Wound on nose. . .vet or home care?

lucicat

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I will post a pic below.
On Saturday one of our cats wound up in the closet, he is a fearful cat and that's where he goes when he gets scared. I had no idea why at the time, but the next morning (yesterday) we noticed a wound (or lesion?) on his nose. It's now Monday, he is licking his nose a lot and hiding and sleeping a lot. Not playing, but he is still eating. I think he's now afraid of me because I've been trying to examine it so often. :/

My instinct is that he ran into something and it's just a small injury. But of course maybe it's something else. I can't stop him from licking it. Would it be useful to take him into our vet? Normally I can't get in right away anyway. So I'm wondering if there is some home care I could do?

It's at the very bottom of his nose, in the dip towards the mouth.
ash nose injury.jpg
 

Kieka

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Do you have multiple cats or does he go outside? In a single cat household with no outdoor access, I would wait to see if it heals alone. Chances are the wound is relatively clean and it is too small to stitch and a bad place to put any sort of topical cream on. If it didn't close up in a few days or I noticed swelling or puss I would see the vet. I'd probably set an appointment for a few days out and cancel if it looks better by then just to make sure we will be able to get in if it doesn't look good then. If he could have been scratched by another cat, I would see my vet for an antibiotic to make sure an infection doesn't develop.

But that is 100% a personal opinion.
 
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lucicat

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Do you have multiple cats or does he go outside? In a single cat household with no outdoor access, I would wait to see if it heals alone. Chances are the wound is relatively clean and it is too small to stitch and a bad place to put any sort of topical cream on. If it didn't close up in a few days or I noticed swelling or puss I would see the vet. I'd probably set an appointment for a few days out and cancel if it looks better by then just to make sure we will be able to get in if it doesn't look good then. If he could have been scratched by another cat, I would see my vet for an antibiotic to make sure an infection doesn't develop.

But that is 100% a personal opinion.
Thanks! He’s never outside. I do have one other cat, but they never fight. Of course they could have just been roughhousing. They do play together and they are both under 2yo so generally have lots of energy still!
I’ll call my vet snd see what they suggest
 
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lucicat

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I was also thinking it’s not a place one can put a bandage or even ointment. 😣
 

di and bob

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I would monitor it and see how it is healing. As long as it doesn't start leaking yellow/white/green pus, everything should be OK. you could try to apply some antibiotic salve (without painkillers!) once or twice but he will lick it off pretty quick. It is in a spot where licking can't be prevented, and it bothers him. It looks like he ran into something and split his lip. it will take at least a week before it begins to heal......
 
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lucicat

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I would monitor it and see how it is healing. As long as it doesn't start leaking yellow/white/green pus, everything should be OK. you could try to apply some antibiotic salve (without painkillers!) once or twice but he will lick it off pretty quick. It is in a spot where licking can't be prevented, and it bothers him. It looks like he ran into something and split his lip. it will take at least a week before it begins to heal......
Thank you this is very helpful!
 
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lucicat

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Just wanted to follow-up. . .it is finally healing BUT I am pretty positive that it was actually a calici virus lesion. Both of my cats spent about 3 days sleeping (not their normal) and had low appetite. Then my other cat had one day of some limping. . .so I think it was from calici. I am also fostering kittens and although I keep them separate and do a lot of disinfecting, I have since read that calici is very contagious. I think I accidentally spread it from my kittens to my adults. But they are feeling a lot better now.
 

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Just wanted to follow-up. . .it is finally healing BUT I am pretty positive that it was actually a calici virus lesion. Both of my cats spent about 3 days sleeping (not their normal) and had low appetite. Then my other cat had one day of some limping. . .so I think it was from calici. I am also fostering kittens and although I keep them separate and do a lot of disinfecting, I have since read that calici is very contagious. I think I accidentally spread it from my kittens to my adults. But they are feeling a lot better now.

Good news! My cat has a wound on his nose too. Did you manage not to let your cat lick it?
 
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