infected feline acne?

Question

We have a big (really big), beautiful silver tabby. He is perfect except for one thing. He has really bad acne under his chin. The eruptions almost always get infected and sometimes they even abscess. He is pretty good about keeping them open and clean so that the infection can drain and heal. Yesterday he opened a relatively new one by scratching, and unfortunately he got it pretty deep. It swelled up right away and made him sick; he was gagging and trying to throw up. I hot-pack his chin twice a day. He doesn't like it, but it really does help the eruptions come to a head and drain sooner. Can I do anything else? Our vet said that unless he has a staph infection, antibiotics are not appropriate as this is a chronic problem.

Answer 1

My outdoor cat had a bad infection, that the vet gave her antibiotics for and a steroid shot for the itching. If this is a "chronic" problem, then it's probably caused by the food/water dishes that you use. Plastic is REALLY BAD about growing/harboring bacteria, which gets on his chin whenever he eats/drinks. Change to ceramic, glass, or metal for both, and try to talk your vet into "curing" the CURRENT infection! At least, then, you'd have a better chance of keeping it clean and not get REinfected! BTW, my outdoor cat's sores/infection went away completely, with only one "round" of anti-biotics. Change those bowls, and good luck w/your vet!! ALSO....at one of your pet stores, get some Nolvasan astringent ....either tube of ointment, or jar of cream. Use that whenever you clean his chin. It's been a lifesaver for me, on sores, and puncture (bite) wounds. Try it, I think it'll help.....................

Answer 2

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Answer 3

Dry and/or greasy skin due to poor oil composition of the skin. Thick greasy oils clog pores, lack of oil leads to dryness and irritation. You need thin oils to moisturize while dissolving and clearing gunk in your poors. Try fish oil or seafood. 2 tsp fish oil a day or 4 servings of seafood a week. Stick it out for at least 2 months; it will take a long time to replace all your oil. Any effect after 1-2 days is temporary or random; so even if it makes you break out a little at first, you haven't given it a full try yet.

In the short term you can wash and moisturize well, but that will only go so far. Plus excessive washing can be drying and excessive moisturizing can be clogging. Use a small amount of a light moisturizer, made with oil not jelly or grease. Often that means soybean oil or mineral oil. Mineral oil means mined from the ground. So soybean oil is usually better, though mineral oil won't cause too much harm. Clean with soap and water, not a harsh acne cleanser. Even then they only work so well. So you really need the seafood.

Antibiotics aren't really good for bacteria long term, they'll come back in force after. Short term they may help. After you get off them find some kefir with acidophilus listed first or 2nd to replace the friendly bacteria they destroyed. Studies show less illness when you have these bacteria, even outside the stomach in places such as the lungs and elsewhere. You want friendly bacteria to fill the void when the antibiotics stop, not harmful ones.

In the short term you might also try 100,000+ iu retinol vitamin A (a megadose, and too much for normal use) or one of the acne drugs that is similar to retinol vitamin A. It's some minor harm to your organs, but it helps against bacteria on your skin. At least it doesn't have the other long term drawbacks to your skin that antibiotics and many scrubs do.

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Answer 4

Some good advice about the food bowls in previous answers. One other thing you could try is switching foods. I am going to guess you are feeding dried kibble. These foods are loaded with grains and cheap fillers - a poor quality diet for a cat. Many cats are known to react to these substances. Canned food is much better. If you are thinking of switching, do it gradually as the cats digestive system needs time to adjust.

Answer 5

My girl josie also has acne on her chin, and it has settled down to mostly blackheads now, but last year it was pretty bad, big whiteheads that would pop and bleed and be really gross and inflamed. I would do wha you did, clean the area and press gently with a hot cloth once they are raised to get the goo out. my vet offerered us a creme to put on her, but it was expensive, and she has sensitive skin, so she reacted to the sample. but after following my vets advice about reducing her stress and checking for allergins or other irritants (had to switch out all the bowsl) she eventually calmed down.

Answer 6

change his food bowl to another kind so his chin is not sitting or sliding into it as it does with this one.