Cat Claws Infected

I have a very odd case with my 8 year old cat, he even has the vet stumped! For a few weeks now, he's had a bad infection on ALL of his claws on his back feet. (We know it's infected because most of his toenails are mostly gone, and the flesh is left. It's pinkish, oozing, and has a very bad smell :-( ) The vet has given him 2 doses of antibiotic in this time, and it has not seemed to help. He does not show signs of pain when walking, but when you try to look at his toes, it definitely hurts :-( the vet said at this point, declawing may be the only option, but I don't want to do that to my poor baby. Especially since he's already 8 years old, and I'm sure declawing can have even worse affects the older the cat is. Has anyone else run into this problem before, or have any home treatment ideas? The last thing I want to do is declaw this poor guy, but of course of its better for him in the end, we will do it. When we got him he was already declawed in the front, I am just very against the procedure if I can help it

I will post some pictures in the morning!

I'm sorry to hear your cat has infected toes. 

I wouldn't jump on the declawing suggestion at this time. That is just too extreme; especially if the vet hasn't done everything available to resolve the issue. 

So, he's been on two bouts of antibiotics with no improvement. I would ask the vet (which you really shouldn't HAVE to ask; he should have done this at the first visit before prescribing the antibiotic) to do a skin scraping and obtain a culture to determine the cause. It could very well be a fungal infection which wouldn't respond to antibiotics. There might also be a bacterial infection secondary to the fungal infection, so both conditions (if present) would need to be treated.

The reason I suspect fungal as opposed to bacterial infection is because a bacterial infection is more likely to affect one foot, but not both; whereas a fungal infection can easily be spread to both feet.

Removal of the nail plate (the hard part) might be necessary to allow drainage. This will reduce swelling and pressure on his toes and reduce tenderness. This is NOT a declaw where the removal of the first digit is amputated. His claw will grow back after the nail plate is removed. 

Antimicrobial soaks might be needed, along with topical medications. Of course, his feet would require being wrapped several times a day to prevent him from licking and exacerbating any infection. If you can, for now, wrap your cat in a towel (burrito style) and soak his hind feet in some warm/tepid water with a little Epsom salt and apple cider vinegar for 5-10 minutes a few times a day. 

In the meantime, I strongly suggest a second opinion from another veterinary clinic, as your vet seems to be 'stumped' and is recommending a declaw! In my opinion, a red flag would be waving a warning that he either isn't very up on his game or he is copping out with a sure remedy that will put the most money in his pocket and save him a lot of time. In most cases, a topical treatment clears this type of condition up fairly easily! 

I am sure others will chime in with more suggestions.

Please, keep us posted as to your decision and the outcome! 

I'm going to refer you to THIS thread, because I'm thinking this could be related.  particularly because you mentioned the bad smell.  Specifically look at post #7 within this thread:  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/300323/weird-paw-condition-vet-cant-diagnose