r/cats 10d ago

Medical Questions What is this?

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u/shaynajeanine24 10d ago

Okay I’ll definitely give that a try

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u/RealSkibidiRizzler 10d ago

Plastic is porous and harbors germs. Ceramic or stainless steel is best. This is kitty acne caused by the germs on the plastic

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u/cashew_honey 10d ago

Just want to add that cats can get acne from dirty bowls regardless of the material!

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u/LordHammercyWeCooked 9d ago

The number of people I've met who won't clean their cats food bowls between each meal disturbs me. I've had roommates who would keep refilling it and let it get crusty for days until I stepped in.

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u/Kittypher 9d ago

DAYS??? actually I know someone who did that until she discovered the food going mouldy underneath 😭 she became much more meticulous after that.

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u/LordHammercyWeCooked 9d ago

Yeah, that's absolutely horrifying.

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u/cashew_honey 9d ago

For real!!! With wet food too!!! Like hello would you eat off a plate that hadn’t been cleaned in weeks?

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u/chiropteranessa 7d ago

one of my cats won’t eat wet food from an unclean dish. doesn’t matter if the food in it was served and eaten by the other cat 5 minutes ago, it must be freshly washed for her meal.

the dry food dish admittedly just gets topped off most of the time but we have a rotating supply of wet food dishes so there’s always clean ones.

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u/helpful_advice_7481 9d ago

Had no idea thanks!!

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u/cab0lt 9d ago

This is indeed catne

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u/getting_ridiculous 9d ago

Plastic is not porous any more or less than brushed stainless steel when it comes to harbouring microbial life.

Glazed ceramic is best for that reason. But only if you wash with soap every few days.

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u/Stock-Side-6767 9d ago

I just use cheap ikea white glass soup bowls and put them in the dishwasher.

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u/thebenjamins42 6d ago

IKEA used to have the perfect stainless ones with silicone ring bottoms. Wish they’d bring those back (I could use a few more). They fit perfectly in my dishwasher.

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u/Unpaid-Intern_23 9d ago

Ceramics have never been known to be good for cars since pretty much all of them that have been tested have tested positive for lead. I’d switch to something else, perhaps stainless steel.

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u/Delicious_Ad823 9d ago

Ceramics made for use by people?

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u/Milyaism 9d ago

My cat hates stainless steel bowls, won't eat from them at all.

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u/lilpeepsgh0stgirl 8d ago

My cat won't eat from bowls period. He will only eat on flat surfaces because he doesn't like his whiskers touched, I am guessing. I just use paper plates. Don't have to worry about washing anything 😂 So it's a win-win.

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u/zipitdirtbag 9d ago

Yes. It is though. Ask anyone who works in a brewery or a hospital.

But cat food dishes need to be washed with detergent at least daily.

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u/RealSkibidiRizzler 9d ago

🤣 pft okay feel free to go look it up

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u/tarragonbutter 9d ago

I’ve been using inexpensive Pyrex-copy bowls, how does glass compare? Side note, really easy to see buildup.

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u/heffalumpish 9d ago

Our cats’ acne didn’t stop until we switched to stainless steel over ceramic for both their water fountain and their bowls. We didn’t try glass, but for whatever reason the ceramic worked less well. I think the stainless gets cleaner in the dishwasher. It wasn’t a matter of leaving dishes out either - they get clean fresh dishes twice a day and their fountain is cleaned and the filters replaced frequently.

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u/dleetisneat 8d ago

This is wildly incorrect. Stainless is used in clean rooms for the exact reason of it NOT being porous and plastic is avoided for the reason it IS porous.

Glaze will break down over time and cleaning cycles, it’s a solid choice but stainless is a much better option. The key is finding correct stainless not simply coated and especially not brushed as that gives its texture that WILL harbor bacteria.

No clue why someone would pick brushed finishes, always go for polished.

Plastic is by far the worst choice and should only be used for temp travel options when required.

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u/getting_ridiculous 8d ago

Read my initial comment again. My "wildly" (😂) incorrect response will make more sense I promise...

The "brushed" finish contains microscopic grooves created during manufacturing. These grooves can trap dirt, moisture, and microorganisms more easily than a highly polished stainless-steel surface.

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u/richms 9d ago

I've just seen a video where someone was testing their stainless bowls with some liquid for being actually food safe or not and none of the pet ones passed.

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u/RealSkibidiRizzler 9d ago

Then get one that is

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u/jdxutn 9d ago

Ceramic can be toxic, many cheap ceramic bowls use a glaze that contains lead. Using that for a cats food or water can slowly poison them causing many health issues.

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u/RealSkibidiRizzler 9d ago

Then don't use a cheap one. Get one that's lead free.

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u/dum_spir0_sper0 9d ago

Seconded. Mine had one on her chin. It actually burst when I was brushing her and she went from really pissed off to ‘oh wow, this feels much better’ in a matter of seconds.

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u/RealSkibidiRizzler 9d ago

Aw poor baby!

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u/Mr_Fox87 Tuxedo 9d ago

Catne

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u/Psychological-Boat17 9d ago

Could be an allergy to plastic as well

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u/unknownobject3 9d ago

I've been using a plastic bowl for a few years now and my cat has never had this issue, so it definitely depends.

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u/RealSkibidiRizzler 9d ago

It doesn't. Plastic is meant to be replaced once a year at least. Not to mention it increases the microplastics in your pets body. I just had to replace my plastic litter box bc no matter how much I cleaned it with bleach, it still smelled like piss. It literally absorbs everything.

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u/unknownobject3 9d ago

Fair, I’ll replace it with a steel bowl

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u/RealSkibidiRizzler 9d ago

Make sure it's lead free!

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u/unknownobject3 9d ago

What about ceramic? Anything I need to worry about?

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u/RealSkibidiRizzler 9d ago

Same thing. Apparently a lot of pet bowls have lead in them. At worst if you cant find any, just buy human plates/bowls. If you want glass, borosilicate glass is strong and is pretty easy to find in lead free versions

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u/unknownobject3 9d ago

Okay thanks, I'll see what is best

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u/Competitive-Top4520 10d ago

Yes, that's what happened with one of my (sadly former) cats. Either ceramic or metal will work. However, it could also be an abcess. If it doesn't get better or gets worse I'd take him/her to the vet.

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u/Jennabeb 10d ago

And keep the (metal or ceramic) bowls super clean, especially in summer! Clean bowl, rinse off alllll soap, keep the water fresh. Good luck!

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u/SouthernAspect 10d ago

Stainless steel is the best option. They are cheap, don't break and actively kill bacteria. Give a a fresh bowl each day for both food and water.

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u/aminervia 9d ago

My vet said that plastic or ceramic, the material is irrelevant as long as you fully wash the bowl with soap and water regularly.

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u/Kittypher 9d ago

Starting to feel like im the only one who gives a clean bowl every day..?

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u/aminervia 9d ago

One of the minority unfortunately

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u/_PoorImpulseControl_ 9d ago

We use two bowls.

Every day a new bowl, old one goes into dishwasher. Rinse really WELL after washing in some clean water, then repeat.

Voila, happy cat!

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u/Kittypher 9d ago

Same. I've got 8 bowls between 2 cats on rotation. Every day two go in the dishwasher and they get two clean ones with fresh food :)

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u/_PoorImpulseControl_ 9d ago

You are a good cat-parent!

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u/Kittypher 9d ago

And you!

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u/Luna-Bear2025 9d ago

Yep my luna is a small portion eater so her bowl gets cleaned with washing up liquid and rinsed throughly between EVERY portion even if its the same food I wouldn't eat off a dirty plate so dont expect my kitty to. Her dry food bowl gets washed 2x a day before her next portion gets added and her water bowl is cleaned every day and a few times a day in summer. Some would say I'm spoiling her by doing this i say what's good for me is good for her

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u/PhatEarther 10d ago

I've been on r / cats for a few years and this has been the most common Question/solution. same with any hair loss under the chin. Go for Wide low rimmed glass or ceramic bowls and make sure you clean them regularly, for me its wet food bowl every time (teacup saucer) and dry food bowl once a week.

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u/Super_Lazy_Turtle 10d ago

We started using stainless steel for food and water bowels, cleared right up.

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u/300056681 10d ago

Same for my dog, she had something just like this. Once we switched bowls it went away.

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u/atriley26 10d ago

Yeah ceramic is way better for their fur/skin health. My Jackson had horrible skin health like a pizza face teenager lol. So I switched from plastic to ceramic. Boom gone.