Harvest mites can be seen between the toes as little red dots. In a dark coloured paw it might be very difficult to see them. In our dog they were easy to see once the toes were spread :)
Def take cat to a vet as best to have a skin scrape to confirm, not heard of them out here, mange and ringworm are far more common and show similar symptoms.
Take your cat to the vet and they will organize it. My dog had it between her toes and it was a 2xweekly soak in flea shampoo. It worked. But she is a dog not a cat so the vet will get you in the right direction.
Sorry Debbie- thats a tough one! Are you sure thats whats causing the itching?
firstly- dont put anything on your cat- be it flea collar or powder or lotion or shampoo without checking its safe to use with your vet, Cats are sensitive to all sorts of things you would not expect and as they lick- topical stuff gets ingested.
A mite is not the same as an insect so insect repellants dont work- just like using a regular pesticide on red spider in the garden is useless. Im not certain but I think Ivermectin isnt used for cats- could be wrong though.
I have heard that eating garlic can help dogs- but again- I would worry about toxic reactions and I dont know many cats who like garlic. Your best bet is to make it a vets problem. At the very least she can give your poor kitty some cortisone to give relief from the allergy and itching.
I hope you know that harvest mites ARE transferable to people- so keep kitty off furniture and beds and wash hands if you handle her.
I didnt realize these nasties were prevalent here. Is it not possible your cat has an allergic reaction to ant bites?
My dog occasionally gets bitten and gets a rash and dermatitis instantly. I know theyre ants- I saw one bite her:)
(Just hoping- for your sake- youre wrong)