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Overview:
A skin scraping test is
a diagnostic test to determine the cause of skin disorders in cats.
There are many possible
skin problems that can affect cats including fungal, parasitic,
inflammations, infections, cancer, allergies & more.
How
is a skin scraping performed?
There are two types of
skin scraping.
A blade is used to
gently scrape along the surface of the skin. It is necessary to do this
deep enough to reach mites, which often burrow quite deeply. You will
see a small amount of blood as a result.
What
is being looked at?
Once the sample is
taken, it is put on a slide & examined under a microscope. Your
veterinarian will be looking for signs of fungal infection, mites, cell
cytology & bacteria.
Does
it hurt?
It may cause some short
term discomfort, but it shouldn't be overly painful for your cat.
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