My cat's paw stitches look infected. Is it an emergency or can I wait?

Question

Hi, my cat had an incident outside and degloved the top of her paw. We took her in and she had 16 stitches put in but it's not healing and looks very infected only 2 days in. Its Sunday, and no vet near me is open, I was wondering if I need to find a vet hospital or if it can wait to bring her into out routine vet tomorrow morning. The photo with the linoleum is the day she came bu ome, the photo with the paw down and left is last night and the photo with the paw pointing right is today. Pet's info: Cat | American Shorthair | Female | spayed | 6.5 lbs

C. Rathjens, DVM · Accepted Answer

Poor Rain! That's a very tough spot for the body to heal itself because it doesn't have great blood supply and it's easy for pets to get to and lick, which is really bad for healing. It's a little hard to see how moist or dry the wound is from the pictures. It looks like it was very wet last night, and is a bit drier today. It actually looks pretty good to me, especially if this only happened a few days ago. So, I would be comfortable waiting until tomorrow, UNLESS you're seeing increased discharge or if Rain is lethargic/not eating/seems very painful. I'd recommend she have a soft sided cone on if possible to try to prevent licking, along with close supervision because cats are great at getting around the cones - pet stores often sell these. A hard sided one might work better, but could also be used to rub against the wound, so I would definitely use that if your vet gave you one or recommends it, but wouldn't advise it without seeing her in person to see how she's moving around and how comfortable she is. I hope that helps. Feel free to post again (even just as a regular free question) to see if another vet has a different opinion because I think this is a bit up for debate. I hope she continues healing well. Good luck!

My cat's paw stitches look infected. Is it an emergency or can I wait?

Most Helpful Answer

Related Questions

What to do if my cat has a small hole with pus coming from its ear?

How do I safely fix my dog or cat's painful hangnail at home?

Why is my pet's swollen lump with green patches not getting better?

Why is my 5-week-old chick struggling to walk with splayed legs?

Dog licking paws, fur loss, and jaw wound: Could it be allergies?

My senior dog has recurring pancreatitis. How can I manage his diet?

Share