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Lil Gus has a crook in his tail!

post #1 of 12
11/5/10 at 5:25pm
Thread Starter 
Foster cat Macy's runt kitten, Augustus (Gus), has a crook in his tail! I just noticed it tonight, which is surprising, as it must have happened at birth as I can't for the life of me think of anything that could have caused it. I don't know if he was injured somehow or if it is a birth defect, but it doesn't seem to be bothering him at all, and although he is the runt, he is by far the most vocal and the most active. It's right down at the base of the tail.

I'm going to see if the shelter will fund a vet visit for him, but I highly doubt it as I have a hard time with even in life/death situations. As I said, it doesn't seem to be bothering him at all. Not sure what to do guys. Anyone else have a kitty with a crook in their tail or similar defects? Should I be concerned? He'll be 4 weeks old on Monday.
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post #2 of 12
11/5/10 at 5:31pm
If he isn't in pain or discomfort, and there is no swelling, etc, leave it for the vet check which should be in a week or so. If it really bothers you, call the vet. If the tail is being used normally, probably nothing to worry about...can he lash it, move it, balance with it??

However, if he has the genetics for a curled tail, it should be starting to develop anywhere between 4 weeks and 6ish months.
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post #3 of 12
11/5/10 at 5:39pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by sk_pacer View Post
If he isn't in pain or discomfort, and there is no swelling, etc, leave it for the vet check which should be in a week or so. If it really bothers you, call the vet. If the tail is being used normally, probably nothing to worry about...can he lash it, move it, balance with it??

However, if he has the genetics for a curled tail, it should be starting to develop anywhere between 4 weeks and 6ish months.
No pain from what I can tell and no swelling. The kittens don't go to the vet until they are adopted from the shelter at 8 weeks where they are fosters. HOWEVER, that being said, I'll pay for the vet visit myself if I think it's a real concern. Where he is only 4 weeks old, and just starting to really move around, I can't really tell yet if it's being used normally because none of the kittens are really moving or lashing their tails yet. Same with balance, they are all still pretty wobbly, so it's hard to tell. It's definately not curled but crooked right at the base, down by his bum.
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post #4 of 12
11/5/10 at 5:52pm
Sounds like a kink tail to me. Both my Felix and Ziggy have them. In fact, that is why the breeder gave me Ziggy as he could not be used for show or breeding with that kink.

It just adds more personality to the kitty. We love our kinky boys.
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post #5 of 12
11/5/10 at 5:57pm
could be wry tail, a kink or a beginning curl. Hard telling at that age. I have two wth curled tails and they looked really weird at that young age, then the tails straightened out and around 6-7 months, were beautifully curled. As I said, if you are really concerned, vet visit, otherwise wait and see
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post #6 of 12
11/5/10 at 6:03pm
My vet told me once that a kinked tail is a sign of good luck (never heard that one before)! You sometimes see it in the Siamese breed. If you think it could be a sign of injury or some other problem, though, definitely give your vet a call.
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post #7 of 12
11/5/10 at 8:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by motoko9 View Post
My vet told me once that a kinked tail is a sign of good luck (never heard that one before)! You sometimes see it in the Siamese breed. If you think it could be a sign of injury or some other problem, though, definitely give your vet a call.
growing up we had a siamese girl, all of her babies had kinked tails. They never had any problems
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post #8 of 12
11/5/10 at 8:59pm
My RB cat Sphinx had a kink near the end of his tail and it never bothered him (though he seemed to have some Siamese in him by the way he strolled).
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post #9 of 12
11/5/10 at 10:25pm
My grandmother had a cat that had a near 90 degree bend in his tail. Not a curl, it was a sharp angle. It was a birth defect and never cause him any problems.

Hopefully you're just seeing a birth defect that has no other complications with it.
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post #10 of 12
11/6/10 at 4:45am
Thread Starter 
Thanks all! You've made me feel a lot better about it. I'll keep a close eye on him, and if I feel that it's bothering him or causing problems, off to the vet we'll go.
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post #11 of 12
11/6/10 at 7:59am
We have had several cats (including at least 2 right now) who have a small kink in their tail, usually close to the end. I've seen some cats with, for practical purposes, a knot in their tail.

The legend on the Siamese is that this was to keep the harem women's rings on the cats' tails while the women bathed.
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post #12 of 12
11/6/10 at 3:07pm
Attitude had a kink in her tail. It was so cute and she had a lot of personality. It never bothered her in the least.

Taryn
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