What the hell is on my cat's chin?

[Allenberg]

Every once in awhile, there's this black stuff that's kind of like dirt on my cat's chin in with her fur. I kind of have to scratch it off to get it off of her. Looks like she needs a shave.

Any clue? :shrug:

[DeposeTheBoyKing]

1. It's acne

[Allenberg]

3. Huh?

[LynneSin]

5. She's not kidding - cats get acne. I paid a vet $40 to find that one out

see my post below!

[LynneSin]

2. Cat Acne - are you using plastic dishes?

Abbott had acne and at the time I had him using plastic dishes. Plastic dishes will hold the drool, bacteria, etc from your cat and then will infect his chin (where it rubs on the plastic.)

Get rid of the plastic food dishes and you can will actually have to wash your cats face to clear up the acne. My vet recommended Dial Anti-bacterial. I'd put a little on a washcloth and clean Abbott's chin and then rinse it off. Obviously Abbott wasn't happy. But with the white fur on his chin it was really noticable!

[Allenberg]

6. I use porcelyn.

It's only one one cat, which is strange.

[Wcross]

13. Thanks for the tip!!!!!

My cat had what was described. I will buy a metal dish today! I have two (twins) that are just about 18 months old.

[DeposeTheBoyKing]

4. Accidentally hit "post"

It's very common in cats, and they seem to get it on their chins. Do they use plastic food and water bowls? That seems to cause it, so you should switch to metal or ceramic.

You can keep your cat's chin clean with soap and water; gently scrub off the black flakes. I've also read that you can use a bit of benzoyl peroxide. Our cat Morrissey had it pretty bad when we adopted him; I've had to work with him a lot to get it under control. I usually take a moist cotton swab and gently scrub his chin. Keep after it, and it should clear up with some attention.

[Allenberg]

7. Hmm..thanks guys. Guess I gotta piss off my cat

and giver her a face washing.

[LynneSin]

8. Here's how I did Abbott's face and a link on Cat Acne

http://cats.about.com/cs/healthissues/a/acne.htm





Most important thing, if you value you arms and skin, is to get a large towel or blanket to wrap around your cat so all his paws are binded and just his face is exposed. Once you do that it takes about 5 minutes to wash his face. Even then I would only wash the infected area - chin.

I found that it was easiest with one washcloth that I got soaked and only slightly wringed out. On the one corner dab a little Dial Anti-bacterial liquid soap and wash the acne infected area. Then take the other end of the washcloth that doesn't have soap on it and use it to rince off their chin.

Make sure you have plenty of cat treats afterwards!!

[Allenberg]

10. Hmm, I just washed off Toona's face

One of her favorite things to do is get her chin scratched, but even with me scrubbing at her chin pretty hard with a warm, wet cloth, she was loving every second of it. Strange cat. I got most of it, but near the end she was starting to get ansy, I'll finish it later.

Are there any long-term problems with cat acne?

[DeposeTheBoyKing]

12. None that I know of

It's just a minor irritation. Morrissey hasn't had any flakes for weeks now (knock on wood), and he's as healthy and happy as ever!

[LynneSin]

17. I'd take a look at what she is rubbing against

And even though your bowls are ceramanic I'd make sure they stay clean. My vet had me switch to stainless steel.

I will still see the Acne from time to time - probably is Abbott is a drooler. I pick him up on his lap and pet him and the damn cat starts to drool like nobody's business. He's very excitable.

Best bet is to just keep his face & bowls clean. The acne won't hurt her unless it gets out of control and then it could infect her jaw. But I doubt that would happen. Abbott was diagnosed a year ago and he's never had any problems

[Allenberg]

18. I dunno if it is the bowl though

unless she has really sensitive skin. My other cat has no signs of the stuff whatsoever. :shrug:

[LynneSin]

20. I didn't mean just the bowl

Bowls are just the most notorious.

Plus it's hard to spot with cats that have dark fur on their chins

[Allenberg]

21. Both of my cats have white fur on their chins.

I cleaned out their bowls to be on the safe side, though. :)

[misha227]

24. Funny thing about the drooling...

That might have something to do with it. My 2 cats both eat from the same dishes, one has acne and the other doesn't. The one who has acne also has allergies, so she snores and gets stuffed up and, yes, drools quite frequently. I wonder what the connection could be?

[Allenberg]

11. If that link is to be believed about cat stress,

perhaps the move halfway across the world would have some effects? :shrug:

[tanyev]

9. Yep, my kitty had it too, once.

The vet shaved all the fur off his chin to scrape the stuff off. He looked just like Phil Gramm until his fur grew back.

[Mizmoon]

14. Don't listen to these people

your kitty is simply sprouting a second kitty. That's how they're born! I guess no one told you :P

[bertha katzenengel]

16. *blank stare*

:rofl:

[bertha katzenengel]

15. Acne. Harry gets it.

If she starts scratching a lot - anywhere - take her to the vet; she may also have skin allergies. My vet said acne and skin allergies often go hand in hand.

[enigami]

19. Well

It's good to know my cat is not the only one who gets acne

[Lilyhoney]

22. We used to have two cats that cleaned each other.

Then Hellen died. We noticed that Penelope started to get the acne. The vet said it was food oils clogging her pores. She did'nt have the other cat around to help her keep her face clean. So now we do it.

[Kingofalldems]

23. I don't want to alarm you but

I had two cats many years ago who had what looked like dirt under their chins. I paid no attention to it and both died within weeks. I have no idea to this day what it was, but I surmise that it was something contagious because one developed it, and within a couple weeks the other one had it. Just to be on the safe side, you should at least call a vet.

[JohnnyBoots]

25. Might be from their eyes and got moved down by rubbing it?....call a

Vet. Can't be too safe, right?