Cat acne

[fiorentina]

I was playing with my cat tonight - a young male and noticed on his stomach he had a small bald patch that didn’t look sore at all. But then when I checked I see he has lots of tiny black spots especially round his nipples, in his follicles. Pretty sure not fleas as no sign of red when damp and he’s treated monthly with anti flea treatment. Google auggests it maybe cat acne. Anyone else managed to treat this or does it go away. Obviously will take him to the vet if a specific treatment is likely to be required? Just wondered if anyone’s cat has had similar please? Thanks

[WetsTheVet]

Hi I'd pop to the vet to get some skin scrapings checked for fleas or mites or a bacterial infection. If it's just suddenly come on they may want to check there's not something in his overall health that has triggered a response. If it is just acne you may be prescribed a shampoo or injection to calm any inflammation/prevent scratching. Does he have any red or black lumps around his face and mouth?

[Weedsnseeds1]

I think cat acne us normally around the chin?
Vet check to get a definite answer if it looks like it's bothering him or getting worse.

[WetsTheVet]

Cat acne can present as small blackheads across the body. It does look like flea dirt.

[fiorentina]

Thank you. Yes it does look a bit like flea dirt but a gentle wipe with a baby wipe leaves black dots and no blood type marks. I will take him to the vet as he wasn’t happy when I was looking today. Thanks for your advice.

[Els1e]

My cat had this once on his chin. I wiped with a diluted solution of tea tree oil. I also got rid of his plastic food bowls and stopped washing bowls in the dishwasher, washing them by hand instead in sensitive washing up liquid and making sure I rinse really well. It cleared up fine and we haven’t had a repeat. Good idea to check with vet just to confirm what it is.