Is my cat's fungal infection causing our family's itchy skin rash?

Hi, thanks for using PetCoach! Oh no! I am so sorry about your son! I would bring your Cat to the Vet. Sadly a lot of cats can be carriers of ring work but show no skin lesions. Also be sure to discuss with your pediatrician other causes of ring worm in people. Ring worm in Veterinary medicine is diagnosed from a fungal culture and treated with antifungal oral pills (itraconazole, terbinafine, etc) and lyme sulfur dips. It is not fun. The CDC has a lot of resources on ring worm in people https://www.cdc.gov/fungal/diseases/ringworm/index.html http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=559 I hope this helps and I wish you all the best!

While ringworm is potentially contagious to people, the reality is that by the time your cat is diagnosed with ringworm, you have already been exposed to it for a long period of time and have not had any problems with it. Most people do not contact ringworm from cats (or other animals), but from other people. I am attaching a handout with more information about ringworm in cats below. https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4951439 If you develop any abnormal skin lesions, I would certainly recommend having your doctor evaluate them, but I do think what you read was certainly exaggerated. Good luck! I hope that was helpful and answered your question. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This could be ringworm which is a fungal infection which needs to be treated and also can be contagious to humans. I highly recommend that you have her evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. Also, avoid contact with this lesion for now. Good luck!

It certainly is possible that Stiletto has ringworm. I would take her into the vet, who can use a Wood's lamp and fungal culture to diagnose if she does have ringworm. Should she have it, the vet can prescribe an antifungal treatment for it. Your other cat will have to be treated for it, as it's highly contagious, and keep an eye on yourself to make sure you don't have ringworm lesions as well because it's contagious to humans. You will also have to disinfect the home, as ringworm spores can live in the environment for up to 18 months: http://www.livestrong.com/article/49666-rid-home-ringworm/

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. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

If the hair is falling off from ring worm that would explain where you got it from. Cats can have ring worms and carry it to others. Hair loss in their face can also be from an allergy and maybbe unrelated to your lesions. Getting them checked by a vet can distinguish between the two for appropriate medicine. Until then, confining them is safest and minimizing contact

If indeed Felix is suffering from a fungus, then there certainly is a potential for a human to get infected, The most common fungal infections in cats are caused by microsporum and trichophyton spp. and those certainly are contagious to humans, I would not let him sleep in your bed for now and when you pet him, wash your hands with soap and water afterwards. Diligently use the ointment and do not stop using it until at least two weeks after all signs of the fungus are gone.