My cat's tail is rotting?

Ok, I truly have no idea what the hell is going on with my cat....Tonight I saw him chewing at his tail....I checked it out and there was a rubber band wrapped around it, which I didn't see because his long hair covered it up. I cut the rubber band off. Where the rubber band was and down to the tip of his tail it is all lumpy and I was parting the hair and it was falling out in clumps only to reveal scabs under the hair. To make things even worse, it smelled like his tail was rotten and I don't know what I should do....I thought of shaving his tail to inspect it further. The vet isn't an option until Monday, so anything other than "take him to a vet" please as, of course he is going first thing Monday morning.

My cat's tail is rotting?

Sounds like there has been serious restriction of blood flow. On the good side, dead flesh wil not scab. He may have been trying to get it off and that resulted in superficial wounds that scabbed. The smell may be resulting from these wounds being infected.

This cat must be seen by a vet (as you know). There is a chance of tissue death and infection. Until you can get him to a vet, you can do the following immediately:

Make sure there are no other blood constraints on the tail (or other areas). If he has long hair and you are having trouble examining, by all means, clip his fur so you can see. Try scissors, not a razor.

If there are any open wounds, treat with Neosporin, an over-the-counter antibiotic cream.

Make sure he is drinking water. Fluids are very important in making sure the immune system work properly. Not eating is ok, but he needs fluids.

Finally, be sure to check ALL of the cat and any other pets you have. THIS IS NOT AN ACCIDENT. Someone did this to your cat. I've heard about this before and the only cause is abuse by humans. This is an animal abuse incident and should be reported. Most states have laws against an act like this. One big reason for these laws is that animal abuse is a leading indicator of violent sociopathic behaviour. If you discover the purpetrator he or she should be charged. In pressing charges you may save a life (human or animal).

In the immediate future, you will need to watch your animals and be aware. Unfortunately, someone means them harm. I don't mean to scare you, but this is very serious.

You just wrote that it may have been there 3 weeks. If that's the case, there is a good chance for the cat. A blood infection, and the resulting complications, should have shown itself sooner.

You still need to report this kid. This is really bad.

My cat's tail is rotting?

I would try to leave it alone...if there are scabs, it may just be damaged. If there are open sores, I would put some antibacterial ointment on it, maybe even wrap it very loosely. If it is indeed, dead, ie. lost its blood supply, it may have to be amputated. Only your vet would know,,,,,,

My cat's tail is rotting?

You are just going to have to wait until Monday to get your cat into the vet. He may remove that part of the tail.

My cat's tail is rotting?

can your cat move the tail?

My cat's tail is rotting?

Often there are emergency vets you can take pets too... Expensive, but often worth it. they are around on weekends as well.

From you're description though, I would say that the circulation was cut off for a long time, and that very well could have resulted in bad things. It cold require amputation (just the end) If it was on for too long. If you got it of in time, the tail could recover, but I would not be able to tell. Get in contact with a Vet somehow- even if just a phone call, any contact is better than none.

If you know you're vet's name, try a phone book.

You're chaces are much better though if the scabs are dark colored, meaning they have blood behind them. If the Cat can move it's tail there, that's a very good sign and means that it's going to recover given good care.

Good Luck, hope you're cat gets better!

My cat's tail is rotting?

take a cotton bud and apply some antiseptics on the scabs. if there are maggots it could worsen.

make sure u take him to the vet asap.

My cat's tail is rotting?

it must be some kind of sideeffects .

My cat's tail is rotting?

Ok you say it does not seem like it hurts. Do you have any way of knowing how long the rubber band was on there? It might have been on there long enough to kill the tail. You know one of the ways they make bull cafes into steers is they put a rubber band around their testicles and in a few weeks it falls off. I only tell you this so maybe you can see what I am getting at. The biggest thing to watch for is infection which sounds like it might all ready have (the bad smell tells you that). I wouldn't shave it unless you can make sure your not going to cut him or scrape open scabs. But as long as hes eating and active your OK. If he becomes listless or won't eat, your in trouble, it could be gangrene.

My cat's tail is rotting?

leave it alone until you get to the vet. chances are that the vet will have to take off that part of the tail. my neighbors kids put a childs barrett on their cats tail and the same thing happened. stuff like this gets to me. if you know who did it, send them the vet bill, and next time they are around, try and keep kitty out of their claws. i had to do this when babysitting the same kids they had our cat carrying it by the throat