Hi all,
Its been awhile but I've had a busy few months lately. Anyways, I've been dealing with my older female kitty limping off and on on her left front foot. She is 10 years old or will be sometime this year. I got her when she was 3 and she was previously declawed before I got her. I would never subject any kitty to that awful surgery, especially since I know what they go through having been a vet tech and witnessing the atrocity. Anyways. she has always walked gingerly but never limped. She does walk kinda with a dropped carpus on the left front which I believe is due to the sensitive toes. I currently dont work for a vet but am in the rescue and pet sitting side of animal care which I love. I took her into a different vet a few years ago when she did the exact same thing and they dismissed it as cracked dry foot pads due to allergies and told me to give her fish oil and vitamin e.
Well last week when I first noticed the limp, I gave her some arnica which helped with the pain and the limp disappeared. Her 3rd distal toe pad was dry and cracked and hard again so I applied some coconut oil to the pads which softened them up. the 3rd distal toe pad is still kinda cracked and started to bleed last night. I put pressure on it but decided to take her to the ER. After waiting forever in which the bleeding stopped, they took a quick glance at her but didn't do much because she was in pain and not letting them look very well. The vet said that it could be a hemangioma or cyst and should be biopsied and the toe amputated?! I know that hemangiomas are common in dogs and rare in cats and it doesn't look like a hemangioma to me as it isn't even the right color or shape. A cyst maybe, but I doubt it. I asked the vet if it could be a complication of her declaw hack job she had many years ago. The vet gave me a blank stare like the other vet a couple years ago and said that cats don't get declaw complications this long after the surgery! That's when I lost faith in this vet and just asked for some pain meds, buprenex thank god instead of metacam, and bandaging material incase it starts to bleed again.
I called my holistic vet and waiting to hear back from her. They were booked today so I couldn't get her in but Katie is resting and not limping because of the pain meds. I will hopefully get her in early next week.
My question is I've seen picks of cats with calloused cracked pads just like hers and they were due to being declawed. They walk differently and cause the callouses to develop. I am 99% sure it isn't a tumor or cyst and that it has everything to do with being declawed. I'm sure my holistic vet will agree but why is it that so many vets will dismiss the idea that there are complications in these cats even years down the road. Hopefully something can be done for her. I know she is probably arthritic in those toes as there is little flexion in them anymore and they are probably frozen. I don't really want to put her through the declaw salvage surgery but will if it will help. This really sucks as I hate to see my girl in pain. We cuddled on the couch as I cursed the vet and previous owners that did this to her. I guess I'm just venting and seeing if anyone has had similar issues with their kitties. Also wanted to put my experience out there as another reason to NOT mutilate kitty toes!
Its been awhile but I've had a busy few months lately. Anyways, I've been dealing with my older female kitty limping off and on on her left front foot. She is 10 years old or will be sometime this year. I got her when she was 3 and she was previously declawed before I got her. I would never subject any kitty to that awful surgery, especially since I know what they go through having been a vet tech and witnessing the atrocity. Anyways. she has always walked gingerly but never limped. She does walk kinda with a dropped carpus on the left front which I believe is due to the sensitive toes. I currently dont work for a vet but am in the rescue and pet sitting side of animal care which I love. I took her into a different vet a few years ago when she did the exact same thing and they dismissed it as cracked dry foot pads due to allergies and told me to give her fish oil and vitamin e.
Well last week when I first noticed the limp, I gave her some arnica which helped with the pain and the limp disappeared. Her 3rd distal toe pad was dry and cracked and hard again so I applied some coconut oil to the pads which softened them up. the 3rd distal toe pad is still kinda cracked and started to bleed last night. I put pressure on it but decided to take her to the ER. After waiting forever in which the bleeding stopped, they took a quick glance at her but didn't do much because she was in pain and not letting them look very well. The vet said that it could be a hemangioma or cyst and should be biopsied and the toe amputated?! I know that hemangiomas are common in dogs and rare in cats and it doesn't look like a hemangioma to me as it isn't even the right color or shape. A cyst maybe, but I doubt it. I asked the vet if it could be a complication of her declaw hack job she had many years ago. The vet gave me a blank stare like the other vet a couple years ago and said that cats don't get declaw complications this long after the surgery! That's when I lost faith in this vet and just asked for some pain meds, buprenex thank god instead of metacam, and bandaging material incase it starts to bleed again.
I called my holistic vet and waiting to hear back from her. They were booked today so I couldn't get her in but Katie is resting and not limping because of the pain meds. I will hopefully get her in early next week.
My question is I've seen picks of cats with calloused cracked pads just like hers and they were due to being declawed. They walk differently and cause the callouses to develop. I am 99% sure it isn't a tumor or cyst and that it has everything to do with being declawed. I'm sure my holistic vet will agree but why is it that so many vets will dismiss the idea that there are complications in these cats even years down the road. Hopefully something can be done for her. I know she is probably arthritic in those toes as there is little flexion in them anymore and they are probably frozen. I don't really want to put her through the declaw salvage surgery but will if it will help. This really sucks as I hate to see my girl in pain. We cuddled on the couch as I cursed the vet and previous owners that did this to her. I guess I'm just venting and seeing if anyone has had similar issues with their kitties. Also wanted to put my experience out there as another reason to NOT mutilate kitty toes!