WARNING! Do not use lime sulfur dip for ring worm

[CatDaddy702]

Been lurking on the site for a while. Just picked up our baby boy on Christmas and he’s been the greatest addition to our family. I’ve always had dogs and a short stint with a dsh and baldy but this little guy has made me a “cat person” 100%. Unfortunately we had a very bad two days. Yesterday morning we took him into the vet because he had what appeared to be ring worm on his back. Vet took culture sample but wouldn’t get result back for 2-3 weeks but was confident it was ring worm and recommended a lime sulfur dip once a week for a month and to quarantine him until negative culture came back. Worse decision we made was trusting these people with our baby. Our poor boy ended up with chemical burns all over his body. We picked him up 4 hours later and he was covered in lesions which they assured was the ring worm and that the dip was doing it’s job. I’m not a vet so I assumed they knew what they were talking about but I couldn’t believe one spot the size of half a dime of his back could turn into his entire stomach erupting in “ringworm” that looked nothing like ring worm in a matter of hours. Wake up this morning and go to his quarantine room and find he’s covered in lesions and has swelling all over his body and pus filled pimples in every pore. Lumps under the skin the size of tangerines, and is in an obvious amount of pain. He hides it well but there was no hiding this they mutilated my kitten. Trying to hold him he screamed in pain. Go back to the hospital and the new vet to see him is shocked that he left the hospital with the dip on his skin with an obviously negative reaction. Instead of admitting fault they pretended it was ring worm and were just going to allow us to keep this caustic chemical on him for a week until we brought him back to do another death dip. Refused to refund us for their mutilation but offered a refund if we come back tomorrow on the antifungal drugs they prescribed today as a courtesy. Please for the love of god if your vet recommends a lime sulfur dip you show them these pictures and you run for the hills. I’m heartbroken knowing we let him down and having to see him in so much agony. Hes such a sweet boy I hope he recovers with the same beautiful soul. As far as the “ring worm” it’s looking less and less like a fungal thing and more like a scrape we over reacted to. Breaks my heart, we had the best intentions but the kitten has to suffer. Completely beside myself. The second photo is the initial ring worm scare spot and his belly is absolutely torched. Last photos are of him with his beautiful flawless skin

 

[Catzzzmeow]

Omg that’s horrible. Positive vibes are sent to your little one for a fast healing.

 

[NinaGato]

I really hope you find a new vet that will have your kit's best needs in mind and heart. Hope you update this with his continued healing.

 

[Beckinboots]

Poor kitty and poor you. You had the best intentions so please don't beat yourself up over this. You sought a professional opinion and trusted that opinion which is what any of us would do. I hope you little boy's skin gets better soon.

 

[Jeanhill72]

Your baby is beautiful! I hope his skin heals up quickly. You may have to see if there are any other vet options close to you, they should have been able to help him after you brought him back in. Please keep us updated with his healing.

 

[Sheldon13]

It disgusts me that they let him leave with his skin reacting to it. I just don’t understand it. I’m sure this is excruciating if you can’t even pick him up.

Please, please, PLEASE call the vet and ask them to prescribe either Tramadol or Torbugesic to take the edge off for your little one. As you know, cats hide pain well so if he’s vocalizing he’s miserable. My stomach is in knots thinking about it.

Then never go back to them again. You don’t happen to be in North Texas do you?


Edit: that actually looks like a keratotic growth to me. You can even see the granulation along the edges. These that small can be removed in a vet office with just local or topical analgesic and can be done in the procedure room. You could always ask for anesthesia though if you are concerned about it not being enough for pain relief.

I WISH there was an over the counter pain med I could recommend that is good for cats but unfortunately there isn’t. There’s so much they can’t have. Do you have an emergency vet near? It might be worth it to take a trip to them so they can correctly diagnose and treat, as well as handle his pain.

 

[CatDaddy702]

So we went to another vet and he had us rush to an animal ER surgery center. When the new vet requested his records the original vet denied and is trying to cover it all up. New vet says he’s never seen anything like this and that our baby needs immediate critical care. Says his skin is dying and there is a serious infection underneath. He is violently shaking and in a lot of pain. Recommended we contact the veterinary board and report them for harming our animal and trying to cover up there mistake. Currently waiting to have someone take a look at him now at the ER.

 

[Catzzzmeow]

Lair Prayers are sent. Will be looking for updates. Hugs are sent to you.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Yoda mom]

@CatDaddy702 ((((( hugs ))))) and prayers for your sweet boy... btw, what is his name?
my heart goes out to your family and your baby kitty. I am just sickened reading this horrific experience.
we are here for you with a lair full of prayers and positive vibes..
please please keep us updated...

 

[CatDaddy702]

His name is Vikar. I appreciate all the support. Luckily the original vet finally has admitted guilt and is going to cover the cost of all further treatment and has refunded us for all cost incurred so far. The head of the hospital sat down with us and said after she did an investigation they discovered that the tech who did the dip did not dilute the solution. They told us he has since quit feeling terrible he did this to our cat. It sucks I know it wasn’t malicious intent but with such a dangerous chemical it really upsets me that there was such an oversight. We take Víkar to a dermatology center tomorrow and he’s on pain pills at home now. I’ll continue to post his recovery.

 

[CatDaddy702]

It disgusts me that they let him leave with his skin reacting to it. I just don’t understand it. I’m sure this is excruciating if you can’t even pick him up.

Please, please, PLEASE call the vet and ask them to prescribe either Tramadol or Torbugesic to take the edge off for your little one. As you know, cats hide pain well so if he’s vocalizing he’s miserable. My stomach is in knots thinking about it.

Then never go back to them again. You don’t happen to be in North Texas do you?


Edit: that actually looks like a keratotic growth to me. You can even see the granulation along the edges. These that small can be removed in a vet office with just local or topical analgesic and can be done in the procedure room. You could always ask for anesthesia though if you are concerned about it not being enough for pain relief.

I WISH there was an over the counter pain med I could recommend that is good for cats but unfortunately there isn’t. There’s so much they can’t have. Do you have an emergency vet near? It might be worth it to take a trip to them so they can correctly diagnose and treat, as well as handle his pain.

the ER has him on methadone for now and we’ll know more tomorrow at the dermatologist. Thanks.

 

[Yoda mom]

@CatDaddy702 we are sending speedy recovery prayers... and sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for good news updates from tomorrow's dermatologist.
what is your baby's name? your avatar pic is precious

did he stay or go home with you?

 

[Yoda mom]

@CatDaddy702 forgot to add that we often find some antibiotics work better than others with sphynx.
I have had good results with Doxycycline when my boy had a skin issue on his foot

following closely for updates
lair prayers sent

 

[Sheldon13]

I’m so so so sorry for this. It was the veterinarian’s responsibility to make sure his techs knew how to use the medication. This would never happen in a human hospital due to lack of knowledge. I would quit if I was that tech too.

I would still report it to the board. It’s too serious an incident to not have a follow up. It might even impact the way they label and sell the medication. Things like this are why changes like that happen, but you have to report it. Maybe you can help prevent it from ever happening again.

I wish I could give you a long, tight hug. I will pray for your baby and his family, as well as the new vet. I’m glad you took him in.


Love and Sphynx ~ It’s all you need

 

[CatDaddy702]

I’m so so so sorry for this. It was the veterinarian’s responsibility to make sure his techs knew how to use the medication. This would never happen in a human hospital due to lack of knowledge. I would quit if I was that tech too.

I would still report it to the board. It’s too serious an incident to not have a follow up. It might even impact the way they label and sell the medication. Things like this are why changes like that happen, but you have to report it. Maybe you can help prevent it from ever happening again.

I wish I could give you a long, tight hug. I will pray for your baby and his family, as well as the new vet. I’m glad you took him in.


Love and Sphynx ~ It’s all you need

We were thinking the same thing. The hospital is very apologetic and knows they screwed up but it could definitely help to make sure it never happens to another animal again.

 

[CatDaddy702]

@CatDaddy702 we are sending speedy recovery prayers... and sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for good news updates from tomorrow's dermatologist.
what is your baby's name? your avatar pic is precious

did he stay or go home with you?

Yes the ER said that they couldn’t do much for him so it was up to us if we wanted to take him home since they couldn’t do anything other than monitor. Unfortunately because we still don’t know for sure if he has ring worm we still have to quarantine him because we have a one year old son and can’t risk it. So I’ve been sleeping with him in our guest room. I guess if I end up with ring worm we’ll have an answer lol. But they said he’ll be safe at home so he’s snuggled up in bed with me.

 

[CatDaddy702]

Yes the ER said that they couldn’t do much for him so it was up to us if we wanted to take him home since they couldn’t do anything other than monitor. Unfortunately because we still don’t know for sure if he has ring worm we still have to quarantine him because we have a one year old son and can’t risk it. So I’ve been sleeping with him in our guest room. I guess if I end up with ring worm we’ll have an answer lol. But they said he’ll be safe at home so he’s snuggled up in bed with me.

His name is Víkar

 

[Yoda mom]

@CatDaddy702 awhh... glad he is home with warm cuddles... a blanket from the dryer is nice too.
did he definitely have RW?
geez,, more positive vibes on that front too....
I got RW as a kid from my dog... the vet treated me and the dog

hopeful tomorrows dermatologist visit will have healing in the right direction for a speedy recovery.

what is his name?

 

[Yoda mom]

@CatDaddy702 prayers to Baby Vikar! he is soo cute.. healing vibes you get answers and a treatment plan so your family can start enjoying fun times with your new gotcha Vikar... it certainly has been a bumpy start. hopeful meds and treatment and all this will be behind you. you certainly are a cat person
Vikar has the best of love and care

ps... I never heard of taking 3 weeks to find out if it is RW.. did they use a black light on him?

looking forward to the dermatologist professional opinion and treatment plan

 

[CatDaddy702]

@CatDaddy702 awhh... glad he is home with warm cuddles... a blanket from the dryer is nice too.
did he definitely have RW?
geez,, more positive vibes on that front too....
I got RW as a kid from my dog... the vet treated me and the dog

hopeful tomorrows dermatologist visit will have healing in the right direction for a speedy recovery.

what is his name?

His name is Víkar. The vet said it appeared to be ringworm but they can only know without a doubt if the culture comes back positive which takes several weeks. So they did the lime dip because the spot appeared to be. But it has since changed in appearance quite a bit and is looking less and less like ring worm but maybe the dermatologist will be able to judge better tomorrow.

 

[Yoda mom]

so glad you are seeing a specialist..
look forward to positive updates!

 

[CatDaddy702]

@CatDaddy702 prayers to Baby Vikar! he is soo cute.. healing vibes you get answers and a treatment plan so your family can start enjoying fun times with your new gotcha Vikar... it certainly has been a bumpy start. hopeful meds and treatment and all this will be behind you. you certainly are a cat person
Vikar has the best of love and care

ps... I never heard of taking 3 weeks to find out if it is RW.. did they use a black light on him?

looking forward to the dermatologist professional opinion and treatment plan

they said they would use the black light but I’m unsure if it glowed or not. They said sometimes it can be ring worm and will still not glow.

 

[Sheldon13]

@Yoda mom I’m not sure I would put a warm blanket on him dice he has active blisters. They can be very sensitive to localized heat and touch.

The best thing to keep him warm right now is a space heater set to 78-80 so the ambient temperature is warmer. I’m not sure he’ll want to be under a blanket of any kind right now.

How is his pain doing? A couple more drug names for you...if his pain is still out of control you can request an injection of either buprenorphine or torbutol and they are much stronger and will last longer than methadone. (I’m a registered nurse btw)


Love and Sphynx ~ It’s all you need

 

[Toa and Ross]

Sending lots of healing vibes to Vikar and hugs to you. I hope he heals fast

 

[Bailey21]

I'm on edge reading this entire thread. It angers me so much that the original clinic so ignorantly did that to your baby! But I was really glad to read they finally owned up and took responsibility for their actions. Lots of hugs and prayers sent, and following for the dermatologist update.