Poor Joey! Tail question...

Yesterday my daughter called my cell while I was on my way to work, saying that Joey had gotten his tail slammed in our back door! Poor Joey!! She said that part of it was chopped off, and it was bleeding quite a bit. I told her to put pressure on it to stop the bleeding, and I called the vet.
He lost about an inch off the tip, and it's skinned on the bottom about 1 1/2 inches.
My question is....Is the tail bone or cartilage? whatever it is, it's exposed. Will this heal over and get fur? It still hurts him. He lays on a chair with the tail dangling so it won't touch anything.
Thanks for vibes for Joey,
Sierra

He needs to go to the vet. If the bone is exposed the tail could become infected. The vet may need to amputate part of the tail and pull the skin back over the end to cover. At the least, he needs to be on antibiotics. Also, damage may have been done to the base of the tail and the nerves in the tail. This is not something I would take a wait-and-see attitude about.

Keep us updated.

for Joey.

Originally Posted by KittiesHasMe

Also, damage may have been done to the base of the tail and the nerves in the tail. This is not something I would take a wait-and-see attitude about.

Click to expand...

Yes, I'll second that!

Almost 11 years ago, Taz showed up at approx. 12 weeks of age. This orange kitten had his tail mangled by something, likely the day before.

We took him to the vet, who said he had an infection in it, another 24 hours and it would have been the end of him.

His tail was amputated to "bobcat" length, he was shot full of antibiotics. He is now a quite content, big, old indoor cat.

In his case, it was a good thing to get him to care.

Today Joey had about 3 inches of his tail amputated. They took it down past the injured part, shaved it, and sutured it shut.
He's still acting druggy, and not letting it touch anything. My poor boy! The other cats are very curious, but not touching it.
Thanks for your advice. When I took him to the vet they said it was "dry gangrene". EEEWWWWWW
He has been on antibiotics prior to the surgery, and they sent him home with pain meds.
Will this affect his balance or anything else other than his pride???

Thank you for the up date on Joey. As long as there is no damage to the nerves in the tail he should be fine. What did the vet say?

Many cats have lost part of their tail and it doesn't affect their balance.

for Joey's continued recovery.

Awwwww poor Joey I hope he feels better soon!

Joey is doing much better today He is now able to jump without falling. I was really worried that the amount of tail removed was affecting his balance, but he has figured it out.