Symptoms of fungus in cats. Fungal infections in cats Fungal skin infections in cats

Have you noticed that your cat's nails are a strange color? Your cat probably has claw fungus. Many do not even suspect its existence, which leads to an uncontrollable situation. After removing or trimming a cat's claws, I highly recommend contacting your veterinarian for advice on caring for your cat's paws.

Your pet faces a fungal infection every day, but it hardly penetrates the animal's body. But when the fungus becomes visible, the fungal infection from within affects areas of the cat's body. Fungal infection of the nail is sometimes called onychomycosis by scientists. Penetration of the fungus inside indicates a weak immune system and internal diseases. But the fungus is not limited to one nail. At first it will hit him completely, and then it will spread to the entire paw, and maybe further. One of the main consequences of cat claw fungus is increased brittleness, which is called onychorrhexis. Onychorrhexis is a rather unpleasant phenomenon, although not fatal. Cat's claws are most susceptible to fungus in humid environments.

Signs and symptoms

Here are the symptoms of the middle stage of claw fungus in cats: the cat often licks and bites its paw, weakness, aggression, pain when walking.

Sit your cat on your lap (it doesn't matter whether it's belly up or down) and see if there are yellow, black or green crusts on its paws. Press the point between your thumb and forefinger to encourage your cat to show her claws. Then they can be carefully examined for the presence of onychomycosis. But these are the most basic symptoms of claw fungus. There may also be swelling and redness around the claw, and a strange color to the claw. The cat may experience pain in the affected paw when walking.

Treatment

Treatment of claw diseases in cats is quite simple. In addition to diet and any procedures, the veterinarian can prescribe ointments that rid the cat of a specific fungus. The type of fungus is determined through tests and samples. Also, for claw fungus, the use of anti-inflammatory drugs is common.

Before treatment, it is necessary to thoroughly clean the paw to avoid reinfection. Wash your cat's paw in warm water and remove any foreign matter, including broken claws. Basically, claw fungus is treated using the methods described above. However, in very advanced situations, surgical intervention is required - declawing. Please note that the fungus is contagious. Therefore, isolate other pets from the sick animal and be careful yourself.

Treatment of claw fungus in cats with folk remedies
In addition to the previously listed treatment methods, there is a folk remedy that is practiced by some cat owners. To prepare it you need apple cider vinegar, hydrogen peroxide and warm water. Here are the approximate proportions: add 50 ml of hydrogen peroxide and 50 ml of apple cider vinegar to 600 ml of warm water. Dip the animal's paw affected by the fungus into the resulting mixture and hold it for 30 seconds, then you can remove it from the mixture and allow the paw to air dry. However, this remedy is not widespread due to its low effectiveness, but cat owners can, if desired, use this folk recipe for the benefit of their pet.

Prevention

99% of cases of onychomycosis infection are caused by an injury to the paw. The cat may get it on its own, or the owner may have cut the nail incorrectly. To avoid this, you should have an idea of how to properly trim a cat's claws. You need to cut perpendicular to the nail, using special scissors. Avoid cutting along the inner nail, which has a different color. The inner nail contains many blood vessels and nerve endings. Cats with light-colored paws have white outer nails and pink inner nails. It's hard not to notice. In a cat with dark paws, it is more difficult to distinguish between the outer and inner parts. You will have to focus on the shades and the cat’s reaction.

If blood comes from the claw, disinfect the wound and bandage it. Do not forget to watch how the wound heals in order to prevent fungus in time.

Skin infection occurs through microtrauma, scratching, and diaper rash. The development of pathology is promoted by:

young age of the animal;
weakening of the body's defenses during pregnancy and lactation;
decreased immunity as a result of viral infection;
insufficient or unhealthy nutrition;
carrying out immunosuppressive therapy;
some chronic diseases (diabetes mellitus, hypothyroidism).

Reproducing with the help of conidia (spores), dermatophytes form mycelium (mycelium), growing over the surface of the skin and penetrating into the inner layers.

Some fungal infections may be asymptomatic and are detected only after signs are detected in the hosts. Children are most often infected.

Classification of mycoses

Mushrooms are a whole separate kingdom of living microorganisms that inhabit our planet. Hundreds of their pathogenic species can infect not only animals, but also humans.

Based on the location of the fungus in the cat’s body, all types of diseases they cause are conventionally divided into two groups: superficial (affecting the skin and mucous membranes) and systemic (affecting the internal organs of the animal).

The fungal infections most commonly diagnosed in cats are:

This is not a complete list of fungal infections that can undermine a cat’s health. Rarer types include eumycotic mycetoma, phaeohyphomycosis, rhinosporidiosis and others.

Manifestations of fungal infections

After the fungus has settled on the surface of the skin, it begins to carry out its harmful activities - feeding on the beneficial substances of the host, releasing toxins and enzymes. This leads to the gradual destruction of the upper stratum corneum of the skin and the development of a local inflammatory process on the surface. Without proper treatment, the pathogen goes deep into the inner layers of the epidermis, damaging the hair follicles and hair structure, which leads to hair loss. In place of bald spots, itchy scales and crusts form.

Signs of an animal being affected by a fungal infection:

breaking off or loss of affected hair hairs;
the formation of local hairless, scaly areas with clear boundaries in the head, ears, and limbs;
restless behavior (the cat shakes its head, actively itches);
unpleasant odor and discharge from the ear;
brown-red plaque of small dots in the ears;
bumps and nodules on the skin;
sneezing;
bloody runny nose;
polyps in the nostrils.

If fungus in cats is left untreated, the symptoms will become more severe. The introduction of the pathogen into the dermis and subcutaneous tissue provokes deep inflammation with the formation of purulent abscesses. A serous or purulent ichor appears on the surface, which, when dried, forms thick, dense crusts.

Other complications of fungal infections include severe weight loss, pneumonia, anemia, and gastrointestinal disorders. If the animal is weakened or very young, a massive attack by spores can lead to the death of the animal.

Diagnostics and therapy

At the first sign of a fungal infection, you should take your animal to the veterinarian. The doctor will conduct an examination, collect information about the cat’s well-being and possible diseases, prescribe a diagnosis and recommend treatment.

If there are skin lesions, the animal may need to be examined using a Vwood lamp. The device allows you to identify cases of microsporia.

The most reliable method of identifying the pathogen is scraping the skin from the affected area, followed by culturing the fungus and determining its sensitivity to drugs. This method requires a certain time to grow flora (on average 1 to 2 weeks).

Other diagnostic methods include:

general blood analysis;
microscopy of wool in a 10% alkali solution for the presence of pathogen spores;
skin biopsy;
smears from mucous membranes;
microscopic examination of prints of the affected areas obtained using special adhesive tape.

Symptoms and treatment are closely related. Therapy for a fungal disease depends on the type of pathogen, the degree of external and internal lesions, and the general condition of the animal. Self-medication without identifying the pathogen can cause irreparable harm to your pet.

Treatment of fungus involves:

use of antifungal shampoos;
applying external antimycotics (creams, ointments, powders) to the affected areas;
taking antihistamines for severe itching;
use of an Elizabethan collar and blanket to prevent scratching and licking of medications;
oral or injection administration of antifungal agents.

Your pet should be treated with antibiotics strictly according to indications, adhering to the dosage. The main reason for using antibacterial drugs is the addition of a bacterial infection.

Disease prevention

Getting rid of a fungal infection is not an easy task. Treatment of fungus in cats is a long process that requires the complex use of drugs for internal and external use, and constant diagnostics. In some cases, it is necessary to completely change the animal's diet.

It is much easier to prevent the development of fungus in a cat.

For these purposes, veterinarians suggest that owners vaccinate the animal against the most common types of disease - microsporia and trichophytosis.

To avoid relapses during the treatment process, you should thoroughly treat the living space with disinfectants, paying special attention to toys, care items and the cat’s favorite places - beds, rugs, pillows. Bathing and handling a sick animal should be done with medical gloves.

Quite often you can encounter such a common disease as mycosis in cats.

It is worth noting that the fungus is always present on the skin of an animal, but when the immune system is weakened, it immediately begins to actively develop.

Treatment of mycosis in cats should be carried out as early as possible. The disease can be caused by yeast, mold and other types of microorganisms.

Spores of pathogenic fungi are found on clothing, grass, shoes, the surface of water and fly through the air. Therefore, it is very easy to become infected with them.

Causes of mycosis

There are many reasons that can cause athlete's foot in cats. Factors that significantly increase the risk of developing the disease include:

Age. Older cats and kittens, as well as nursing and pregnant women, become ill more often. In this case, treatment of mycosis is quite difficult, due to the choice of a safe drug.
Persian cats are more prone to dermatomycosis.
Hereditary predisposition to the disease.
Chronic diseases, weakened immunity.
The ideal environment for the activation of fungi is moisture and heat.
Improper care and hygiene.

Many owners wash their cats almost every day. Cats always experience stress when bathing, but this is not the main cause of the disease. When washed, the protective layer of lipids is washed off the skin, which creates a favorable environment for fungal growth.

Symptoms of mycosis

The symptoms of this disease can vary, as it all depends on the condition of the animal, the type of pathogenic microorganism, environmental conditions and other things. But there are several basic facts that may indicate that it is necessary to begin treatment for mycosis in cats.

An incomprehensible redness appeared on the skin. It can most often be seen on the stomach, face, genitals and ears. The inflammatory process develops quite rapidly, so you need to immediately contact a veterinarian to determine the disease and select the appropriate treatment.
An unpleasant odor is also a hallmark of a fungal infection.
Release of exudate on the affected area.
Severe hair loss.
Another sign is a large amount of dandruff.

How to treat mycosis in cats

When the first symptoms of the disease are detected, you should take your pet to the veterinarian and select the correct treatment for mycosis.

In this case, you cannot do without modern and high-quality drugs; the drug argumistin has proven itself well, with which the treatment of mycosis in cats will be quick and safe.

The duration of treatment is 7-14 days. The affected surface is treated by irrigation or in the form of applications.

So, a cat always has fungus on the skin, but it does not cause harm to the body as long as the immune system remains sufficiently active. The state of the immune system is influenced by many factors: stress, injury, chronic diseases, past infections, poor feeding, etc. Some cats are sensitive from birth - such a pet needs special attention and support of the immune system with modulators.

Fungi love moist, warm environments, and therefore any is a suitable place for their development. For this reason, fungus is more common in free-ranging cats: cats, fighting for territory and attention of the opposite sex, inflict deep wounds on each other with their claws. The pet licks the scratch, creating ideal conditions for the growth of fungus.

Excessive grooming may be the reason why a cat develops fungus on its skin with enviable regularity. Swimming is especially dangerous in the cool season if you do not use a hairdryer after the bath. By bathing the pet weekly and combing the fur daily, the owner himself creates conditions suitable for the development of fungi: the smallest scratches on the skin, a humid environment, plus the absence of natural protection - a layer of sebum, consisting of a mixture of lipids involved in immunochemical processes.

Ear fungus is also more likely to develop in over-groomed cats. When the owner manically cleans out earwax with a swab, lathering the ears until they “shine,” he removes the protective layer that prevents the development of fungi and other pathogenic microorganisms.