# Tail injury?



## daperlman (Mar 22, 2014)

Hi I take of care of several ferals outside my office building. Recently I noticed my buddy Ninja has swelling and hair sticking up at the base of the tail. Today 1 day later the swelling went down and I can see a mild wound. I tried to catch him to take him to the vet today... but he wouldn't cooperate prior to missing appt window. He does not seem in pain and seems to eat, go to the bathroom and groom himself. The swelling decreasing and he seems to have improved dexterity of the tail ... can lift higher than yesterday.

Wondering if anyone knows what this might be?

Here is video of him last night:
Ninja hurt his tail - what is this? - YouTube

And a photo:


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## howsefrau32 (Mar 6, 2013)

Looks to me like he may have been in a fight and another cat got ahold of his tail and bit him there. This has happened to one of my cats before. It is usually the one that is running away, and the non aggressor that gets bit on the tail. Poor little guy. I think with my cat, I watched it and it did not turn get infected or turn into an abscess, so we were lucky, but I know that can happen. It's probably really painful. Hopefully it will go down on it's own, but if it does look worse, maybe someone can help you trap him? I hope that it has gone down by tomorrow and you don't have to take him and that he heals up quickly.


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## daperlman (Mar 22, 2014)

Thanks howsefrau32, Yes it does look like a bite. I will keep an eye on it. I hope that I dont have to catch him again... I caught him twice already. Though he was a good sport when he got neutered- he knows what is up when the haveahart cage is out.


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## howsefrau32 (Mar 6, 2013)

Yes, cats are smart. They rarely fall easily for the cage trap twice. Do you have a regular small dog cage? That is what I use, my cats are too big for a small cat carrier, so I have one that is for a small dog, lol. What I have done before is leave it out, open, leave treats in it on occasion, and just ignore it. Then the cat starts to think it's just there, and you aren't going to do anything with it. Then they are a little more likely to go in there after a treat, after they have been in there several times when you weren't looking. But hopefully it will heal and you won't have to take him in. I never did with my cat Taffy, who ended up with the tail bite. I did however have to bring the other cat, the instigator, Beep, to the vet, because in one of their "scuffles" she ended up with a scratched eye. It was swollen shut. My cat Beep is 11, and she has to live a separate life from my other cats, she is the most vicious little demon. She is a tiny 8 1/2 pound little thing with no front claws, whereas all of my other cats have claws, and she kicks the patooties out of any other cat that crosses her path. So we have a schedule, so everyone gets time out evenly, and every one has a comfy window and cat tree in their own rooms when it's their time up. It sucks, but it is a way of life now for us. 

How is the tail looking today? Any better? Hoping that it will heal on it's own.


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## howsefrau32 (Mar 6, 2013)

I couldn't get my smart phone to play your video last night, and just watched it now. Wow, it is pretty swollen. A little more so than Taffy's was. If he is still in pain and it's worse or does not look like it's healing, I think I'd see if I could get him in. I'm sure you would if you could get him easily, that's the problem. Know any cat savvy people who could help you? Maybe you could borrow a small dog carrier from someone, something that looks different than the trap he is used to. I'm hoping it just goes down on it's own soon. Poor little guy. Thanks for taking such good care of him.


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## daperlman (Mar 22, 2014)

video was taken day 1, it went down a lot but starting scabbing on day 2, today is day 3 and haven't seen him yet... but I just got here.


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## howsefrau32 (Mar 6, 2013)

He is very sweet, and cute.


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## daperlman (Mar 22, 2014)

He returned this AM wound looks healed on its own


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## howsefrau32 (Mar 6, 2013)

daperlman said:


> He returned this AM wound looks healed on its own


That is great news. I was so happy when my cat's tail healed on it's own too. Thanks for taking care of this sweet little guy.


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## daperlman (Mar 22, 2014)

It is not completely healed ... but seems to be getting better fast. He is back to himself again.


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## howsefrau32 (Mar 6, 2013)

Awwww. How sweet. My feral cat that I care for, she is not confrontational at all with other cats, she will step aside if they try to eat her food, but she is not buddies with any other cats. She is a loner. I've thought about bringing her inside my house, but I have 3 inside cats, and I don't know how healthy she is and think it would be too traumatic to take her to the vet. I think my younger kitties would probably annoy her to death.


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## daperlman (Mar 22, 2014)

This guy has to be friends with everyone... but he wont let people touch him except for me. I am pretty amazed at how close most of the related cats remain... and even non-related ferals seems to be cooperative. The only exception seems to be unrelated females. They seem to barely tolerate one another.

I have a feeling that bringing them inside would cause some anxiety for a while... but they would get used to it. I do think that even domesticated cats need to spend some time outdoors though (I know that is controversial). I remember when I returned these guys after fixing them ... how happy they were to get back home and find there buddies.


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