Injured my cat - feel awful

luna49

Yesterday morning I caught my cat's tail in the hinge side of our bathroom door while closing it.  He yelped, hissed, and ran.  There was fur and blood.  I took him to the vet where they sedated him, shaved his tail, and sutured it, all in the hopes of avoiding amputation.  We've got 7 days of antibiotics and 3 days of pain meds with sedatives.  He's got one of those big collars on, and is not thrilled with life.  Neither he nor I slept last night.

I went out and bought one of the inner-tube type collars to see if that will work better - he's miserable with the hard plastic one.

Anyone have tail injury experience?  Elizabethan collar experience?  Words of wisdom? 

Thanks. 

michaelandjulie2

When we had tiny baby kittens, we used the tube-type collar and they were fine. Well, they looked miserable, but they worked.

No other advice/wisdom, but I am so sorry that happened! Poor kitty! Give lots of treats and snuggles and he will probably forgive you.  

Laurakat81

Are you certain he needs to wear it? The only reason I ask is my vet has been quick to tell me my pets have needed the collar and I finally felt so awful that I took it off and it was no big deal. One of my cats is incredibly accident prone. He broke his left leg about a year ago, needed surgery, metal rods, and he didn't mess with his leg at all. The same cat literally unraveled the skin on his right leg about 6 months later when he decided sleeping behind a car tire was a good idea. He got up to move when the car started but wasn't quite fast enough. His skin was pinched and was literally like a loose sock sitting on his ankle. Another surgery to fix that and they didn't want it bandaged or anything. He didn't mess with his staples there either. I think sometimes they just know it's best to leave it alone....might be worth giving it a try if you're home enough to keep an eye on him.

niemand88f

My cat's tail was amputated before we adopted her, but if it does come to that for your cat don't worry- most cats adapt very well. 

I don't think any cats do that well with e-collars unfortunately, but I definitely do not recommend the "comfy cone" for a cat. They freak out when they can't see to the sides. 

marriedonmaui

I can understand how badly you feel, but I think things will be fine! DH and I were just talking about this last night when we dropped a nail on the floor and couldn't find it. I would rather one of us be the ones to end up with a nail in the foot than the cat! I'd just feel awful if something happened to our buddy since he can't exactly care for his wounds himself.