Conference misery::feline_v1

    I think you should call up your vet and ask if you should bring
    her in early.
    

    Is she a house cat?  It could be a tick.
    

    
    
    	It could be a sebaceous cyst - a minor infection involving
    the hair follicle. Did you ever get an ingrown hair? It's like
    that. To treat it, you can apply a facecloth that has been soaked
    in water that is as hot as she can tolerate. This will induce 
    the cyst to break open and drain. When this happens, use hydrogen
    peroxide on it to clean it out, and it should be gone in a few
    days. 
    
    	You could just call the vet and ask him what he thinks.
    

    There are lots of things it *could* be, and one of them is a tumor
    which may or may not be malignant. It wouldn't hurt to ask the
    vet for a little extra time to look at it.
    
    My Chiun (the Bionic Cat) has, in addition to his problem with cars, a
    tendency towards what the vet called "pre-malignant" tumors; bumps that
    MAY become cancerous if left untreated. They are quite noticeable,
    appearing suddenly and growing to the size of BBs - one got as big as a
    small pea before I found out what they were. I am under orders to haul
    Chiun to the vets' for cauterization whenever the tumors appear. 
    
    Lest you get too worried, Chiun is over eleven now and has had these
    lumps appearing off and on for most of his life; so far it hasn't
    slowed him down any, and in recent years he's been (knock on wood)
    free of them. 

    -b

    I agree about the lump; at least call the vet (they don't charge
    for phone calls, and in the event that you don't have to bring her
    in, at least you wont get shreded.
    
    As for the cat acne, it is a common cat problem (Argus had this,
    too) usually caused by the cat feeding out of a plastic dish. The
    cure is usually to get the cat a ceramic dish. (Argus now dines
    out of a dish that says "Fat Cat").
    
    Deb

    The Fickle very seldom goes out, although sometimes she likes to
    step out and sit on the front steps (wooden, and 10-12 steps down
    to the ground - I live on a steep hill) in the sun for a couple of minutes.
    She HATES going to the vet - she gets terrified as soon as she sees
    the vet's building, although she otherwise likes riding in the car,
    and often pees all over everything, and gets very panicky - so I
    hate to bring her in except when she really needs to (Nebula is
    nearly as bad, too - they don't mind the vet himself, but they HATE
    having stool samples taken, and are not too keen on being given
    shots, either).  I guess I better check her over tonight when I get
    home (have to cut her claws anyhow - caught her scratching the sofa
    this morning, which is a decided no-no!) and see if it is an ingrown
    hair or something (never thought of that) - not likely to be a tick.
    As I said, it has been there for at least six months, since it was
    there the last time she went to the vet for her shots (forgot to
    get vet to look at it then), and it hasn't changed any and doesn't
    seem to be bothering her.  I just mentionned it here because I happened
    to notice it again when I was brushing her - she sheds a lot this
    time of year.   I'll let you all know if anything turns up.
    
    I have an ingrown hair in my eyebrow (had surgery there several
    years ago to remove a disfiguring birthmark, as some of you may
    remember if you knew me back then) and it does form a nodule like
    that, come to think of it - I tweeze out the hair and flush it with
    alcohol, but it keeps growing back, so I suppose I ought to get
    it cauterized eventually (next time I visit the dermatologist to
    get a wart burned off, or something).  I guess she could have one
    of those.  If I can't figure it out, I'll call the vet up tomorrow.
    As I said, both kitties are almost due for their shots anyhow.
    (They'll LOVE that....)

Mutu has a medium-sized tumor between her shoulder blades.  It is called a 
lipoma, very similar to a wen.  Most of this type of skin tumor is fluid-filled
cysts, and if it is totally encapsulated (you can move the whole mass 
around) is usually harmless.  But, do have it checked with the vet.  Lipomas
in all animals are a common sign of aging, and they are very common, I 
understand, in cocker spaniels. 

Mutu has had this lipoma for about four years, and strangely enough, it has
moved downward, but not grown in size.  During Mutu's yearly physical, the vet 
draws some fluid from it to be sure it hasn't changed.

Regards,
J.

P.S. Like a blemish on your face, I personally don't favor the idea of trying
     to soak it and bring it to a "head".  That's a good way to start an
     infection.

    The vet said that it is probably a mole or wart, given my description
    of the growth on her back, and is probably harmless so long as it
    doesn't change shape or color and does not appear to be bothering
    her.  So I'll keep an eye on it, and the vet will look at it when
    The Fickle goes in for her shots.  It doesn't appear to be an ingrown
    hair, anyhow.

    
    One of the earlier replies mentioned using hydrogen peroxide.  I
    seem to remember several notes in this file warning against it,
    as it is VERY poisonous to cats!!!  Please check out any medication
    or human treatment with your vet before trying it, I'd hate to hear
    about the consequences later!!!
                          
    
    Amy.
          

    RE: .9
    
    Ingesting hydrogen peroxide is poisonous to cats. However, it is
    safe to use it just to clean a wound, or dab on an open absess.
    (I went though this Q&A with my vet last August.)
     
    Deb