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  #1  
Old June 12th, 2013, 12:23 PM
Rimley Rimley is offline
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4 Year old male Abyssinian with small bald patches on ears

Hello,

At least 6 months ago, I began to notice small spots on my cats outer-ears starting to form. Upon closer inspection they appear to be patches of hair loss, though it is quite difficult to tell, since his hair is so short. The patches appear to have increased in number, and possibly size/diameter. I took him to the vet over a month ago now, and the veterinarian said he had no idea what was causing the patches. No tests were done, such as blood tests or skin tests. He did say however that it was not ringworm, and it was unlikely to be a viral or fungal infection. He suggested it could be an autoimmune disorder. He gave my cat a corticosteroid shot and told me to see if there was any improvements in around 1 month to 6 weeks. It's been 6 weeks, and i have not noticed any improvement. The patches have seemed to increase, if anything.

I have been unable to find any other examples of these hair loss patterns on cats ears on the internet, and i am starting to get more worried. It looks like the patches have begun to move down closer to the base of his ears now (though as i said it is very difficult to tell since i had no baseline pictures from when i first noticed them). Before he did not seem bothered at all by the patches, but now i see him shaking his head after you touch his ears, and scratching them frequently enough to make me believe the spots are causing him some discomfort.

Here are some pictures:

http://oi35.tinypic.com/vrgimw.jpg
http://oi37.tinypic .com/2mmh8jk.jpg
http://oi35.tinypic.com/1fvad3.jpg
http://oi37.ti nypic.com/dqnbrk.jpg
http://oi34.tinypic.com/t7zf4g.jpg
http://oi3 5.tinypic.com/1zqynb9.jpg


I apologize if any of these pictures are not of my cat's ears. Tinypic is crap and overwrites your pictures within a few days. I can take more pictures if necessary. These pictures are all around a month old now. His right ear appears to have more bald patches now than it did before.

His ears dont appear to be inflamed, however they are quite warm to the touch (not sure if that is normal). I am curious if a food allergy could cause this? Keep in mind these patches have developed over a period of months. I fear that there is either something wrong with his organs and this is a red flag, or he will begin to lose hair all over his head, and the lesions might become much worse as they get larger, or that right now his skin is able to repair itself, but over time it will lessen and either scar or continually blister. I also fear the hair loss may be permanent.
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Old June 13th, 2013, 07:34 AM
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sugarcatmom sugarcatmom is offline
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Might be worth trying a diet change to see if that makes a difference at all. What does he eat now?
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Old June 13th, 2013, 10:32 AM
Barkingdog Barkingdog is offline
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I would try going to another vet. My dog was attacking his rear end with his teeth and I took him to the vet and the vet used a light to check for bacteria . Or ask your vet to check your cat for bacteria by using a light
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Old June 13th, 2013, 12:49 PM
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Reg Reg is offline
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Hi Rimley:

Welcome to the Forum. We have an 11 1/2 year-old male ruddy Abyssinian who was sporting the same blemishes as your Abyssinian is. These spots or blemishes first started to appear when Shadow was between 2 1/2 and 3 1/2 years old, and really haven't changed any since. I remember on numerous trips to the cattery seeing other ruddy Abbeys with the same condition in the breeding stock. I assume that this was a natural phenomenon from the way the breeder was talking about subtle color changes in the Abyssinian's coat over several years.

Shadow was just up on the desk here are a few moments ago, and I was able to compare the photos with his ears and the spots and textures matched. I also have a silver blue Abyssinian named Missy who is about 11 years old, and putting a flashlight under her ear it appears as if there is the same markings in her ears as well. Just not as many of them and not pronounced to the extent they are in the ruddy. I would have to think that these blemishes are caused from color pigmentations in the skin.

As far as warm ears go, our 2 Abyssinians seem to go through periods of hot and cool ears, and being like you, I assumed that possibly there was a fever, or problem. I have checked their temperatures from time to time when this has happened, and found the temperature to be normal.

After this being said, if you still feel a little bit uneasy over the situation I think I would be getting in contact with one of the Abyssinian clubs, or a breeder or 2, to get their feedback before going to the the vet again. This ear blemish could be a trait to the Abyssinian cats, and if the vet hasn't encountered this in the past he could be treating it blindly if he hasn't done research into it. Here's a website that has a list of clubs and breeders in it that might be of use to you.

http://www.breedlist.com/abyssinian-breeders.html

If you do follow through on another course I would greatly appreciate hearing about the outcome.
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Old June 13th, 2013, 03:41 PM
Rimley Rimley is offline
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Hi everyone, thanks for the replies.

@Barkingdog
Yes i really want to get him a skin test and a blood test. He has never had a blood test and he is 4 years old now, so i want to make sure he doesnt have any other issues such as diabetes and hyperthyroidism. I will try to see about getting the skin test too. I'm not sure how to get a blood test, though. The vet tried and said Rimley struggled too much. Maybe we can try it with me in the room as well, he might not panic as much.

@Sugarcatmom:
Right now Rimley eats the dry food brand "Now" which contains turkey, salmon, and duck. http://www.petcurean.com/for-cats/no...ain-free-adult
I have just heard that maybe the food might be not so great for him, so i might have to try a wet food that is good for cats with food allergies. Does anyone know of any good wet food brands for allergies?

@Reg:
I will definitely check up with his breeder and see if she has seen this in any of her other Abys. Thank you for telling me this, as of now i havent been able to find any information on this type of skin issue. I have had a lot of trouble trying to figure out if it was hairloss or pigmentation change, or both. Some parts look like a pigmentation change, and others look like hair loss. I will try to get some better quality pictures at the right angles.
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Old May 3rd, 2014, 11:50 PM
sarko sarko is offline
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Any updates?

Hi, I have a cat that is 2.5 years old. Not an Abyssinian breed. Just a regular gray tabby. In the recent months, I've been noticing the exact same small round spots on his ears that you talk about and show in your pictures. It was just one at first, but now it's multiplied, and I can count around five small spots. It's more noticeable when he is sitting at the windowsill and sun is shining on his ears. He's been scratching a little more at his ear too. I am really curious to know if you've found out the cause of these small bald pots. Any update in your cat's case would be well appreciated!
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Old May 4th, 2014, 07:47 PM
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Reg Reg is offline
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Hi Sarko
Welcome to the forum. In the year, there has been no change in the Abbys, the condition hasn't got any worse. I did check the other 3 cats today and the Pixie Bob hasn't any markings on her ears but they are heavier, thicker than the other cats.
The Manx cat, which is a grey tabby, has the same markings, but very small and not many.
My big male domestic short hair, which is white and black/grey tabby, with black ears, has a couple of very very small markings on one ear. I used a small light from underneath the ear to locate them.
Basically, I really have no idea what causes it. I will be talking to a neighbour who has 9 cats and ask her if she has any that are showing the same symptoms. If I find out anything, I'll add a note.
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