Why does my cat have discolored spots on her ear tips? Is it serious?

This may be a bacterial or yeast infection on the ear margins and spreading. You can keep it clean with warm soap and water, just be careful to not get it in her ear, and rub a small, thin amount of Neosporin to the area. If it does not improve then she needs to be seen by your vet on Monday

Hi, and thanks for your question. This could be due to an allergy, although it could also be infection or mites. First of all, in order to rule out skin parasites, you will need to treat with a high quality flea treatment, then ask the vet to perform a skin scrape - this might reveal an infection or a mite infestation. If all of those came back negative, the next step is to treat the allergy symptomatically and try to discover the cause of the allergy. Three main type of allergies are usually affecting pets: food allergies, flea and parasite related ones and environmental type (allergens coming from trees, pollens, dust etc etc). Some medications can be given by the vet in order to repair any possible skin lesions (like steroids and antibiotics). Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. Please find the time to give us a feedback about the consultation as that will be used to improve our service.

Is your pet itching or scratching at its head/ears? Outdoor kitty with the potential for being in a fight or being wounded? These could be excoriations/superficial wounds. If your pet is scratching/itching a lot than these could be caused by an ear infection (bacteria/yeast/ear mites) or allergy (food, flea, etc.), etc. Some medications older cats take can also cause an itchy face, so if your pet is taking a new medication this could be the cause and you should alert your veterinarian. As the lesions appear raw and ulcerated the best plan would be to have your pet seen by your family veterinarian for an exam and ear assessment. That way if medications are needed to improve comfort they can be prescribed. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Hello, and thank you for your question. Are the spots rough or crusty? Or is it just a discolouration of the skin? If there is a roughness to the spots, then I would worry about a possible skin infection (bacterial, fungal, or parasitic), and I would recommend taking Harlequin to the vet. They can perform tests such as a skin scraping or cytology to check for the underlying cause. At minimum, they may suggest a topical antibiotic and/or anti-inflammatory cream in case of an infection. If it is only a discolouration and he seems healthy and not itchy around the ear, I would monitor it for now unless the spots worsen or increase in number. I hope this helps, and that Harlequin is feeling well!

This can be an bacterial infection from allergies or just from prior conditions before you got her. I would clean the area with soap and water and apply Neosporin to the spots. If they clear and keep recurring I would look into a food allergy and possibly changing her food

This presentation could be due to a trauma (autotraumatism) or localized spot of skin infection (likely to be caused by bacteria). A check up, appropriate disinfection and possibly antibiotics (oral, topical or in a shampoo formulation) are needed to solve the problem. Disinfection may be started at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths. Buster collar may be useful as well to avoid any scratching. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

This may be sun damage, a precursor to skin cancer, a skin infection or damage due to excessive scratching. I recommend a full check up as soon as possible, in many cases removal of the ear tips and biopsy is recommended if no apparent infection is identified