Help! What are these spots?

[dtmark]

Our 5 year old has this.

Found it tonight, fairly certain I'd have spotted it before if it had been there for longer.

My initial thought was that this was a pair of ticks. However they're not. Attacking them with the tick removal tool makes them bleed slightly, which would still leave open the possibility that they are ticks.

Except that they appear to be attached to the skin. They are not hard like ticks, they are soft and pulpy.

Never seen anything like this before. In a human I'd have said that these were simply spots or boils that would burst.

They're about a third of the way along his body starting from the tail, on the side.

He's in pretty good shape otherwise, an adoptee, and well looked after. The fur (long haired) looks matted as he was washing this area.

He does play vigorously with one of our other boys, they roll around and chase, but it's all good natured. Now and again one will scratch the other slightly when it gets heated and they then stop and calm down for a while. They really love each other. So could be from that. Mind you the lumps are so close together I wonder if it could be a reaction to a bite from something else.

None of them scratch themselves and I don't believe any have fleas.

Any ideas? Does this need action to be taken?

Sorry, this won't paste as an embedded image for some reason. Caution: doesn't look very nice.

http://www.dtmark.info/upload/cat-spots.jpg

[MarkB]

Sorry, no idea what they are, but if it were one of mine I would get the vet to have a look. They look pretty sore.

[jillyvillyvoo]

No that's definitely for a vet to decide, I wouldn't hesitate.

[bobbys girl]

Don't look like any tick I have ever seen! A trip to the vets would seem the best thing to do.

[meriad]

totally agree, I'd get a vet to look at that. That definitely is not a tick so please don't touch it anymore.

It could well be an abscess that is forming on the outside or a hematoma... but (and not to worry you) there is a very slim chance it could be something much nastier.

The sooner you can get him to a vet the better I'd say