Introduction
Dermatitis in cats is an irritating and sometimes painful condition that is often easy to diagnose but difficult to treat. Cats in particular seem to frequently suffer from skin reactions caused by parasites, fungus, and allergens. In fact, there is a special term for dermatitis in cats, feline miliary dermatitis, which cats often develop if they have a reaction to an irritant. If your cat is displaying symptoms of dermatitis, your veterinarian will perform a series of tests to conclusively diagnose the dermatitis and to try and determine what may be causing the condition.
Diagnosing Feline Dermatitis
When a cat appears in a veterinarian office with symptoms of dermatitis, the veterinarian will begin a search to determine what is causing the symptoms. This search often begins with a simple flea or tick check, a microscopic view of ear residue to check for ear mites, and in some cases a quick Wood’s lamp test to see if the cat’s skin has been infected with ringworm. If any outside parasites or fungal infection is found on the cat treatments to eliminate the irritants, and medications that will calm and soothe the skin reaction, will be prescribed.
In some cases an outside irritant is not discovered, and the veterinarian must look closer to determine what is causing the dermatitis type symptoms. A small sample of skin, gently scrapped off with a blade, is examined under a microscope to check for mange mites. Blood tests may be performed to ensure that the symptoms are not caused by an underlying condition such as an immune disorder; a fecal test may also be performed to check for intestinal parasites which may be weakening the cat’s immune system. If all of these tests are negative, additional skin and blood tests may be performed to try to isolate the cause of the dermatitis symptoms and conclusively identify the allergen.