Why does my cat have dry, flaky scabs on her back near her tail?

Question

My cat has dry and flaky wounds on her lower back area near her tail. Ive ruled out flea bites as we haven't had fleas in our house/yard for 5 years. I was hoping for an ointment to soothe and treat these scab like wound sites. Pet's info: Cat | Manx | Female | spayed | 10 years and 11 months old

Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS · Accepted Answer

Unfortunately, fleas are a possibly if Buttons isn't up to date on her flea treatments. Fleas could be brought into your yard by stray animals or into your home on your person or by other people and animals. I can give you a flea treatment program for her if she isn't up to date on her flea treatments. First, I would give her Capstar. It's a one time pill that starts killing fleas within 30 minutes. Then follow up with a spot on treatment, such as Advantage or Revolution. This is a treatment that has to be used once a month. You will also have to disinfect the environment. Wash her bedding in hot soapy water, and vacuum the furniture and carpet surfaces. You can use a spray to kill fleas in the house, such as Indorex, or a flea bomb would work well to kill the fleas in the home. If she is up to date on her flea treatment, I recommend taking Buttons into the vet for an exam tomorrow to rule out other causes of these wounds such as allergies, mites, or ringworm. The vet can do blood tests, skin scrapings, and use a Wood's lamp to diagnose allergies, mites, and ringworm. Once the cause of the wounds is found, the vet can prescribe the appropriate treatment. Tonight, you can try giving Buttons an oatmeal bath, as that may help sooth her dry and flaky wounds. You can also try a vitamin E bath. I would not recommend using any ointments. Although quite safe on superficial wounds, cats groom and ingest most of the topical ointment you apply and therefore should be used only under direct veterinary supervision and if there are no other appropriate options. Many human ointments contain multiple other ingredients which are not necessarily safe to be swallowed.

Why does my cat have dry, flaky scabs on her back near her tail?

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