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Redness on cat's mouth corner, no pain. Can I treat it at home?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Domestic Mediumhair | Female | spayed | 10 years and 10 months old

My cat has some redness in the corner of his mouth. The first picture is from 10/29 and the second is from today (11/3). He does not seem to be in any pain, and he is behaving/eating normally. I'm trying to avoid going to the vet if possible.

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Dr. Elizabeth

Answered By Dr. Elizabeth

Veterinarian

Published on November 3rd, 2017

Based on the photos, it looks likes the lesion on Vivian's mouth is getting a little worse. I'm thinking she either has an infection that is the primary cause or is having an allergic reaction with a secondary infection. Unless the issue becomes chronic, I would not suspect allergies.
At home tips would be to wash (and rinse) the area with a plain antibacterial soap daily. Take care not to get this in her mouth as she may vomit. You have to be careful with cats applying any topical medication since the ingest the product when they groom. I would think Vivian licks the side of her mouth so I would not recommend to apply anything to it. Try switching her food to a different protein source and see if that helps. It will take at least one month before you know if it works or not. Keep in mind if this diet change does not work, that is does not mean that food allergies are not present. Pets can have many types of food allergies. There's also a potential for environmental allergies. If the lesions continues to worsen, take her in to see the veterinarian.
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