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My cat's surgical wound is leaking pus, what should I do immediately?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Birman | Male | neutered | 1 year and 9 months old

My cat developed absces 7 days after hip surgery(leg perthes)… i was at vet yesterday around 6pm and they opened stiches, cleared the wound and left it opet so it can drain.. they gave me antibiotics for cat Now is 4am and the wound is getting filled with so much absces that I dont know what to do.. I am trying to clean it with sterile gauze My vet opens his clinic at 8:30am.. I am alone with cat and dont know what to do with this leaking

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Strydom, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on May 15th, 2023

Hello, thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I'm sorry that you and Pablo are dealing with this situation. Please understand that we are not an emergency service so we cannot guarantee a quick reply. If he is leaking a lot all you can do is keep the wound clean the best you can and keep him in a confined area, like a bathroom, where it will be easy to clean up after him. Be sure he gets his antibiotics as scheduled. Unfortunately, the area where the incision is located is not an area that can be easily bandaged. Some people will fashion a human baby onesie (bodysuit) over the cat and put a maxi pad or something similar over the wound to catch the drainage. I do not know if that is something you can access easily. If you are not comfortable with the situation you can ask the vet to keep Pablo at the clinic until his condition is more manageable for you. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

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6Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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