My cat has a new spot on his throat. Is it a burn, bite, or infection?

Hi, and thanks for your question. This presentation could be due to a trauma (bite wound, or a burn) or localized spot of skin infection (likely to be caused by bacteria). A check up, appropriate disinfection and possibly antibiotics (oral, topical or in a shampoo formulation) are needed to solve the problem. Disinfection may be started at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths. Buster collar may be useful as well to avoid any licking (if any). Hope this answer was helpful, but 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. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

I would recommend having your vet examine Mochi to see what is going on. It looks like there is a little hair loss as well. If your other cat scratched her and some of the bacteria from the claw punctured the skin, you may not see any blood, but she may have an abscess under the skin that needs to be treated. An abscess can be red and painful, so that may be why she does not want it touched or inspected. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

This looks like a small, localized spot of infection, sometimes referred to as a hot spot. If the infection is contained to this one area you can try to treat it at home with some topical antibiotic ointment (like Neosporin). If this does not take care of the problem, or if there are other areas like this on her skin, I would recommend having her checked out by your vet so a systemic antibiotic can be given.

That looks like a bad bite and needs to be seen by a vet right away. Cats that go outside are more likely to get into fights with other cats, and these wounds can easily become infected. Your vet can clean and drain the wound, and provide antibiotics, pain meds and other treatments as needed.

That could be a few things on Meow. Sometimes cats will get a little skin infection, if he goes outside that could be a healing fight wound or it could be something like a skin mass. The best and safest way to know for sure what it is, would be to have it checked out by his veterinarian. The doctor will palpate the area and should get a good idea of the cause. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions!

I see what you mean about the spot on Tinker. It could be that he injured himself while you were away, and that is the cause of the spot. I'd keep an eye on it for now. If it gets bigger or doesn't heal, or if you see signs of infection such as redness, swelling, warmth to the touch, or pus, then I would have him seen by a vet for it. If he will let you, you can gently clean it with warm water and antiseptic soap. Best of luck, I hope this helps!

Even though a picture would help to understand better the underlying cause, this presentation could be due to a trauma (bite wound) and/or localized spot of skin infection (likely to be caused by bacteria). A check up, appropriate disinfection and possibly antibiotics (oral, topical or in a shampoo formulation) are needed to solve the problem. Disinfection may be started at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths. Buster collar may be useful as well to avoid any licking/scratching. Hope this answer was helpful, but 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.