Black growth

My cat has several black bumps under her chin. Any idea what they can be?

From: "Art Kallner Jr."


My cat has several black bumps under her chin. Any idea what they can be?

Hi Art,
It sounds like cat acne most likely. Do you feed your cat from a plastic bowl?
They can harbor bacteria which can cause the feline acne. If you do, you
might want to switch to ceramic or stainless steel. You might also want to
take your cat in for a vet check just to be sure what's going on with her.

Lauren
________
See my cats: http://community.webshots.com/album/56955940rWhxAe
Raw Diet Info: http://www.holisticat.com/drjletter.html
http://www.geocities.com/rawfeeders/ForCatsOnly.html
Declawing Info: http://www.wholecatjournal.com/articles/claws.htm

From: "Art Kallner Jr."


My cat has several black bumps under her chin. Any idea what they can be?

Hi Art,
It sounds like cat acne most likely. Do you feed your cat from a plastic bowl?
They can harbor bacteria which can cause the feline acne. If you do, you
might want to switch to ceramic or stainless steel. You might also want to
take your cat in for a vet check just to be sure what's going on with her.

Lauren
________
See my cats: http://community.webshots.com/album/56955940rWhxAe
Raw Diet Info: http://www.holisticat.com/drjletter.html
http://www.geocities.com/rawfeeders/ForCatsOnly.html
Declawing Info: http://www.wholecatjournal.com/articles/claws.htm

"Art Kallner Jr." wrote in message
.. .
My cat has several black bumps under her chin. Any idea what they can be?


Do the bumps look like this:

http://maxshouse.com/Illustrations/Acne-Chin.jpg

A cat's chin has a lot of sebaceous glands - which secrete an oil cats use
for scent marking. When the ducts that go from the gland to the skin becomes
blocked, the oil and bacteria accumulate and form blackheads - which usually
don't cause any discomfort to the cat - unless an infection develops.

You could wash the chin daily with benzoyl peroxide - but given the choice,
I think most cats would rather be left alone.

Phil

"Art Kallner Jr." wrote in message
.. .
My cat has several black bumps under her chin. Any idea what they can be?


Do the bumps look like this:

http://maxshouse.com/Illustrations/Acne-Chin.jpg

A cat's chin has a lot of sebaceous glands - which secrete an oil cats use
for scent marking. When the ducts that go from the gland to the skin becomes
blocked, the oil and bacteria accumulate and form blackheads - which usually
don't cause any discomfort to the cat - unless an infection develops.

You could wash the chin daily with benzoyl peroxide - but given the choice,
I think most cats would rather be left alone.

Phil

On Fri, 3 Sep 2004 22:20:15 -0400, wrote:

"Art Kallner Jr." wrote in message
.. .
My cat has several black bumps under her chin. Any idea what they can be?


You could wash the chin daily with benzoyl peroxide - but given the choice,
I think most cats would rather be left alone.

We went through that with one of my cats. We tried everything: washing her
chin, putting on topical ointment, and giving her oral antibiotics, none
of which worked.

Finally, by process of elimination (we'd tried everything else!), we
discovered she had a food allergy. We switched her to a different kibble
(lamb and rice, rather than regular chicken/corn), and it cleared right
up.

Having said that, food allergies are pretty rare, and that might not be
the problem with your cat. But, it's worth considering.

Peggy

--
"Announcing your plans is a good way to hear God laugh"
(Al Swearengen, Deadwood)

On Fri, 3 Sep 2004 22:20:15 -0400, wrote:

"Art Kallner Jr." wrote in message
.. .
My cat has several black bumps under her chin. Any idea what they can be?


You could wash the chin daily with benzoyl peroxide - but given the choice,
I think most cats would rather be left alone.

We went through that with one of my cats. We tried everything: washing her
chin, putting on topical ointment, and giving her oral antibiotics, none
of which worked.

Finally, by process of elimination (we'd tried everything else!), we
discovered she had a food allergy. We switched her to a different kibble
(lamb and rice, rather than regular chicken/corn), and it cleared right
up.

Having said that, food allergies are pretty rare, and that might not be
the problem with your cat. But, it's worth considering.

Peggy

--
"Announcing your plans is a good way to hear God laugh"
(Al Swearengen, Deadwood)

olitter (PawsForThought) wrote in message ...

It sounds like cat acne most likely. Do you feed your cat from a plastic bowl?
They can harbor bacteria which can cause the feline acne. If you do, you
might want to switch to ceramic or stainless steel. You might also want to


The first time I heard that I really wondered. If you wash it regularly, how
much does it matter if it is more prone to bacterial growth than ceramic?

Then I got some plastic dishes (because it was a neat setup, not because I
disbelieved) and my girls almost immediately developed those little black
bumps. I switched back to stainless and the bumps went away. Oh, they
get one or two now and then, but the increase was really obvious with the
plastic dishes.

Incidentally, many ceramic pet dishes are expensive and the majority of
the stainless ones are bigger than a cat needs, and too deep -- my cats
hate sticking their faces in the one-pint bowls I was using. I wanted to
have a bunch of dishes so I could just chuck them in the dishwasher
instead of having to wash them constantly. So I went to Wal-Mart and
got a stack of Corelle "dessert dishes". They're small shallow bowls.
They're less expensive and lighter and fit in the dishwasher better than
ceramic dishes at the pet store. They are not for every cat because if
you step on the edge you can tip it up, but my cats have never had a
problem with them.

Catherine
Mandy & Judy

olitter (PawsForThought) wrote in message ...

It sounds like cat acne most likely. Do you feed your cat from a plastic bowl?
They can harbor bacteria which can cause the feline acne. If you do, you
might want to switch to ceramic or stainless steel. You might also want to


The first time I heard that I really wondered. If you wash it regularly, how
much does it matter if it is more prone to bacterial growth than ceramic?

Then I got some plastic dishes (because it was a neat setup, not because I
disbelieved) and my girls almost immediately developed those little black
bumps. I switched back to stainless and the bumps went away. Oh, they
get one or two now and then, but the increase was really obvious with the
plastic dishes.

Incidentally, many ceramic pet dishes are expensive and the majority of
the stainless ones are bigger than a cat needs, and too deep -- my cats
hate sticking their faces in the one-pint bowls I was using. I wanted to
have a bunch of dishes so I could just chuck them in the dishwasher
instead of having to wash them constantly. So I went to Wal-Mart and
got a stack of Corelle "dessert dishes". They're small shallow bowls.
They're less expensive and lighter and fit in the dishwasher better than
ceramic dishes at the pet store. They are not for every cat because if
you step on the edge you can tip it up, but my cats have never had a
problem with them.

Catherine
Mandy & Judy

in article , Sunflower at
wrote on 9/4/04 9:29AM:

olitter (PawsForThought) wrote in message
...

It sounds like cat acne most likely. Do you feed your cat from a plastic
bowl?
They can harbor bacteria which can cause the feline acne. If you do, you
might want to switch to ceramic or stainless steel. You might also want to


The first time I heard that I really wondered. If you wash it regularly, how
much does it matter if it is more prone to bacterial growth than ceramic?

Plastic can develop tons of tiny scratches, nearly invisible to the eye but
that harbor bacteria. I also suspect that it can just be a reaction to the
plastic. I always remember my mother telling us how my sister coughed and
coughed as a toddler, then one day, she noticed a bazillion little bumps on
her forehead where she had been holding a plastic hoola hoop. This was when
plastics had just begun to take over and everything was plastic, including
the cheap plasitc backed curtains etc. Mom stripped the bedroom of anything
plastic backed and lo and behold, Teresa stopped coughing all the time. I
think plastics are half of everyones allergy problems today.