Ringworm, Baldness and Mange
in Cats & Kittens

Ringworm is a fungus that infects the skin and hair in cats. Highly contagious, Ringworm leads to patchy, circular areas of hair loss with central red rings. Mange is a skin condition affecting cats caused by mites.

• What is Ringworm
• What is Mange
• Other Baldness
• Alternative Care
• Sensitive Skin in Cats

Hi Simba,
I bought a purebred Ragdoll kitten recently. After I integrated her with my 15-month-old domestic short hair cat, I found out she had ringworm (isolated on her tail). She also has a horrible upper respiratory infection. The vet has me treating the ringworm with Nolvasan solution. The ringworm then spread to my other cat's ears. The vet then told me to keep using the solution and to use Miconazole Nitrate 2% cream as well. Since I have been treating both cats with both treatments I notice just a couple of little dry, crusty areas on the kitten's tail. However, my cat's ears look awful! It started with the ears, but now the skin is peeling and one ear in particular has a round purple area and again, just looks awful.

Is this the normal progress of ringworm? I know I have to treat the affected areas for a month (I am at the end of week 1).

I just need to know if it is supposed to look worse before it gets better and how I can tell when it is getting better. I am trying to look to see if it has spread and so far see nothing. Should I be going to the vet regularly to get them re checked or am I paranoid? Lynn Dear Lynn -
You ask good questions. The areas of hair loss will get larger before they begin to get smaller. Also, remember that ringworm symptoms include scaling skin and redness in the area. However, hair loss should stop at 2 weeks of your having started their treatment. At that point there should be no new areas of hair loss, and the crusty appearance of the skin should subside making the skin look normal again. If any of these do not occur within two weeks, take the little guys to the vet.

As for the purple area, watch out for ear mites if it appears to be gooky-like substance.

Lastly, I do not think that you would be paranoid if you have your vet check your little ones every few weeks until the ringworm goes away. - Simba

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Follow-up:
Thanks Simba for your response! My adult cat's ears are much better. Unfortunately my ragdoll kitten is not improving yet, and in fact, it has spread a little. I did take them to the vet. The kitten is still being treated with the Nolvosson solution and is now getting Miconazole baths 2x per week. This is a real pain, but this little kitten is worth it. Thanks again for responding. Lynn ---- Thx for the update. Simba

Dear Simba:
I have a 10-year-old female black domestic short-hair named Cassie. She is a bit overweight Today, I noticed that at the base of her tail, on her back, there is a bald patch, about 2 1/2 inches long, 1 inch wide, diamond shaped. There is some flaky skin (like dandruff) and a few freckle-like blotches. It does not appear to cause her pain...however, if I pet her back there, she turns her head toward her rear and licks her nose!

Her eating, sleeping and litter habits appear to be normal, and my other cat (1-year-old female calico, currently in heat!) is unaffected.

What do you think? Ginger Dear Ginger,
The first thing I would want to rule out is ringworm. Ringworm is a fungal infection that causes patchy hair loss along with flaky skin. The only way to determine whether Cassie has ringworm is to have your vet perform a culture for it. Once a diagnosis has been made, your vet can begin treatment which consists of topical baths. Because ringworm can be passed on to people you may want to isolate Cassie until you can be sure she is in the clear.

Check out the letters below for tips on ridding your your home of ringworm. Another thing you may look out for are mange since this is another common cause of skin loss. Your Pal,Simba

Reader Note:
Dear Simba, A quick note for Ginger. My cat (when I lived in the UK) had a similar problem, and the vet advised that sometimes female cats can get a hormone imbalance which causes just the sort of problem the lady below describes. He prescribed some hormone balancing pills and within seven days all was better and we have not had another problem. Hope this info is helpful to Ginger. Cheers, Mary.

Hello Simba,
I am at a loss. I have a 4-year-old cat. I have had her one year with no problems. She has developed an eye problem...not in her eyes but on the skin around her eyes. At first it looked like a cut above both eyes but it was not from a fight because she has not gone outside. Now the skin around both eyes is very crusty and she is losing fur.

She was checked for mites and had a negative result. They gave her an antibiotic, but it seems to only have helped a little. The only thing different around the house was that she made her new sleeping place under an indoor tree we bought.

Could she have had an allergic reaction? I have two other cats and they have not developed this problem. It does not seem to be bothering her it just looks awful. Melissa

Dear Melissa,
It is possible that your cat may have an allergy, although there are other possible causes. One thing to consider is Ringworm, which can be similar to many other skin problems, but does come with scaling or scabbiness, too. Have your cat checked for Ringworm and test her immune system if possible, since immune disease is a big cause of skin problems. Keep me posted. Simba

Dear Simba, My little boy kitty has been diagnosed with ringworm...we are now using an antibacterial wash. We noticed that one of the females has a patch just like the one the boy has. Is there something we can also use on our carpets to get rid of the potential flea problem and this? The kitties have been inside since they were just hours old and will not be going outside; nor do we allow the adults out.

We do have "visiting" outside cats, one of which is a sister of the momma of the 3 kittens and the "daddy" is now coming around too. Could he/they have given the kittens the ringworm just by being on the outside of our screen door? Jane

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Dear Jane,
Good to hear that the kitten is in treatment! As for causes of infection, yes, the screen door may have been one of the ways both fleas and ringworm were transmitted. Because Ringworm is a fungal infection, it could have been transmitted via the screen door. This scenario is more plausible when you consider that the visiting cats may have rubbed against the screen door and your cats may have responded in kind. It is also possible that momma was infected prior to her joining you (the ringworm spores can live for 18 months in cat hair!)

Getting rid of the ringworm contamination will require you to use disinfectants and anti-fungal cleaning materials to thoroughly clean all areas. This includes carpets, furniture, bedding, toys, the screen and even air vents.

Your carpet needs to be vacuumed at least once weekly (discard the bag after each use). Also, steam-cleaning will not eliminate fungi unless it is combined with an antifungal disinfectant like chlorhexidine or chlorine bleach. All heating and cooling vents should be vacuumed and disinfected. Their toys are likely to be infected as well. If you do not want to replace all of their toys, soak them in a bleach solution to remove any fungal remnants (be sure to rinse off and dry to remove all bleach before you return these to the cats).

Your cats will need to be treated by the vet. Expect to experience some frustration and a couple of setbacks because ringworm is tough to eradicate. Also, be aware that ringworm can be transmitted to people. Best thing to do is act quickly and decisively. You might want to check out SynergyLabs Veterinary Formula Clinical Care Antiseptic & Antifungal Spray. - #Ad

As always your vet will offer the best advice on what to use. Your Pal, Simba

Hello Simba,
My 5-month-old kitten has a s habit which seems to be getting more and more frequent. He licks and/or gnaws at the end of his tail until it is soaking wet. he is not cleaning it because he does not lick it like when he is cleaning the rest of his body. How can we make him stop this? - Kate

Dear Kate,
It seems like your kitten might responding to either a strong itch or other type of skin irritation in his tail area.