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Help me clear up large blackheads and bumps on tail

SugarBoots

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Hello, I recently adopted my first Sphynx from a family a couple of weeks ago. They were rehoming her because she had very bad allergies to certain foods but with a toddler they couldn't prevent her from eating anything they happened to drop, so this was the best decision for her.
Her neck had the worst of the allergic reaction, she was covered in bumps and scabs and scratching at it often, so I've been lathering her up in aloe vera (pet safe) daily and have gotten her a scarf to protect it from the scratching, as well as cut her nails, and it seems to be clearing up nicely.

But her tail is something else entirely.
There are large blackheads and bumps from base to tip, it seems very sensitive so she doesn't like me touching it but I have been trying to get aloe onto it as well, thinking some of the bumps might also be from the allergies.
I've ordered some pure witch Hazel to come so I can try that as well, but I'm not sure if it will help with the larger blackheads.
She's quite a dry cat (the aloe and coconut oil is helping with that) so I only plan on bathing her every 2 weeks, but is it worth me upping it to once a week to wash her tail? Are there any methods to clearing up acne like this?
I don't want to try to squeeze the blackheads out because I'm worried it'll hurt her, and as much as I'm willing to do that with my own skin, I know you shouldn't do it because it can cause scarring.

She's 6 years old and spayed, she also has an anal gland issue that means they need expressed every 3 months or so, if that could also be affecting her tail?

Any advice would be appreciated!
 

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Catzzzmeow

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What a lucky baby to have you caring for her. Personally I would stop the coconut oil and maybe even the aloe. We see the oil can actually clog pores more and makes them get dirtier quicker. Let her skin try to even out for a few weeks and reach its normal pH balance. Determine what foods she is allergic too yet? That could be the root cause to fixing the skin issues over using products. Using a warm compress on the blackheads on the tail might help to draw them to a head. If you do wash, we found using exfoliating gloves can help as well. @SugarBoots
 

SugarBoots

Lairian
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Oct 17, 2024
Messages
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What a lucky baby to have you caring for her. Personally I would stop the coconut oil and maybe even the aloe. We see the oil can actually clog pores more and makes them get dirtier quicker. Let her skin try to even out for a few weeks and reach its normal pH balance. Determine what foods she is allergic too yet? That could be the root cause to fixing the skin issues over using products. Using a warm compress on the blackheads on the tail might help to draw them to a head. If you do wash, we found using exfoliating gloves can help as well. @SugarBoots
Thank you so much!
I've only had her two weeks so far so I've only used the coconut oil twice, so stopping that is no issue. I only really started using the aloe on her neck because she seemed so itchy and I felt bad for her, but I'll give it a pause and see if that can sort itself on it's own now.
As for the food she's allergic to, not entirely certain to be honest. Her previous owners took her to the vet which said she was likely allergies to chicken, but she was having the same reaction to cheese and sausages their baby dropped, so I've gone grain, dairy, and chicken free so far and she hasn't had any new outbreaks.
I'll try the warm compress on her tail but I doubt she'll let me cover it for that long, she can barely stand me touching it while petting her!
I might give her a bath tomorrow with exfoliating gloves, I had a further inspection of her skin and she has blackheads all down her spine, although smaller and not too noticeable.

Thank you for these suggestions! I just want her to get to her best self where she's not so sore and itchy.
 

Roki

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Hi there! Congratulations on your new kitty!! I'm not a vet, but I know that food allergies can cause the blackheads & such when the body can't get rid of whatever it is allergic to quick enough, so it pushes it out through the skin. If she's still flaring up then it can be hard to figure exactly what it causing it - I know this from experience - so try to keep things as simple as possible for her till she evens out a bit. This means not too many different changes at once, unless you've got a plan... (It has taken me years to get my kitty's urinary tract & digestion stable enough for me to be able to try some beneficial supplements to help her maintain normalcy, so a plan is helpful for me to remember what I've already tried. She also had an anal gland issue that turned out to be more related to her food than anything else - lack of oils - which is a factor in skin dryness too. Now she has the opposite problem most of the time - sigh).

Skin issues can also be caused by contact dermatitis (skin touching something that causes an acute allergic reaction like a rash or blisters) - also from experience -, so be sure you're not using much more than baby-type detergents/shampoo's for any clothing or bedding (or anything washable she might lay on - make sure you wash new blankets first!). Asking questions here is always helpful to me. Sounds like you're on top of things, so good luck to you.

One question: Were you using Aloe Vera because you heard it was good for that, or did you just want to apply something soothing? I have not used it & am not sure it would be helpful? You did say it was cat-safe, so maybe it is a product? Thanks.
 
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SugarBoots

Lairian
Joined
Oct 17, 2024
Messages
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Points
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Hi there! Congratulations on your new kitty!! I'm not a vet, but I know that food allergies can cause the blackheads & such when the body can't get rid of whatever it is allergic to quick enough, so it pushes it out through the skin. If she's still flaring up then it can be hard to figure exactly what it causing it - I know this from experience - so try to keep things as simple as possible for her till she evens out a bit. This means not too many different changes at once, unless you've got a plan... (It has taken me years to get my kitty's urinary tract & digestion stable enough for me to be able to try some beneficial supplements to help her maintain normalcy, so a plan is helpful for me to remember what I've already tried. She also had an anal gland issue that turned out to be more related to her food than anything else - lack of oils - which is a factor in skin dryness too. Now she has the opposite problem most of the time - sigh).

Skin issues can also be caused by contact dermatitis (skin touching something that causes an acute allergic reaction like a rash or blisters) - also from experience -, so be sure you're not using much more than baby-type detergents/shampoo's for any clothing or bedding (or anything washable she might lay on - make sure you wash new blankets first!). Asking questions here is always helpful to me. Sounds like you're on top of things, so good luck to you.

One question: Were you using Aloe Vera because you heard it was good for that, or did you just want to apply something soothing? I have not used it & am not sure it would be helpful? You did say it was cat-safe, so maybe it is a product? Thanks.
Thank you for the advice, I'll take what you said on board!

As for the aloe vera, I was searching how to help her with the allergic reaction that was still around her neck, there were spots and scabs and it was obviously extremely itchy for her, and a lot of sites said aloe could help soothe and heal her skin, quite a few skin products for cats, like wipes, have aloe in them too, so I thought I'd give it a try and it really did seem to be helping. It's also a decent moisturiser so I considered using it instead of the oil but haven't done that yet. I made sure to buy one that was specifically for cats, there are a few out there.
 

Catzzzmeow

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d2e0d74e596e38a7654370565f99fd73.jpg

This is a great product to have on hand for all types of skin issues. Scratches, cuts, burns etc. I even use it in myself. It is great because it is not toxic to cats if ingested. I spray it on a cotton ball and apply.
 
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