My cat has a recurring skin infection. Mites, fungi, or immune system?

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!

This is probably 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.

I would talk to your vet about doing a biopsy or a culture and sensitivity. The biopsy may be able to tell a different skin condition (underlying mange, fungal infection, etc) that may require different medications than just antibiotics and steroids. A culture and sensitivity may reveal a resistant bacteria that isn't responding to the current antibiotics. I hope this helps.

Hi, and thanks for your question. This could be due to an allergy, although it could also be infection or mites. The treatment would depend on the underlying cause. 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!

Hi, and thanks for your question. This could be due to an infection, likely to be cause by mites or a fungus. First of all I would recommend to ask the vet to perform a skin scrape - this might reveal an infection or a mite infestation. Once diagnosis has been established appropriate treatment may be needed. 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!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Cricket. He appears to have been treated for ringworm, a bacterial infection and mites based in the medications you have listed. Has he been tested for any of these conditions? Typically a fungal culture, impression smears and skin scrapes are performed. This will direct treatment. A food allergy should also be considered and he may require a prescription diet trial. A hydrolyzed diet is a one where the protein source is chopped into tiny pieces so that the body's immune system will not recognize it and therefore not react. This would be my next recommendation. I hope this information helps!

Hi and thank you for using PetCoach. If the fungal infection is ringworm, it can take weeks to months to fully resolve. Many times treating the environment as well as the cat is needed. Keep Mia indoors may make it easier to contain the infection and prevent reinfection. The vet can look at hairs under the microscope or try to culture the fungus from Mia to assess if she still has it. Here is more information on Ringworm that may help. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=559