Our cat had an injured tail and now he has chewed it off. What can I do?

Our question this week was:

Dr. Debra – our cat had an injured tail and now he has chewed it off. There is only a bloody nub about 3 inches long left. Should I put anything on it or bandage it? I can’t afford to take him to the vet and I don’t want it to get infected. What should I do? Please HELP!!!

Meredith Cook

Answer

Hi Meredith, thanks for your email. You wrote that your cat had an injured tail and now he has chewed it off. You also said that there is only a bloody nub about 3 inches long left. How can you treat it as you can’t afford to take him to a veterinarian.

You probably won’t like to hear this but the best thing to do is to take him to your vet. Maybe your local humane society will be less expensive? I’d recommend that the tail be cleaned, examined and he would probably need antibiotics. It may need sutured or properly amputated. You can always be honest with your vet and tell them exactly how much you have to spend and they can try to work within your budget. It may not be the ideal but they can at least clean it up and get your cat on antibiotics.

If you CAN NOT Do that (which is not ideal) – then you can try cleaning it with some warm soapy water and maybe putting some antibiotic ointment on it. You may need to use and e-collar on him to keep him from continuing to damage it (sold at pet stores).

This is not an ideal situation. Signs of infection include redness, swelling and discharge.

An article that might be helpful to you is Tail Trauma.

Best of luck!

Dr. Debra

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