Kitten toe injury - help for first time cat owner

Hello everyone, I'm new to cats and have a very sweet (and energetic) 6 month old female with an injury to her toe. I can't tell if it's a cut to her pad or maybe she lost a nail (which is my suspicion).There's a little soft piece of flesh hanging from the top of her toe pad, a little bit of dried blood, she's not limping or biting her paw. She won't let me touch her paw to get a good look or clean it to try to avoid infection (litter box, etc.). From the pictures, can anyone tell me what the injury is? Thank you so much   

 

sorry, can't exactly tell what it is. But not limping is a good sign. If she is inside only, there's nothing you can do. If she goes outside, you'll have to lock her inside for two weeks (and make amends by giving treats often).

Thanks, she's indoor only. I can't figure out if the claw grows out from the top of the toe pad, I been researching kitty anatomy

ok, no worries then. She might have lost the nail. It will grow back, but take a while. The same happened to Rascal once (from fighting some miscreants), and the worst thing was having him confined and grumpy for two weeks. I did try wrappings and ointments which lasted for seconds and got me that long-suffering glare of his.

What you could try is giving her bovine colostrum (either sprinkled on food or dissolved in water), many cats are crazy for the taste, and it is said to be calming (by my vet) and helps the immune response against any inflammation/infection.

Thank you, I'll check into that nutrient. Should I worry about the fleshy part that is sticking out from her paw? Is that the quick? I'm afraid that it will get pulled on her scratching pads and toys, and can't tell if it's drying up or painful and still has a blood source, so not sure if can/should remove it?

Don't worry, because besides worrying there's nothing you can do. If it gets pulled, it will be gone. If it is painful, she'll gnaw at it. Don't remove it - you don't want to possibly cause more pain. But keep watch on it (worst case, it'll get inflamed and you need a vet visit for antibiotics)

OK, thanks I feel better. I'll keep in eye on things! Being a new kitty mommy is stressful ;-)