My cat has tiny particles on her back. Are they lice or dandruff?

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. This looks like dandruff from this picture, however if the white specks appear to be moving or jumping, then may be lice. I recommend giving the cat a bath with warm water to rinse off any dandruff. You can use a small amount of dawn dish soap too, but be VERY careful to not get any soap near her eyes. I hope this is helpful!

If these little white balls are not moving (i.e. lice), then yes dandruff or seborrhea is most likely present. Giving Willow daily fish oils (from your local pet store), Essential 6 spot on treatments, and a medicated bath (Duoxo shampoo seborrhea), may help his skin condition. If no improvement seen within a few weeks time then its best to have him treated through your vet.

Hi and thanks for your request. What you showed on the pics you uploaded are unlikely to be lices/fleas eggs and more likely to be dandruff. Dandruff is a generic dermatological sign which could be commonly seen in many skin disorders. First step is to treat any possible skin parasites with a good quality flea treatment, ideally on prescription taken by your local veterinarian. All the pets in the house must be treated, and the house may need to be treated indoors as well. Allergies and skin infections could be common causes of dandruff as well. To be able to give you a more specific answer, I would need a more thorough description of the signs you noticed. Please feel free to post more question on the forum if you require to discuss this problem any further. Kind regards, Dr. Orioles Massimo

I would recommend putting a topical flea medication such as Frontline, Advantage, or Revolution on Marmalate - all of these should be effective against lice as well. You should be able to get these from your vet, or order them online if you prefer - just make sure to get the correct size for your cat's weight.

I suggest you use essential 6 supplement topically (it is spot-on) and an oral supplement like Wellactin. https://worldtails.securevetsource.com/itemView/view/198944_HomeDelivery.pml?productId=119092 https://worldtails.securevetsource.com/itemView/view/198944_HomeDelivery.pml?productId=101959 Cats do not take to bathing well. What you can do is use a leave on mousse that is for seborrhea (dandruff). You can use it twice a week until the dandruff decreases and then you can go to once a week. https://worldtails.securevetsource.com/itemView/view/198944_HomeDelivery.pml?productId=117952

Poor Ming! I wouldn't put baby oil on her, that won't help with the itching and will only make her greasy. date on his flea treatment, I can give you one for him. This itching can be caused by fleas, mites, ringworm, or allergies. If she isn't up to date on her flea treatment, I can give you one for her. First, I would give her Capstar. It's a one time pill that starts killing fleas within 30 minutes. Then follow up with a spot on treatment, such as Advantage or Revolution. This is a treatment that has to be used once a month. You will also have to disinfect the environment. Wash her bedding in hot soapy water, and vacuum the furniture and carpet surfaces. You can use a spray to kill fleas in the house, such as Indorex, or a flea bomb would work well to kill the fleas in the home. If she is up to date on her flea treatment, I recommend taking her into the vet for an exam tomorrow. The vet can do blood tests, skin scrapings, and use a Wood's lamp to diagnose allergies, mites, and ringworm. Once the cause of the itching is found, the vet can prescribe the appropriate treatment. Best of luck, I hope this helps!

Lice are very species specific and can be found moving around on the skin and fur. Ticks attach to the skin also and appear to be as small watts. Dead ticks should be easy to remove. Most topicals that treat for ticks will also cover you for lice so you should not worry about that. If you can post a picture of the spots in the skin or what you removed it may help get your more information.