Swollen paw

So, as I posted under bladder surgery (http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...1&page=4&pp=12), my cat developed a problem with his paw due to, I believe, a misplaced/poorly placed IV. After unwrapping his leg his paw began to swell grotesquely. I'm convinced it was a problem with whoever put the IV in, then when it was unwrapped it was allowed to swell. It's been like this since Friday and it hasn't gone down at all. Now it's starting to weep. I've been putting a warm compress on it, and he has meloxicam. I'm taking him back in tomorrow. Any advice, legal or otherwise?
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I have no advice, but that paw looks horrible. I wish you didn't have to wait until to morrow, I imagine the poor cat must be in pain. I hope your cat's paw is okay. Let us know what the vet says.

Oh my - I agree, that looks bad. I hope they didn't have the bandage too tight and maybe cut off his circulation. It looks so painful. Please let us know what the vet says tomorrow.

Karen

Oh my word!!! If it isn't from the IV itself it might be a bacterial infection. That looks so horrible and painful!

Wow, looks like an infection or a blood clot affecting his circulation. In a person I would recommend the warm compresses as well as elevating it, but how on earth do you keep a kitty paw elevated? He needs to be seen as soon as possible tomorrow and you need to be clear that you do not need to pay for the care of his foot. And that if you need to take him to another vet for further treatment that you expect them to pay for that too. But when the vet sees that his heart is going to sink down to his toes. Becky

He probably does not want to move much. I would take a sock and fill it half full of uncooked rice. Tie off the sock and nuke it in the microwave about 30 seconds. Go to where he is lying down, and gently lift the leg and raise it onto the sock. The cat should welcome the heat, the bulk of the rice will keep the leg elevated. If he were my cat, I would go to an ER clinic tonight and bill the original vet. Your cat has to be in incredible pain-

Oh poor little animal, he must be in such terrible pain. After going through surgery too. Hope he's much better soon, please let us know how he gets on.

That does look painful

I hope you have managed to see an emergency vet or seen you regular vet! I hope that your kitty gets better soon! sending healing }}}VIBES{{{

Please keep us posted!

Oh, your poor baby! Let us know how he makes out at the vet.

Advice: You should have taken that cat in the first day you noticed that swelling. I am shocked you waited at least 3 days?! I am in no way medically trained, but I hope that the paw is not in danger of being amputated. I wish you and the kitty all the best and your vet's tech. should have that done to him to see how it feels when his hand swells up like that. That third picture is absoutly terrible looking, my heart goes out to both of you.

Originally Posted by Cirque

Advice: You should have taken that cat in the first day you noticed that swelling. I am shocked you waited at least 3 days?! I am in no way medically trained, but I hope that the paw is not in danger of being amputated. I wish you and the kitty all the best and your vet's tech. should have that done to him to see how it feels when his hand swells up like that. That third picture is absoutly terrible looking, my heart goes out to both of you.

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Actually, the vet called me the day I was going to pick him up (Friday) and told me it was swollen. I picked him up on Saturday. She claimed it looked better Sat. than it did the day before and she allowed him to come home. It doesn't look any worse than it did on Saturday, but the swelling hasn't gone down at all. And this is a top-notch hospital in New England!! I'm sure they have all kinds of lawyers and red tape to go through if I refuse to pay, but I'm afraid to say anything up front; they might decide not to see him. But it really is their fault.

Have you seen the vet yet?!?! How did it go?!?!

Don't be afraid to take them to task if indeed it turns out they did something wrong. I went toe-to-toe with a vet a few years ago who harmed my horse. It took some time, but I got him to pay for other vet bills that resulted from this incidence and I wrote to the clinic suggesting they do indeed retire him from service. He was close to retirement age when this happened.

How's he doing? Becky

[And this is a top-notch hospital in New England!! I'm sure they have all kinds of lawyers and red tape to go through if I refuse to pay, but I'm afraid to say anything up front; they might decide not to see him. But it really is their fault.[/quote]

A top-notch hospital will not want adverse publicity. Steel yourself to complain, and work out tactics for if they try to fob you off: bursting into noisy tears in a full waiting room might work, or threatening to take your story to the local press. You say you're worried that they might not see him: to be honest, I think after this I'd want to take him somewhere else anyway. I know it's not easy to complain if you are not used to doing it, just remember, it's for your cat. I'm quite a mild person, but if anyone hurt my girls I'd be the fiercest tiger on the block!
I hope your cat's paw is better very soon, I'll be thinking of you.

Sue

Ok, the paw went down a little bit. His vet offered to give him a stronger antibiotic but he still hasn't finished the one she gave him. Developing story: he was licking it this morning and it looked like a layer of skin was coming off. It wasn't dry and flaky like I expected healing skin to look, but it was thick and moist. He still has fur and skin under it but it just didn't look quite right. I put some gauze and a sock over it for now. At the very least i think the vet should clean it and dress it. If he keeps licking it it will take longer to heal. Thanks for all your advice and concern. I'll keep you posted.

I would think about an elizabethian collar for him, to keep him away from the paw. He is going to lick it, because it bothers him.

Originally Posted by hissy

I would think about an elizabethian collar for him, to keep him away from the paw. He is going to lick it, because it bothers him.

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He has one. But it's his front paw so it's really easy to get to.

It looks bad enough in the picture that if it isn't too inconvenient for you, I would take him back to the vet daily for an exam. The skin sloughing off may just be due to the swelling, but it could also be a sign of deeper infection that is affecting the deeper structure of the foot and really should be re-examined. This kitty could lose his foot over this, and in cats that means the whole leg, so you want to be aggressive with his treatment and insist on frequent exams. He may need to change to the other antibiotic even if the first one is not finished. Becky

Originally Posted by hissy

Don't be afraid to take them to task if indeed it turns out they did something wrong. I went toe-to-toe with a vet a few years ago who harmed my horse. It took some time, but I got him to pay for other vet bills that resulted from this incidence and I wrote to the clinic suggesting they do indeed retire him from service. He was close to retirement age when this happened.

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I so agree. You have to stand up for your rights and your pets rights because they cannot. If the vet, vet techs or the general quality of the health care your animals get is lacking, then either try somewhere else and or complain and raise a bit of a polite fuss, impolite if polite gets you no where. The customer is always right and remember, if someone has a good experience they might tell 1 or 2 people. If they have a bad experience they are more likely to tell 20 people. Places of business of any sort do not care for those odds and sometimes it does not hurt to remind them. If you have to try another vet please, that paw did NOT look healthy and reading about it only makes it seem soo much worse I feel SO bad for your little kitty and I hate to see him loose his leg because of some stupid human vet tech that cant do their job properly or some vet whos afraid their insurance will go up if they admit fault!! GRRRR!