My cat scratches ears & chin. Could it be fungal? What to do?

A lesion like that could be a bacterial infection or ringworm (which humans can get). Your best option is to have Mocha examined and tested for ringworm. Make sure to protect the area from rubbing and scratching and she should wear an elizabethan collar at all times. Here is a link about ringworm just in case: https://www.petcoach.co/article/ringworm-in-cats/ I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

This could be an indication of infection (bacterial, fungal, mites). She would need to be physically examined by your veterinarian for confirmation. A swab of the ear can be examined under a microscope in the clinic to make the diagnosis. The appropriate medication or treatment can then be dispensed or administered. IN the meantime, place an e-collar (cone) on her to prevent excessive scratching or rubbing.

Thank you for including pictures of Bella's ear! It is certainly possible that it is ringworm, but she could also have an infection or an injury causing this redness. For now, I would leave it be and not touch it, and have her seen by a vet on Monday for it. The vet can use a Wood's lamp and do a fungal culture to diagnose if it is ringworm, and can prescribe treatment for it. I would keep Bella isolated from other animals in your home for now just in case she does have ringworm. Ringworm is highly contagious to other animals and humans, and I would wash your hands thoroughly after each time you touch her. The concern is that the Microsporum canis (fungal organism causing ringworm) is spread diffusely throughout a cat's entire hair coat, so you need to make sure to practice good hygiene to try to keep from getting it yourself. Should Bella have ringworm, you will need to disinfect the home as spores can live up to 10 months in the environment. I will put a link below on how to do that. Please have her seen by a vet on Monday, I hope this helps! http://www.livestrong.com/article/49666-rid-home-ringworm/

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Blossom! Her skin on her ears looks bad. I think she should see a Vet to diagnose the cause and start treatment. Possible causes are food allergies, ringworm, mites. You can play with her diet and see if changing the protein helps for long term management. If an animal has a food allergy chicken tends to be the most common allegen. But that won’t help her feel better in the short term. Ringworm is diagnosed on fungal culture and mites on a skin scrape. An infection is treated with antibiotics and steroids. I hope this helps and I wish Blossom a speedy recovery!

Poor Missy looks like her skin is quite irritated! She requires a visit to the vet to determine the source of her itchiness. She could have an infection in her ear (bacteria, yeast, or both), ear mites, or allergies (to something in the environment like pollen/dust or to food) that is causing the inflammation. Your vet can look down inside the ear and possibly take a swab to examine under the microscope, and prescribe the appropriate treatment for her. Placing an e-collar on her until your vet is able to see her will help decrease the self-trauma she is causing.

I would recommend having your vet check to make sure she doesn't have an ear infection first. Otherwise, this could be a bacterial infection, ringworm, or even something cancerous. Your vet can take a sample from the surface to look for sources of infection and then do a biopsy (under sedation at a later date) if it's not clear what is going on. Good luck!

Hi and thanks for posting on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Thank you for sending along pictures but they are a little hard to make out clearly. This could be an infection-bacterial or perhaps fungal. It could also be due to a flea allergy. I would recommend keeping Jorfy on a flea preventative monthly to rule out a flea allergy but also have him see his veterinarian. Your veterinarian may do a skin scraping and/or fungal culture to rule out bacterial infection or a fungal infection. He may need antibiotics, antifungal medications, or other medications as needed. I hope this helps and thanks for posting!