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My cat has a painful, oozing leg injury. Is it an abscess or bite?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Female | spayed | 7 lbs

My lovely cat has what appears to be an abscess or puncture mark on her hind leg. It is about 1/8 of an inch deep, oozing slightly, and with a little patch of white at the bottom. The fur around it is missing, and surrounding the injury is a raised ring. She will not let us touch the leg at all, and simply blowing lightly on the leg caused her to move it. She is an indoor/outdoor cat, so anything could have caused it. We are keeping her indoors tonight, as a safety measure. What could it be?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Jeffrey Milner

Veterinarian

Published on December 18th, 2017

Sounds like a bite wound or a puncture wound from something Skye could have snagged herself on while out and about. The wound needs to be explored, flushed, and possibly drained. Skye will very likely require some antibiotics in order to get better, as well as anti-inflammatory medication to control pain and/or fever if she has one. I would get her into the veterinarian in the morning at the very latest so that treatment can be instituted. The longer you wait, the worse the infection can become. Hope this makes sense.

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    Answered By Amy S. Eutsey, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on July 30th, 2017

    This looks like an abscess or pocket of infection. Commonly, the cause is a puncture wound- usually from interaction with another cat. These infections are usually very painful. Your cat should be seen as soon as possible by your vet for proper treatment. This wound needs to be cleaned and drained, which may be quite painful. Your vet will also prescribe an appropriate antibiotic to treat the infection

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