Article Advise

submitted: Jul 17th 2008 | by: KurtSchmitt | Total views: 1 | Word Count: 307 | |

The most common infectious skin disease in cats, cat ringworm is not a worm, but a fungal infection. It is highly contagious and can be spread to all the animals and people in the house.

It's a self-limiting disease, meaning that it will clear up on its own. In many cases the disease resolves within 6 to 8 weeks. Stubborn cases, however, may persist for weeks or months even with treatment. Cats with compromised immune systems may take longer. In any case, your veterinarian may prescribe treatment no matter what, since it is very common for animals to pass this disease to humans and other animals.

Ringworm, or dermatophytosis, is a fungus which feeds on keratin. Keratin is a protein found in skin, hair and nails.

This disease gets its name from the easy to spot, round ring-like marks it leaves on the skin. The classic ringworm symptom presents as patches of hair loss which appear as circular scaly areas with raised edges.

The most common locations for infection are the head, face, ears, tail, and paws. Early symptoms include dry, flaky skin. In addition, you may see bald areas on ears, the legs, and around the eyes.

In severe cases in cats with compromised immune systems, more serious symptoms may develop. If left untreated, crusty lesions that may become red and sore, as well as infected may develop.

The symptoms list for cat ringworm includes loss of hair (or broken hair) in circular patterns and hair loss in irregular patterns. Also visible is scaly, bumpy, red, or inflamed skin, and possibly deformed claws. Your cat may scratch the affected areas, but not all cases present with itchiness, and some cats may experience little to no hair loss with this disease.

Cat ringworm can only be diagnosed by your veterinarian, so get in contact with your vet if you suspect your cat is infected.

About the Author

Author Kurt Schmitt has created a website for cat lovers and writes about the symptoms of cat illnesses including cat ringworm Visit the Uber Article Directory to get a totally unique version of this article for reprint.

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