My outdoor cat's leg is injured, infected, and he can't walk. Is it an emergency?

Question

I'm an adolescent and I have two unneutered cats who live outside. They tend to fight each other a lot, and one of my cats got injured on his leg pretty badly. My parents said it would heal, but now he can't walk on it at all and there's pus coming out, plus I'm pretty sure it's infected. They still won't take him to the vet because they still think he can heal, but they obviously can't tell how severe it is. Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Male | unneutered | 1 year and 10 months old

Shaneez Wallani, DVM · Accepted Answer

You are entirely correct that Scribbles should see a vet. Limping itself can be an indication of pain, as cats do not usually avoid putting weight on one of their legs for no reason, so please make an appointment to have Scribbles seen by a veterinarian. Causes of the limping could be trauma, a muscular or nerve injury, a fractured bone, a tumour/mass, or a foreign body embedded in the leg, or infection as you mentioned. In the meantime I recommend keeping him in a crate or in a room where he can't run/ jump on anything, and putting an e-collar (cone) on him to help prevent him from biting/licking at the area. Pain medication meant for people can be toxic to cats and should not be used without checking with a vet first. I also recommend having both cats neutered to help reduce the risk of testicular cancer, unwanted pregnancies, and certain undesirable behaviours such as humping, aggression, urine marking, and "roaming" to look for females.

My outdoor cat's leg is injured, infected, and he can't walk. Is it an emergency?

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