My kitten has a flaky chin spot with hair loss. Is it an emergency?

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! The pictures are good but it's still tough to see what is going on. Hair loss with dry/flaky skin is often indicative of ringworm especially in kittens. This is highly contagious to other animals and to people making it a zoonotic disease. I would definitely have a vet evaluate the litter and start treatment for a fungal infection right away to prevent this from getting worse. I would quarantine the litter away from all other pets and humans especially young children and the elderly since they are most likely to get infected. Even the shed hairs can contain fungal spores so direct contact with the animals is not required to get infected. It could be something else but in the pictures it is highly suspect since it looks like the paws and tail are affected. Other possibilities include mites, bacteria, external parasites (fleas, etc), dietary problems, intestinal parasite problems, among other things. Your vet can evaluate them and advise a woods lamp exam, skin scrape, fungal culture, hair analysis, etc to determine what is going on. The ears could be infected with ear mites and they could evaluate those also. Eye problems in young kittens are often due to viruses which infect the eyes and cause upper respiratory infections. These are contagious also along with the ear mites to other cats and dogs. Your vet can evaluate everything that is going on a make a plan to solve the puzzle. They can advise a sound treatment plan in addition to guiding you in preventive health care items including deworming, vaccines, flea/tick products, etc. Good luck and I hope it's not ringworm.

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Harley. Poor girl. I agree, it does look a bit raw. Typically this isn't an emergency, but if it's really bothering her, causing her pain (signs of pain can include lethargy and loss of appetite), and/or appears infected, then I would have her seen by an ER vet. Otherwise, you can take her in over the weekend or Monday. I hope this helps!

This looks like a ringworm infection. Kittens do get ringworm especially if they have been sick. You should take her to your veterinarian for a diagnosis and treatment. This isn’t an emergency though so you can wait until next week. This can spread to people so please wash your hands after handling her. With treatment and as she grows up and becomes healthier it will clear up fairly quickly. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Onyx.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing her allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. This is not an emergency though it would be best to see a veterinarian. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Gogoasa. It may be she has feline acne. This would cause the irritation and scratching. It should be checked out by a vet, but it's not an emergency. I'd get her into a vet this week. If she does have it, a medicated wash can be prescribed to treat it. I hope this helps!

This looks like a ringworm infection. That is a fungal infection common in young kittens. Since it’s only a few spots your veterinarian may prescribe a topical medication. They will look at this under the microscope and may do other tests to confirm the diagnosis. People can get this so please wash your hands after handling her. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Princess.

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Pearl. I see what you mean. It could be she injured her cheek, as I see some scabs. It could also be a skin infection. Without seeing her in person, I cannot diagnose exactly what is going on. I'd have her seen by a vet to have this diagnosed and treated. Best of luck.