Black dot on my cats tongue

[Sp0tonT]

My 16 year old tabby has a new spot on her tongue, I was lucky enough to get this shot of her yawning. Hope it's clear enough.
She is a big scaredy-cat and has lived a very healthy happy life indoors only and has not been to the vet since her kitten shots.
She is very timid, does not like to be held, and runs from little sounds. The only way a vet will see this is if she is given something at home to fall asleep for examination.

Appreciate your input.

Tammy

[Mollycat]

Poor love, she sounds a bit like my now 15 year old. I haven't seen anything like that, is it just discoloured or is it slightly indented, it's hard to tell. Does it bother her at all?

[Sp0tonT]

Good morning. It does not bother her at all. From that pic, I also thought it looked indented, but it could've been the position on her tongue while yawning. I'm going to try and get one during a "meow". She is quite the conversationalist and always has a reply when you talk to her. Thanks for your reply.

[Mollycat]

I too have a very timid cat that cannot be restrained, the difference is that once she is caught and at the vets she is petrified into submission and never needs sedating in any way. But a catch is very stressful and this limits what treatments we can give, and pills or any administering of meds at home is out of the question.

So this is just to add that you're not being judged for hesitating to take her to the vets, many of us know only too well taking some cats to the vets even when we are worried sick about them is not always possible and we know we might have to let things go that ideally we would want looked at. Their happiness gradually overtakes their health in priority, and that's ok.

[Sp0tonT]

Thanks, I really appreciate that! Out of the many senior pets (friends'/family's) that had serious health issues, 0% survived. The trauma they went though, pet & parent, the surgeries, injections, shots, etc. just made their final weeks miserable. Our "Peanut" is 16 and dragging her out of the house over and over again and have a tongue biopsy, then eating issues with a hole in her tongue...
I was just hoping somebody might recognize what this is because, at 16, if it's serious, it's not likely she will live for many more years either way.
So, I'm just going to love her as always and let her enjoy her peace and quiet with naps in the sunny window & brushings until she tells me she is in pain.
Hopefully, it's nothing serious.
Thanks again for your messages and all my best for you and your little baby.
Tammy

[Sp0tonT]

Update...after what I just read (copied below), I am DEFINATELY NOT putting her through that for 1.5 to 3 months of life.

How Long Can cats live with tongue cancer?
Multiple different treatments have been explored including radical surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, hyperthermia, cryotherapy, anti-inflammatory therapy and combinations of the above. Consistently, studies indicate an average life expectancy of only 1½ to 3 months.

Feline Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Fact Sheet - Davies ...https://vetspecialists.co.uk › fact-sheets-post › feline-ora...

[Mollycat]

I did all that reading after losing my Henry to a mouth tumour we didn't know was there until it was far too late to have any options, but knowing what was involved gave me some comfort that we absolutely did the right thing by him. He was 14 but after reading about it I don't think we could have made a different decision if he had been 4.

However - there is nothing to say that that's what your girl has, and there are many innocent causes of pigment changes, especially if it is just discoloured and not raised or indented. If you can get her to the vets or have them do a home visit perhaps, or a phone consult with good pictures like this one, they might be able to put your mind at rest or give you some guidance. Being symmetrical and in the middle makes it much less likely to be anything really nasty.