Learn What Common Injuries Cause Cats to Limp

Learn What Common Injuries Cause Cats to Limp
Another question that I get on my website quite a bit is why is my cat limping? There are a lot of different reasons for limping. Some of these are very serious, and some not so serious. Limping can be caused by a broken nail. Cats do get a broken nail occasionally, and that could be painful for them. If they get a splinter, something that has gone inside. Again, you could look for those things, and if you see a splinter, you could pull them out. Another thing that cats can do sometimes is step on a bee. They will get a bee sting and sometimes will be limping because of that. If your cat’s leg is actually swollen up and you can see the stinger, you can pull the stinger out. Again as long as your cat is just acting, laying, it is probably not necessary to see a veterinarian. But if your cat starts throwing up and getting hives or acting sick in another way, you may need to have veterinarian intervention. So limping takes a little bit of evaluation, and they can do it for very serious reasons like a broken toe or broken leg, or something very simple like an insect bite or just a little splinter in the paw. Little bit of investigation on your side can help you decide, and don’t forget to pick the phone up and call the emergency clinic because they can ask very pointed questions and say what is going on right now and help you make a decision if your cat needs to be seen. One other thing that we often see with cats is that these nails getting torn can bleed a little bit, and so if you are seeing any blood coming from a paw, it could be due to the bite wounds that we talked about earlier and infection, or it could be from a torn nail. If your cat is easy to get along with, you can look at those things yourself, but if there is any question, and you are having trouble deciding what to do, contact your veterinarian. I think it is a greatly under used part of our service. People don’t often call. They wait too long and then bring the animal in when it is sicker than it really needed to be. So if you are questioning whether to go to the vet, don’t just make the decision up to yourself. Call your veterinarian or call the emergency clinic and describe the signs and symptoms, and they will help you decide whether to bring it in or not. You can also visit my website at www.petpointers.com and ask a question there.