My cat has a painful mouth scratch and won't eat. Is it serious?

Question

I found what looks like a scratch on my cat nose that I cleaned with a saline solution. She is an indoor cat and I have one other cat as well (they are playful and sometimes it gets a tiny bit aggressive). Anyway, Nyx has a low pain intolerance and she is shaking now. She is also unable to eat because it is near her mouth. What should I do? Also, is this an injury as I am seeing it or is it something else? Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Female | unspayed | 4 years and 9 months old

Stacey Anstaett, DVM · Accepted Answer

Aww poor thing! It does look like its probably a scratch/abrasion, however, if it is not improving over the next 3-5 days, please take her to your vet; cats can sometimes get lesions on their lips and mouth that can be due to an inappropriate immune response that causes severe inflammation in these areas. Your vet would be able to do an impression smear (push a microscope slide up against the skin to pick up the cells off the surface) and look at it under the microscope and determine if that is the case. In the meantime, leave it alone, and offer her soft food. Thank you for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

My cat has a painful mouth scratch and won't eat. Is it serious?

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