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My cat has a red, hairless spot that's getting worse. What is it?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Female | spayed | 7 lbs

My cat, Muffin, had a round red spot with no hair (Muffin 1). We've been putting bacitracin Zinc on it, but it appears to be getting worse (Muffin 2)... There was some hair cut around the skin in photo 2, but I'm not sure what is wrong with her skin. It appears to be growing. Any help would be grateful. Thank you :)

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1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Heidi DVM, CVA, CCRT, CVTP, CVSMT, CVCH

Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist, Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner

Published on March 8th, 2018

It's difficult to compare the size of the area in the 2 pictures, but if the area is getting larger, then I would certainly recommend having your veterinarian examine Muffin. The best way for us to decide how to treat skin problems is to do some simple skin tests and examine a sample under the microscope. That will determine if there is a bacterial infection, fungal infection, yeast infection or even a parasitic infection like mites. I wish I could give you an answer by just looking at the picture, but since Bacitracin isn't working it's time for some additional testing to figure out what is going on. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

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