Expert: Jessica - 5/29/2011

Question
Hi Jessica,

We have two bengal cats and our girl cat is 9 months old and this week we noticed that her nose was very raw and red and is now scabbed. In the meantime she has gotten sores on her ears that have became red and inflammed. We havent changed anything around the house or her diet. Took her to the vet and they gave her an antibiotic because they assumed it was an infection. She has gotten worse and more red spots have appeared on her ears, looks more like a red rash now. We took her back to the vet today after i did some research and found "bengal nose" and looked similar to what our Roxy has. The vet prescribed her some steroids and cream to put on the nose. My concern is giving her the steroids when no one knows the real cause. I feel so bad for her and just want her to get better. What are your thoughts? Thank you so so much!

Jessica

Answer
Hi Jessica,

Your concerns are valid on one hand, but your vet's actions are valid on another. Steroids can help reduce inflammation, regardless of the cause of your kitty's condition. And my immediate reaction was that she was suffering some sort of immune response, like an allergy or auto immune disease, when I read your question. The best treatment for these types of problems is a steroid. Because testing for these problems can be a bit difficult, the common way to treat them is to place the cat on steroids and see if there's a response. Your vet could also run blood work to see if she has a high number of eosinophils and other white blood cells that can indicate the presence of allergies and other inflammatory conditions. In contract, other high white blood cell counts, like monocytes, can suggest infection.

However, steroids can mildly suppress the immune system and the ability to fight infection. If the vet suspected an infection, steroids would probably not be a good idea. I would probably want to try a different antibiotic and go with a topical steroid cream to see if that would help solve the problem.

Unless the article where you found the "bengal nose" information gave the specific condition that caused the problem, and your vet agreed with the diagnosis so he decided to make a complete change in her treatment plan, you might want to discuss your concerns about the steroids and see if trying a different antibiotic might be a good idea. Be sure you feel comfortable with the answers you receive, or else get a second opinion.

Good luck!

Jessica