Why is my cat's skin warm and thin near his tail and hip area?

This is probably due to an allergy, although it could also be fleas, infection or mites.

First of all, in order to rule out skin parasites, you will need to treat with a high quality flea treatment (advocate or advantage), 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 the skin lesions (steroids and antibiotics). 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.

Warmth in a particular region could certainly indicate an infection. If shadow is currently lactating, those areas come become warm normally. If she has a systemic infection currently occurring, you can consider taking her temperature to see if it is elevated (check for over 102.5-103.0 as a reference range). You can apply some pressure to the area too to see if it appears to be sensitive or in any pain. Check for any discharge in or around the area. Warmth can also occur from sitting in a position for an extremely extended period of time. Hope this helps. If there is an infection, an antibiotic or antimicrobial drug will be required to do away with the cause.

Hello. Yes, absolutely. Severe and deep skin infections can cause a fever and significant pain. I’m not sure what treatment your cat is receiving , but this should definitely be under the care of a veterinarian. Most severe hotspots will not respond to topical therapy alone and require prescription antibiotics, anti-inflammatory medication and some even require surgery. Without photos, it’s impossible to give you the best advise, but seeing your veterinarian ASAP is important.

It looks like an area of bacterial skin infection. Ringworm might be another possibility. I’d recommend having your vet examine your cat in person to determine what this might be. If they are suspicious of ringworm they might recommend a fungal culture.

Some appear to be infected. This may be from the stress of moving coupled with a new environment and allergens he is not used to. Since they are so wide spread it is best to have him checked for ringworm also. Your vet can prescribe antibiotics to help clear the infection and treat the underlying cause.

Poor Baby! I would talk to your vet about whether a long acting steroid like depo-medrol may be beneficial as long as he is healthy enough and they don't think it will cause it to get worse. I would also make sure he is staying on a monthly high quality flea preventative as this can be a major cause for allergies in cats. Another option would be to ask for a referral to see a dermatologist or to find a alternative vet to discuss acupuncture or herbs as an option. I hope this helps and he starts to feel better really soon!

I am quite concerned that the dark blue skin may be well on its way to a black color. Black colored skin is generally an indication that the skin has died. It is possible that some of the surrounding areas can die off as well, so I would make sure that the affected area is examined and trimmed away. An oral or injectable antibiotic would probably be very beneficial in this case to prevent further harm. Something else like an e-collar plus a steroid/antihistamine would help address some of the itchiness that Sunny is experiencing. If she continues to aggravate the lesion, the healing process can be slowed considerably or stopped entirely. Hope this helps.