My cat is limping

[Aerows]

she has a large blister on her front left leg. I can feel it through her fur. I think she probably got bit by something.

I'm taking her to the vet in the morning, but in the mean time, is there anything I can do to ease her pain?

[dipsydoodle]

1. Check her claws too

You might find that one has curled on itself.

[Aerows]

3. She is awfully sensitive about her feet

Which was why I thought it was her paw at first. Then I found the blister on her forearm. I'll keep that in mind - that might be a problem, too.

[MoonRiver]

2. Maybe you should put some antibiotic cream on it.

Poor baby!

[grasswire]

4. It isn't a blister

Last edited Sun Dec 22, 2013, 02:44 PM - Edit history (1)

It's an abcess. It hurts the cat like hell. And the pus inside it is VERY GERMY.

If it should rupture, be sure to clean the stuff up in a sanitary way and wash yourself well.

If it ruptures, it will stop hurting. But it can close back up and be bad again.

[Aerows]

6. Probably

I think I'll wait for the vet tomorrow. Poor girl .

[LWolf]

30. Maybe some heat?

If it is an abscess, the vet will open it up to drain. Even if it is "germy," it has to drain.

When I had an abscess, my doctor recommended hot, moist compresses (as well as anti-biotics and cutting and keeping it open to drain.)

When my horses get a stone bruise, easy to do in this volcanic area, and it develops into an abscess, sometimes the vet or farrier can cut the hoof open to allow drainage; sometimes not, depending on just where it is. Always, though, we "soak" the hoof in warm water and epsom salts. I also have an epsom salt poultice to put on, wrapping the hoof up with vetwrap and duct tape to hold it on and keep it clean.

[Aerows]

31. Thank you!

I have some epsom salts and that seems like something that wouldn't harm her. I'll try it, thanks, LWolf!

[LWolf]

33. You're welcome.

I hope your kitty feels better soon.

[winter is coming]

35. Be sure to rinse well afterwards, or she could ingest the epsom salts while grooming. n/t

[Laffy Kat]

34. Yep, grasswire is right. It's an abscess.

I'd have it lanced by the vet. The vet will clean it out. The wound should be left open so it won't re-abscess. The vet will probably have the kitty on oral antibiotics for a week or so. Good luck.

Oh, if it doesn't get drained the kitty can get septic, so I'd see about it pretty soon. I know this is a bad time of year to spend $$ but you have to in this case.

[TDale313]

5. Aww, sorry to hear that.

No particular advice, but hope she's ok. You're getting her into the vet, which is the main thing. Don't give her human pain killers (seems like a no brainer but many people do)

[Barack_America]

7. Can you call your vet? Sounds like an abscess.

Not to sound alarmist, but these infections can spread pretty quickly (at least in humans, who I'm trained to treat). Your vet might want her to be seen before tomorrow

[Aerows]

14. I called him

He's going to see her tomorrow early in the morning. He also thinks she got bitten by something, but it's not where it is life threatening, but still painful as hell.

[aptal]

26. Does sound like it.

One of my cats had one that was horrible and had to be drained.

[Aerows]

32. She has a big bump on her leg

She's no hothouse flower, either. I've seen her take on other animals. I think she got mixed up in a fight she didn't win.

She's mostly an inside cat, though, and I adore her. Big old tabby cat.

I heard her meow in the yard one night, and thought she might want to come in, but it sounded muffled. I turned on the light and she had brought me a "present". A rat bigger than you can believe was in her jaws, like she was giving me a gift. Uh, ... thanks, kitty.

[Daemonaquila]

8. Not a blister - an abscess.

Cats get these very easily when they get a puncture wound, particularly from another animal's bite which is full of bacteria. I've got 6 of the beasties, and do a lot of volunteer work in wild critter rehabilitation, so I've seen these wounds and the resulting abscesses a lot.

They do hurt, and the infections can become life threatening, or at least require extensive surgery. When treating one of ours, I make sure to do so as soon as I see it starting - then it's usually pretty easy to clear up with minimal trauma.

Packing the abscess with a warm towel (not scalding, please) will help it open up. You want it to drain. Yes, it's nasty and full of blood and pus. All that yuck is better outside the cat than in its body. A little soap and water is all it takes to clean up, nothing special.

Get kitty to let you inspect under the fur. You will likely see a little puncture scab. If so, that's the target zone for the muck to drain. Warm packs help it come up that channel. If there's a little ooze, I have sometimes used a gauze pad with a little peroxide to gently loosen the scab to remove the "cork" as it were. If successful, you'll have goo oozing out over time, which will relieve the discomfort as well. To clean up mucky fur, peroxide on a gauze pad works wonderfully. Don't put antibiotic ointment on the wound - that will help close it, and it's better open and draining.

See the vet ASAP. Kitty will need antibiotics, a shot, oral, or both. The vet may need to help with drainage, the earlier the better.

[TexasProgresive]

9. You got the right stuff.

We haven't had one in years but our vet would clean it out and have us use an ophthalmic antibiotic ointment. It had a long nozzle that could be inserted in the wound. Besides killing the bad bugs it delayed healing so that the abscess healed from the inside out.

The strange thing is our cats let the doc do anything to them- it's as if they knew he would never hurt them.

[Aerows]

12. My cat gets jumpy over anyone new

... except the vet. She likes him.

[Aerows]

11. Called the vet

and he's going to see her tomorrow. That's what he thinks it is, too, but that it isn't life-threatening because of the location. He also saw her last month to put her chip in and give her shots, so he knows she's healthy.

[TexasProgresive]

10. See the vet and see #8 good advice.

[Aerows]

15. She's going tomorrow at 8 am.

She's curled up and sleeping right now, but the poor baby keeps her paw raised when she walks because it hurts.

[etherealtruth]

13. The poor baby

I don't know anything and have no suggestions. I just hope she is OK!

[Are_grits_groceries]

16. I don't know if a cat would stand for this,

but make a mustard plaster.
Here's a link:
http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-mustard.html

Even if the cat won't, it's a useful homeopathic method.
I know it works for boils and such. My cousin had a nasty boil on his leg. My Grandmama made a mustard plaster and it drained easily. The mustard makes it warmer than just water.
Of course, your cat will smell like a hotdog for days.

[Warpy]

17. Blister or abscess?

Cats deal with pain very differently. Mostly they just want to be left alone.

Just keep an eye on her and if she starts looking really sick, take her to the emergency vet to have it drained and get her some antibiotics and pain medication.

[Aerows]

18. I'm taking her tomorrow

I already talked to the vet (at the sound advice from other DUers). He thinks she has an abscess because she got bitten by something.

[Warpy]

20. Tomorrow will probably do it

but cats are stoic little buggers. They don't tell us something is wrong until something is really wrong.

I hope your kitty is on the mend soon.

[Aerows]

29. This one

could likely come home dragging a Pit Bull in her jaws and be just fine. That's why I'm concerned. I don't know what she tied up with, but I'm sure it is in far worse condition than she is.

I love my fierce little feline, dearly.

[WillowTree]

19. Try very gently applying some Neosporin with Pain Relief.

It has a little topical anesthetic and might at least marginally ease Kitty's pain. Couldn't make things worse, anyway.

[Warpy]

21. It might not be safe for the cat to lick off

While I've used antibiotic ointment on things the cat can't reach, I would never use it on places they can reach.

Letting the kitty sleep is the best idea for now. She'll get appropriate treatment and a cone of shame tomorrow.

[WillowTree]

22. Well, that's what my vet recommended when I had a similar situation in the past.

Just thought I'd pass it along. And a cone collar can be gotten at PetSmart today, if that's a concern.

Then again, you seem so sure of yourself that you may know better than the vet. Or not.

BTW, I never saw a cat that had a place that s/he couldn't lick, at least with the aid of a paw.

[Aerows]

25. Those are my thoughts, too

I can't take the chance that her little body could overdose or react on something.

LOL Cone of shame. Poor dear

[shenmue]

23. Lots of hugs

Should help. Get well soon!

[Aerows]

24. She's asleep in my robe

I guess because it smells like me and it is fleece.

[darkangel218]

27. Aerows,

I hope your kitten gets better soon x

I love cats and I feed several ferals on daily basis. One of my ferals hasn't come back to the feeding spot in a week Something probably happened to her :'(

[Aerows]

28. Thank you, cher

It's heartbreaking when you feed them and they don't come back. There was a huge old cat that used to come by and then suddenly, one day she didn't. . This one is a former feral, and is now an indoor cat. I don't own her.

She owns me.

[Jenoch]

36. Years ago we had an indoor/outdoor cat

who apparently was either bitten or scratched by another animal (probably another cat). His entire left cheeck was swollen and his eye was swollen shut. The vet lanced it, cleaned it, and prescribed Amoxicylian, the same pink stuff for a kid's ear infection. I got exactly one squirt of the antibiotic in the cat's mouth. He would not let me do it again and he had all of his claws. We had to mix the fluid antibiotic with canned cat food. Good luck with your cat.

Emergency vet treatment is expensive. My brother had to bring in his black lab puppy to have stomach pumped at 10pm on a Thursday night. The puppy got into the garage without anyone noticing and ate about 6 pounds of dog food. The bill was $350, more than they paid for the dog.

My other brother has a BIL who is a vet and said to pour Hydrogen Peroxide down a dog's throat, sort of like doggie ipecac.