Strange hair loss in Maine Coon

[Izzadoraduncancan]

Hi there.
Wondering if any of you would have any suggestions as to what may be causing this area of redness and seeping on our one year old male Maine Coon.
This first happened about a month and a half ago. He was given antibiotics and short course of steroids. It cleared up quickly. Has now flared again. He is not scratching it, it does not seem to annoy him. He is eating well and seems happy in himself. He is neutered and worked. It starts just over the eye and then spreads all around the back of his head. Vet sent off some of the scabs for analysis but they came back clear.
Confused. He is a much loved cat, and after the loss of one cat last year - we are very precious about this boy 😌

Don't know but my old tort cat had a patch on her neck that would appear randomly it would need cream and antibiotics every time, all tests were clear but the vet said it must have been some type of eczema

Could it be ring worm, or mange (I don't know if that's the correct terminology nowadays.) Even eczema?

It must be distressing for you, having lost your previous cat. Could he be over grooming that area? That is a place they fastidiously wash on their face, using their front paw.

Vet doesn't think ringworm as apparently us humans (and this cat loves his humans) are great indicators for ringworm... he is found regularly wrapped up with a 2 year old who shows no signs of fungal infections.
It does worry us. Our cat who passed away was a two year old male Maine Coon who was ill for a period of time, sent up to the main university vet hospital who sent samples as far afield as America... he passed away suddenly and even though we donated him to the hospital for PM they were never able to diagnose any illness.
It's a worry as he is so loved and this just flares up. It will now travel around to the back of his neck and get really nasty.

From your last post that sounds exactly like what my girl had, it flared up and got really nasty like someone had taken a chunk out of her neck, that said we treated it when it came up and she lived to 19 years ! Even surviving getting herself lost in the centre of the motorway for 8 hours.

Flea allergy? A friend's cat also had hair loss due to hormone imbalance, but that was her whole rear end and didn't look raw like that. Is it an indoor cat?

My parents cat had several patches like this. Had loads of tests at the vet but all negative. Now being treated as stress. Which doesn't surprise me as he's a very highly strung sensitive beast. He's on zykelene and his fur is growing back.

Oh Toddler. This young man is very sensitive. We feed him on his own in the living room as he doesn't eat with other cats around 😫.
He is very friendly but fussy regarding food, neurotic about his fur and nervous of other cats (he lives with his mother and two other cats).
He is however toddler proof and adores our two year old... they are often found curled up together ❤️

Something like zykelene might be worth a try then . It can be taken long term. He's always been affectionate but has gone very clingy and even more soppy since being on it.

Just a quick update.... last time our. At had this it spread around the back of his neck and eventually cleared up with a dose of antibiotics and steroids.
We have rubbed germolene into these bald areas, and they have disappeared. Wondering if he is overcleaning and the taste stops him?

Please wash the germolene off it is an irritant to cats and will make the inflammation worse. It looks like allergic skin disease to me and needs investigating to identify the allergen.

That sore on the temple is consistent with an allergy of some sort. Humphrey is allergic to grains, but it may not be food - could be fleas or dust mites. I started him on raw food and within weeks it had healed. He was recently diagnosed with kidney disease and we changed his food, within a week the sores started to reappear along with general itchiness and scabiness around his head and neck :/