Advice for weeping lump on tail

[blackcat]

cats do heal remarkably well. That is why they get abscesses. The puncture wound closes before the infection can drain so it continues under the skin. We will all have our fingers and toes crossed for you 

[Katherine]

Hi

It is quite near the tail base, probably a third of the way up.
I might have got it wrong on the dressing frount, I think he said a bandage but I'm not sure. He said hopefully he will be able to remove it whist preserving most of the skin but if not this granulation process will heal the gap as cats are good at this apparently??
Thanks I will ask about that gel.

[CurlyCatz]

Hi katherine

Where exactly on the tail is the cyst, how far down from the tail base (at the bum end) is it ?

with both cats & dogs removing anything from the tail like this is tricky due to the real lack of skin.  they will of course prob suture it and pull the stitches as close as they can and new granulation tissue will form (just as it would on us and any other mammal)  She will most likely need to wear a buster collar for a wee while as this will restrict her being able to lick the wound.

I'd be surprised if its dressed, or even if they do i may not stay on for too long as tails are usually real difficult to get a decent dressing on with staying power.

a simple saline solution to bath the wound will be fine and you could clart in in intra site gel which has terrific healing effects 

struggled to find where you can buy this gel in singular form but here's one link wth a decent piccy http://www.furrypharm.com/shop/item.asp?itemid=1093
ask your vet though, he might use it and sell you 1.  just a rub on each day will even work wonders.

[blackcat]

It is a natural process. As long as the dressings remain clean and are changed regularly it is what nature does. I have seen it in animals an humans alike. If you have a hole in you that is larger than the available skin can cover, your body produces new skin cells to fill the gap. Think about any injury you have had that formed a scab and eventually healed ...

You will need to ensure the wound is clean and that your cat is not licking it overly aggressively (in other words your cat will come home with a collar) and make sure infection does not set in. Your new vet will give you instructions on all of this. Sounds a much more satisfactory result than you had with the last one 

[Gill (sneakiefeline)]

Sorry not me but maybe Lynn will know, I hope that the op goes really well 

[Katherine]

Just to update you I have taken crunchie to a new vet, they are going to remove the lump on tuesday so I feel alot happier.
He was saying that if there isnt enough skin they can leave a gap with a dressing on and cats regenerate skin, has anyone heard of this before?
Katherine

[Katherine]

Thanks Gill
I was thinking of salt water as I know its good for human wounds but wasnt sure on cats so I will try that.
Yes I need to talk to the vet, I don't like my vet much so I am going to move anyway. I will take her tomorrow and see what he says as I think it is just going to go on happening if he doesnt do something.
She doesn't go outside much, esp when its cold so that isnt a problem at the moment.
Thanks for the advice,
Katherine

[Gill (sneakiefeline)]

Forfot to say if its still weeping and wet and not seeling, wash gentley with warm water with some salt in, until you can get to the vets.

Also I had a cyst on my back , same time as Kocka LOL, but it started to cause a problem and I was given antibiotics which did not help at all and I needed surgury on it.

[Gill (sneakiefeline)]

I think that you need to have serious talk with your vet about it and if necessary get a second opinion.

Cysts should not weep and if they are its a sign that they are getting infected and if that is the case, if your cat is an outdoor cat and there are any flies around they can lay their eggs in the open part and then that would course a real problem as its on the tail.

Kocka had a large cyst on her side for years and I could not get my vet to remove it and then in the very hot summer of 2003 it burst and the flies got to it and suddenly she was an emergency case and at age 17/18 she need a n operation for the cyst to be removed.

I dont think on a tail this should be left, if its weeping constantly.

[blackcat]

Skin on tails is an issue. Depends on how close the cyst is to the base of the tail I guess. I had a burmese who lost the skin off the last inch of her tail due to a door closing in the wind. The vet clipped off the exposed bone and sewed it back up. A few weeks later she was back in havng another inch removed. But the second time it healed as I kept a collar on her for longer than recommended. It actually ended up looking quite normal as she had a longer-than-average tail for a burmese and it took it back in proportion to her size ...

[Katherine]

Hi

Thanks, he has mentioned removing it but said it would be hard as there isnt much skin on the tail to stitch it back up. Most of the time it is just a lump but sometimes it weeps clear fluid which is kind or worrying.

I have been a memeber for a while but not been on in ages 

[blackcat]

Hi Katherine, my first thought when I read the title of the post was 'abscess' but that seems to have been ruled out by your vet. Has he given you any advice about the options for treatment? I would have thought with a cyst that either excision of cyst would be an option or, failing that (and sorry to have to even suggest it) amputation of the affected section of tail.

Either would resolve the problem I would have thought. Other than that, all I can suggest is keeping an elizabethan collar on during the course of antibiotics to prevent Crunchie from chewing the sore spot and making it worse. We do have a couple of vet trained people around the site, so maybe one of them will log on with some more useful recommendations ...

Welcome to Purrs, BTW, it is a fun site and I am sure you will love being a member!

[Katherine]

Hello

Does anyone have any advice?

Crunchie has had a lump on her tail for over a year, she has been to the vets and had courses of antibiotics because it keeps getting infected. It is apparently a cyst.

It has been ok for a while but it is weeping again tonight and although the fluid is fairly clear it has a smell. My vets is now closed so I cant take her in, does anyone have any advice on how to deal with this? i.e. stop the weeping or anything to put on it to stop infection?

I think she keep biting the lump which makes it infected but i'm not sure.

Thanks

Katherine