5 days and it is still bleeding. Is that right?? It sounds like the ointment or soap is irritating his chin. I sure would call the vet back. Is there a lump there?? You should be seeing some improvement by now.
We are sending very heavy purrs and prayers too. Please keep us updated. It could be some allergy or something like that. Hugs to you Cat. Take care.

Everycat said...

Poor Casper, we are sending you purrs and hope that the vets can figure out what this is.

Bacterial infections (and fungal infections) can take so many forms on feline skin. We'd like to suggest that if you get to ten days and there's no improvement, you ask your vet to do a skin scrape so that anything that is growing there can be cultured and the real cause be found and treated specifically.

Sometimes fungal & bacterial infections can take a while to shift, the key is keep up the treatment.

If there is any lumpyness to the black patch, the vet might want to take a small biopsy. Sometimes an unusual inflamatory response can make a real mess of the skin and look worse than it actually is.

Keeping an eye on how fast it is growing by measuring it might be helpful in diagnosis too.

We hope that Casper will be ok and this clears up soonest

Oliver & Gerry

Hannah and Lucy said...

Poor Casper - we have never seen anything like this before - did the vet use an electric shaver or do a wet shave? It sounds like a wet shave with his chin being red and raw. Mum wonders if the soap is making him sorer and if there is something in it that is irritating it further. Maybe you could call the vet or take him back for their opinion on why it is so raw now when you have done as they said.
We are sending huge purrs.
Luv Hannah and Lucy xx xx

Anonymous said...

Purrrss for Casper for a speeding healthy recovery!!
Gillian

SuziQCat said...

We have experienced chin acne before and it looks very similar, like dirt. One thing we have done to help it along is combing with a flea comb, against the grain of the hair. This helps to pull the pieces out. We would give a good combing, then use the cleaning pads we were given. Hope this helps.

Four Crazy Cats

CCL Wendy said...

Poor baby! Of course we are sending healing purrs Casper's way.

I have never heard of this kind of thing before. I wonder what causes it. Sorry I can't help.

We certainly hope your beautiful boy gets better very soon.

CCL Wendy said...

It's me again. I looked it up on the internet and found this site with a brief explanation: http://www.cat-health-guide.org/feline-skin-infection.html

Scroll down to "Feline Fungal Infection".

It looks like the treatment is kind of a trial and error process.

Hope this helps a little.

Rene said...

We have experienced this a number of times with Tucker--even worse, because he'll develop large pustules that can get infected. What works the best for us is to use Hibiclens (for people, found at a pharmacy) on the area once per day. We've tried other topical treatments but they are very drying. The vet can prescribe a topical cream called Pyoben (it's an acne treatment) but use it SPARINGLY. A little goes a long way. He will lose the fur there if you use this, but it will grow back.

Watch to make sure he's not getting an infection. Tucker stopped eating and he developed a fever. So keep an eye on him overall.

One last tip--feed him on plates as much as you can. His chin is sore and he wont' want to bump it on a bowl. Poor guy. Please keep us posted or email me at rj_schweitzer @ yahoo . com if you have more questions.

Random Felines said...

Poor Casper. We get chin acne some times but nothing like that....we read some comments and you got some great advice - we hope he is feeling (and looking) better very soon....

Memories of Eric and Flynn said...

Poor Casper we hope it soon improves. We are sending him our purrs.

Brian's Home Blog said...

We sure are swnding purrs to sweet Casper. Our Grandma's cat Kit had a bad allergic reaction to fleas and she lost most of her fur on the chin (http://www.brianshomeblog.com/2012/01/tabby-tuesday-unsolved-mysteries-and-one-solved.html) and it took months to get it under control.

My Mind's Eye said...

Ms. Cat mom and I are so sorry to read sweet Casper has to deal with this. I've never experienced anything like this or know of anyone. I know bacteria is slow to heal but surely with a shot and medicine we hope you see some improvement in the next day or two. Hugs to our sweet gentle Casper.
Madi and Mom

The Island Cats said...

We don't have any experience with this, although I have had chin acne but nothing to this degree. We are purring for Casper and hope the medicine the v-e-t prescribed helps clear this up.

Wally

Teri and her Stylish Adventure Cats said...

It does look like what chin acne can do in severe cases, but I can't biggify the photo so it is a bit hard to tell. If that is what it is, it's going to look worse for a few days before it starts getting better, but I would think you would be seeing improvement by now, depending on what you are using on it.

I tend to be a 'picker' at things like that and probably fiddle more than I should (Clem actually just had a flare up of acne that seemed to come on overnight) but I would have a hard time just bathing the area every other day.

Did they send you with Chlorhexidene soap or something like Malaseb? I would probably dilute it down by half and soak a cotton makeup pad (you know, like for removing make up but with no chemicals on it)and try and soften that crustiness so you can flake it off. I would do it daily or even twice a day. Of course, that is what I personally would do IF it was related to acne and I could see the kitty.

For chin acne or folliculitis, at the cat hospital, we use Zymox HC (that's what I used on Clem and it cleared in 3 days, but wasn't as bad as Casper's looks).

You might ask your vet about that product and if he doesn't carry it, it's available online without a prescription. It tastes bad so the cats tend to salivate a little or flip their heads around if the taste it and close to the mouth, well that's inevitable.

http://www.1800petmeds.com/Zymox+Otic+Enzymatic+Solution+with+Hydrocortisone-prod10622.html

Of course, I hesitate to recommend treatments based on that photo because I don't really know what it is, but daily washings and the Zymox shouldn't hurt and would help even if it's bacterial.

Hope the info helps. Skype or call me if you need to.

meowmeowmans said...

We've had cats with chin acne, but not with bacterial infections. Cat, we are sorry you are all going through this -- especially poor sweet Casper! We are purring and praying that he'll be better very soon. Hugs!

Nerissa's Life said...

There are twelve of us cats here and we're all sending lots & lots of purrs your way. Here they come...

Avalon's Garden and Mewsings of Garden Cottage Cats said...

Oh poor sweet Casper :( that sure iz pretty scarey looking! we so sorry you haz a problem, we truely hope dis iz not a bad problem. We do not have any advise to offer, but you sound az though you already have sum. We send loud purrayerz for owr sweet furiend that dis iz not serious and goez away really soon .
Purrz & Soft Kissez Casper ♥♥xoxo

Stitchabilities said...

Poor chap, I hope it heals soon!!

Unknown said...

Oh do I ever feel for you! When we got Kozmo we did not know he had this, as he has black fur. We all ended up with bacterial infections! Penelope, and both dogs and the people. It was hard to get rid of and took a long time. Keeping things clean was really important. We changed from plastic dishes for the pets to metal and glass. Kozmo got fed separately from Nellie. We used an antibacterial cream (prescription) on everybody.
Good antibacterial soap for washing hands between and after administering and on the dogs.
I recommend washing everything with an antibacterial soap and detergent (including all the places Casper has slept) and cleaning any furniture (including the cat trees).
What got to me was how extensively it spread, how long it took to get rid of and how it reoccurs (still). It was more like a scab type growth in the dogs. On people it is a red - almost like a burn, even to a blister.
It was the first time our vet had seen anything as pervasive as what Kozmo had and was quite taken aback at how it had spread from the cats to the dogs and us.
Good Luck
Nellie's Mom

Team Tabby said...

We have no experience with this condition, but you are getting some feedback. Hope Casper is on the mend soon and this clears up.

purrs from all of us,

Mindy
Moe
Bono
Cookie
Mike

The Monkeys said...

We are sending lots of purrs and love to Casper! We hope he gets better soon!

Marilia said...

I don´t have experience, but I´m sending my best vibrations to Casper!!

John Bellen said...

I wish casper the best of luck in beating this affliction. I agree with other comments in saying that you should notify the veterinarian that the soap is not working. I've never seen anything like it, though.

Jans Funny Farm said...

We send lots of purrs and pawhugs for Casper to get better. We've not seen anything like it before.

ANGEL ABBYGRACE said...

Lots of purrs for Casper.
We read some very good advise and learned a lot. Hope things are starting to improve.Glad you caught it when you did.
purrs
>^,,^<
♥Abby♥Boo♥Ping♥Jinx♥Grace♥

Anonymous said...

Poor,poor Casper. We will be Purring and praying for him to get well soon. Please give us updates too.

jude,poo,babybella,piper,marley & Melody

Annuk said...

Get well soon, Casper!!!!!

I have no experience with this, but I'm so glad you are getting feedback!

Purrs,
Anna & Zoe

Quill and Greyson said...

Poor Casper! Purrs to you to heal up quickly!

The Adventures of Scarlett and Melly said...

Ack, poor little dude! I've never seen anything like that, but Scarlett had some pretty bad acne on her chin a while ago. For the acne, I had great luck with Duoxo pads, which you can get from your vet or on Amazon. I hope Casper's chin gets better quickly!!

Cara n Crew said...

:( we don't have any input though we will purr for Caaper to heal!

Pip, smidgen, Minnie, HOllie

Cara n Crew said...

sorry, we need a new typist! we'll be purring hard for Casper!

Oui Oui said...

We had a kitty get kitty acne & had to switch from plastic bowls. It wasn't as bad as Casper's case. We sure hope it clears up soon, poor little sweetie! We are purring hard for him!

Andrea and the Celestial Kitties said...

Poor Casper! We hope he clears up fast!
The only time I've heard of chin acne in cats they say it's from plastic bowls, but that looks like more than acne to me.
We're purring!!!

Clooney said...

Inka had feline acne and I switched to stainless steel bowls for the food and water and it went away. Casper might need a stronger type of antibiotic treatment like some have suggested above. Colloidal silver gel that is sold in health food stores works for different skin conditions like hot spots for dogs, it is a natural anti-bacterial, maybe you could look into that in the future. In the meantime, we will purr hard for Casper, for everything to be resolved with ease. Good thoughts to you and sweet Casper.

Purrfect Haven said...

we are simply sending you LOTS of loving purrs.. we have no experience of this feel unable to give advice but the comments above are amazingly helpful, so we hope you have found that too. Hoping to hear good news soon. Love Helen, Darcy and Bingley xxx

Cory said...

Our Morgan had feline acne and everything that's being posted here helps, including making sure their food and water bowls are ceramic or glass. Something else though is making us think...since our Jonesie has a condition called Rodent Ulcers that sometimes ends up looking like a severe case of feline acne. It's an immune system issue and she gets occational flare ups that require steriods. Might be worth asking the vet about if the soap and antibiotics don't clear this up for dear Casper.

God's Little People said...

Aww, dear Casper. I've tried something similar looking (though smaller patches) - probably caused by eating from plastic bowls. It took a while to cure but we got there eventually with many washes. I've also experienced skin fungus appearing like this (it starts under the chin and spreads) and it's highly contagious to other cats. It needs a prolonged treatment. That's the tricky part - it can be so many things.

I hope you figure the cause so Casper can have the right treatment and recover soon.
Big hug
from Joan

laurence said...

I hope that Casper will be cured fast

Samantha & Mom said...

Lots of purrrs for Casper to feel better and heal up soon!!
Your TX furiends,

Daisy said...

Poor Casper! When Harley's EGC was at its worst, he had lots of big red lumps on his chin, also black specks/acne and swellings and fur loss. We tried lots of things to help because we didn't want him to keep taking Depo-medrol injections. One thing that helped was a good fatty acid supplement squirted on his food.