De gloved tail

HWRiley

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Hi All, new here. Need some advice..

my cats tail got shut in a door and the end 1/2 cm or so got Degloved leaving the bone intact and sticking out.

It was Sunday so couldn’t take him to vets till today.

It bleed a little bit didn’t really seem to bother him.

the vet said we have two options. Leave it and it might scab over on it’s own. But infection could be an issue.

Or amputate the end and see it up but it will cost at least £700.
He is eating, drinking, purring and doesn’t seem affected. He has a two week course of antibiotics and is wearing a cone.
I have disinfected the whole kitchen and removed anything that could cause an infection. I’m bathing it regularly in salt water.
But do you think it could actually heal around the bone? Would the end bone just drop off?? I don’t know what to do... just thought I’d ask in case anyone has had similar situation. He is a 14 year old cat.. it’s just £700 is a huge amount of money I don’t have... but I don’t want to leave the cat and he get an infection that kills him!!! Help !! Xx
 

fionasmom

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Sorry that this happened to your cat! My experience with degloving has been ferals who get into fights and end up with an injured tail. A couple of time gangrene set in and when I trapped them the vet recommended amputating the tail. I do have to add though that you are being quoted quite a price for it....I converted pounds to dollars, right? My vet always charged me for the neuter (it was always males) but did the amputation for an extra $50.

It sounds a little bit like you vet did not fill in all the blanks for you. What are the chances it will scab over and what are the chances that infection will set in? There have been members on TCS who have been in this position and who have posted that the tail did scab and fall off; others chose amputation.

If you wait to see if this heals, which I think it sounds as if you are doing a great job of trying to help him through this, don't let him out and keep things as sterile as you can so you can monitor healing. I suppose another option is to ask another vet what they charge for tail amputation, or just for a second consult, not guaranteeing that you will let them proceed with any surgery or treatment. I still think that is an incredible amount to ask for tail amputation.
 

Tik cat's mum

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I'm sorry you and your cat are going through this. And infection is a very real problem so I understand your worries. I don't know if this is any help at all but I would certainly make some calls to different vet's. And ask prices the animal trust has set prices for surgery and don't charge a consult fee, unfortunately there website do not have the price for what you might be after so a call or email will be necessary. Also if you are on universal credit even if you work the rspca have vet clinics that offer low cost care. So do the pdsa. But for all of those you will have to travel to your nearest clinic hopefully you have one in your town. A quick Google search should bring up what you need. Good luck and I hope your boy is better soon.
 
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HWRiley

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Sorry that this happened to your cat! My experience with degloving has been ferals who get into fights and end up with an injured tail. A couple of time gangrene set in and when I trapped them the vet recommended amputating the tail. I do have to add though that you are being quoted quite a price for it....I converted pounds to dollars, right? My vet always charged me for the neuter (it was always males) but did the amputation for an extra $50.

It sounds a little bit like you vet did not fill in all the blanks for you. What are the chances it will scab over and what are the chances that infection will set in? There have been members on TCS who have been in this position and who have posted that the tail did scab and fall off; others chose amputation.

If you wait to see if this heals, which I think it sounds as if you are doing a great job of trying to help him through this, don't let him out and keep things as sterile as you can so you can monitor healing. I suppose another option is to ask another vet what they charge for tail amputation, or just for a second consult, not guaranteeing that you will let them proceed with any surgery or treatment. I still think that is an incredible amount to ask for tail amputation.
Thank you so much for your reply. I have been concerned. The cat seems perfectly fine, happy, eating and his usual self. So fingers crossed. If it wasn’t £700 I’d do the amputation in a heart beat. But it’s a huge amount of money. Thank you for your advice.
 
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