Concerned about Ninja the Cat

fureverywhere

fureverywhere

beloved friend who will always be with us in spiri
Location
Northern NJ, USA
I haven't looked close yet. I just brought Ninja in from the yard. He and three of the others play outside in the day and come in for the evening. Actually a cat door might be a good thing. But as cats will do they defend their property more rabidly than most dogs. They also box between themselves.

Ninja came in and his ear is droopy. For a cat that's not a normal thing. Droopy like a bunny...I can't imagine what I'll find. The worst one was Chii. A few years back she tussled with one of the boys. She got an infected area by her eye. I won't go graphic but she looked like the Phantom of the Opera for awhile there.

Fortunately I have a bit of background that lets me take care of things myself. Good thing too, the emergency vet charges $100 plus just for the exam. Chii healed with little scarring...but my poor Ninja. More later when I can survey the damage.

Okay, after I typed that he was on the counter and I petted and tried to see what the problem was. I've never seen anything like it. Another cat I remember we did take to the vet for a chest scratch, they put in a drain and even with stitches AND an Elizabethan collar he ripped it out...two or three times. But Ninja's ear is drooping from swelling. Take a triangle shaped ear and inflate it. And the temp outside is in the teens...I guess call the regular vet first thing. Peroxide is the first line of defense normally. But I can't figure out where the wound starts.

Okay continuing the story...this is unfolding gradually. Ya know if I could have understood science and math well enough I could have been a darn good vet. I was in the kitchen alone with several cats. Thankful because then I can speak aloud to them without son muttering crazy cat lady. But I just walked over to him. A twenty five pound cat that can get a bit moody sometimes..." Hey I'm sorry, that must be uncomfortable not being able to hold your ear up. If you can work with me maybe I can help".

While I'm talking I'm folding paper towels and adding warm water for a compress. I think he knows I'm trying to help. He just sat there as I held the compress inside and outside. Then I tossed it and gave him a good petting. He's been in the food dish three times in the last few hours so his appetite is fine...poor moose trying to keep up his strength. That's a joke, he's almost equal to a medium size dog.
 

fureverywhere, With your username I'm sure you're likely more knowledgeable about this, but want to encourage you to rethink the hydrogen peroxide.

We just had two of our cats, on the same evening, come in with wounds. Of course this was after hours before the holiday--no vets open until Monday.

I looked it up again even though this has happened many times, but like to look for new tips). :laugh: There was something about peroxide being too strong and it actually damages tissue. I cleaned both cats' wounds with clean water on a cloth repeatedly. If you remove scabs and wash, it should (not always of course) prevent the wound from getting infected. It's when it seals over that the swelling and infection take over.

Good luck with your droopy eared cat. Hope he recovers quickly. :love_heart:
 
Thank you jnos, yes for now I'm just doing warm water compresses. If you've treated such things you know the next steps are a total mess. But at least he's being patient. Actually he's been seeking me out tonight." Hey human, this hurts like a ************, whatever you were doing was pretty nice."
 

I got a call one day from a local vet's office. "Hello, is this _________'s next door neighbor, ______? Yes? Well, can you come get her; she just fainted."

Her cat had sustained a wound to the leg that had gotten infected to the bone. The vet had to clean the wound out and the plan was that the wound had to be left open to "heal from the inside" or the leg was going to have to be amputated. Three times a day, a syringe of peroxide had to be pushed deep into the infected pocket to flush the infection out. They were either going to have to keep the cat there for days (big bucks) or she'd have to do it. They showed her what she'd have to do and she went out like a light.

So, I went in, picked her up and they showed me how to do the irrigation, which I did mornings before I went to work, when I came home in the late afternoon and right before going to bed. It involved dragging an extremely unhappy cat out from under the bed, wrapping her in a large bath towel, pulling out the infected leg and trying to stay away from the teeth. The cat kept the leg but she was definitely not one little bit grateful for my efforts....she'd hiss at me for years afterwards every time I went over. My neighbor, on the other hand, WAS grateful.
 
Yes, it is no fun but it can be done. For the squeamish stop reading right here.



With Chii the abscess was right next to her eye. One day soon after it started gobbing. Then fur and skin started to harden. Oh what fun...seriously poultry shears. But she was okay with it. The peroxide is said to damage human tissue nevermind feline but I used a q tip for the open places. It took about a month of trimming. Eventually new fur and whiskers grew over the cut area. The important thing is getting all the yuck drained. Then the healing can begin.
 
This may be a puncture wound full of puss. If it isn't opened and drained it can become a very deadly general infection. I have had the experience and had to treat the opened wound for days each time expressing more puss. It's a job for the vet and you both. The vet to begin the procedure by opening and probably giving a injection of a antibiotic and you by keeping it open and treated till infection is gone. Ninja needs your help.
 
My sister's cat last year got in a fight with another cat and got a puncture wound. My sis thought it was healing up OK, but then the cat got very sick developed a serious sub-Q infection and had to have surgery to drain and clean it out. It was a pretty gross situation. Fortunately, the Humane Association here has a reduced fee clinic for low income people, and we were able to get the cat seen there so it cost about 1/2 what it would have cost at my regular vet. I went over daily and helped my sis put the medicine in/on the surgical wounds ; she was grossed out and I told her if she could keep the cat from ripping my face off, I would put the medicine in. The first trick, of course, was catching the cat.

The cat got all better and I still have my face.
 
Fur, I'm not really up on cat's ear physiology, but is it possible the ear has been broken? Is there bone at the base or just cartilage?

Not to get into a long lecture, but injuries like that are one of the reasons I never let my cats outside anymore. I've seen too many injuries, gotten too many fleas and lost one cat to a hit-and-run driver.
 
Fur, I hope poor Ninja will be okay. Please give her a big kiss from me and many cuddles. I'm sure your love will help. :cat:
 
I once saw a news piece about a woman who had to rescue her cat from where it was impaled on an iron fence spike (it fell out of the window and landed there) and in the process, she got thoroughly scratched and bitten. By the end of the day she was in the emergency ward and was in danger of loosing an arm because of the bacterial infection that the bites and scratches had caused. Cats mouths are apparently very toxic so if your kitty has been in a fight, maybe a visit to the vet would be in order for an antibiotic shot? Hope he gets better fast Fureverywhere.
 
Poor cat. The warm compresses will help the abscess to drain, which will give much pain relief. Infection will be a risk, maybe antibiotics will be needed. Hoping for the best, please let us know.
 
The vet said the antibiotic we have is still good. I hid it in the canned stuff and he wolfed it all...it's certainly not hurting his appetite, what a moose...a whole can of cat food in ten minutes. And he's not fat, solid muscle. His family were local strays, maybe Daddy was a terrier? I washed towels and an old robe and made him a cozy nest downstairs.
 
Fur, sorry to hear about your Ninja. It's good that he has an appetite and I hope he can have a full recovery. :love_heart:
 
I agree with INOS - just try to keep the ear clean and provide plenty of drinking water. I don't know if a tiny squirt of liquid baby aspirin would be harmful - it might help reduce pain and inflammation.
 
Dang I can't sleep...at the moment Ninja is sound asleep on an old dog bed. I put a pair of flannel PJ's on the table and Levon is asleep next to him. I didn't want them to go all manly over the dog bed. Aye, to be continued
 

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