Cat's tail degloved by accident. HELP. (Warning. Graphic Image.)

reedfaircloth

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My cat's tail was cut off by the door on accident today.

At first, I noticed about a half and inch of    his tail hair at the door, no blood. Then I saw that my cat's tail was  bleeding with  4 centimeters of "bones" exposed.

I want to take him to a vet but I have no  money  or income. I can buy hydrogen peroxide, neosporin, and gauges but I have no  knowledge nor courage to apply pet medical treatment  in fear   creating more pain for him. This never happened to any of  the cats I've had  before him so this is the first time.

It's been  10 hours since  the injury occurred. He looks okay but I know he's in pain.  He switches his sleeping/resting position  sometimes  so that his tail bone  doesn't have contact  with anything because it's painful for him.

Would  my cat be  okay?  What would happen  after weeks  of not going to the vet.  Due to financial issues, what can I do to help him other than giving him more tender loving care, food he likes, and     ensure the house is clean so less infections can occur. Even if it's fully healed someday ( with no fur or skin that grew), would he still  feel pain at the end of his tail?
 
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kkoerner

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You need to take this cat to the vet. The tip of his tail needs cleaned, amputated and bandaged properly. And he needs pain meds!

Is there someone who can help with the bills? Payment plan with the vet? Credit card?

He really needs to go. :(
 
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reedfaircloth

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For now,  I don't have any means such as a summer part-time job to pay for the vet nor a driving license  for transportation  for  a job yet.

I'm learning to drive and know the basic, except parallel parking so  it might take a few more days to learn  that skill.

But until that, it might take about  a month to  acquire the license and   a part-time job  to be able to pay for  his  vet  care and treatment.
 
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reedfaircloth

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I feel so bad and guilty about what happened.


My house is clean and well sanitized. But I'm more worried about an infection spreading eventually for a month before I can afford a vet.Every time I see the exposed bones, I wish I could can do something to ease his pain and for him to sleep comfortably with less pain.
 

kkoerner

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Do you not live with someone who could drive and maybe help with the costs until you can earn money to pay them back?
 

catpack

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Your cat needs *Emergency* medical attention. This is NOT a situation that can wait a month for medical attention.

The tail is an extension of the spine. If infection sets in, it will go to the spinal cord and cause even more damage. The end of the tail must be amputated, there is no way to save it. There is no way to bandage that portion of the tail without causing further damage. It is just as if you had a portion of your spine open and exposed.

You MUST find away to get your cat the vet care he needs, or you must make the decision to surrender him to a shelter/rescue or (as much as I hate to say it) euthanize.

Ask family/friends for a loan, apply for Care Credit if possible.
 

mewlittle

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If you can't take him to the vet i think the best thing is to contact one of these places cat rescuer ,spca ,surrender at a no kill shelter or rehome to some that will take him in if none above works
 

mani

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@Reedfaircloth I want to reiterate what CatPack said:  this is a medical emergency.  Having exposed bone like that is terribly dangerous for your cat, and he must be in awful pain. 

Could you find out if there are any rescue organisations in your area that could help?
 

Norachan

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I really think you need to take him to a vet. He could go into shock from the pain of an injury like that and if he does get an infection it will cost a lot more to treat then it would to amputate the bone as it is. Just get him to the vet and then work out how to pay for his treatment after that. There's always someone who will loan you the money, or a vet who's kind enough to accept payment by instalments. If all else fails you could start a GoFundMe account.
 

kkoerner

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Right now, the treatment will just be cleaning, snipping the exposed bone off to right below the skin, stitching or even gluing the end together, and bandaging or giving him a cone to wear. He will get antibiotics to prevent infection and most likely pain meds.

If you wait you risk infection- this is not the typical infection you get when skin is infected. If that bone gets infected, it will spread to the rest of his spine. This can cause him to be paralyzed if the infection is stopped there but if not, this could kill him.

Besides that, he is in pain! This is like you, slamming your finger in the car door but instead of the door being opened and all is fine, besides the pain, it rips off your skin and flesh....you now have an exposed finger bone. Do you wait til the next day to go in? Do you just bandage it and hope for the best? Do you wait a MONTH because you can't afford treatment? NO! You rush to the Emergency Room!!
Unlike with people, you can't call an ambulance, but surely you live with, or know someone who can drive? Surely, someone can help with the cost and you pay them back? You won't even call the vet and explain the situation and see if they will take installments?

I agree with everyone else, if you can't get him to a vet, please contact rescues in the area and see if you can find someone who can help. This is NOT a wait it out and hope for the best injury. It IS an emergency the same as if it had happened to your finger....except this is his spine!
 

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I hope you and your kitty figured everything out. I’m here because I’m having the same problem and looking for advice. But instead I need to give it.

For all the people who suggested surrendering the cat to shelter, please stop. You don’t know what you’re talking about. I’ve been rescuing cats and dogs for years. It’s my entire life. When I’ve looked for help from other legitimate rescues it’s been futile. I’ve never seen a shelter that wasn’t over capacity, under-staffed, and under-funded. The devil you know is better than the devil you don’t. If you think someone is mistreating an animal, go to spend time in a shelter. Visit the same dog in the noisy, smelly room, in his little cubby, day after day after day. And then decide if relegating an animal to that life is worth making yourself feel like you’ve done something good. They’re not garuanteed a happy forever home. And a forever home is not guaranteed to be happy. I was rescuing pitbulls in Miami for A long time. Where an animal is going can be just as dangerous or damaging as where they’ve been.

The people who are so adamant about going to the vet or the ER when you have no money, or who think you should give up your cat to a system that has no room to spare and no special attention to give, these people aren’t participating in reality. They’d be right if we lived in an ideal world but we don’t.

I’d like to see any one of them deal with a legitimate financial crisis, be on their own, and then decide to give up their cat because she got injured.

But, regardless of how turbulent and unpredictable life can be I truly hope none of them ever have to be in our shoes.
 

Kflowers

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I've been in your shoes. I've lived where we only had two meals a day, six days a week, but the cats got fed. It wasn't a matter of being in school. It didn't look as though it would ever get better. That was when I realized that death wasn't the ultimate enemy.

I believe with all my heart that euthanasia is better than slowly dying of an infection. It would be my choice over trying to take care of the injury myself, over giving the cat to a kill shelter in the hopes of her getting adopted. No, I would ask that they put her down and end her suffering then rather than waiting three days in a frightening place then putting her down.

I know that sometimes you don't even have the money for euthanasia. The world is a terrible place. The only safe place is on the other side.
 
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