My kitty is limping

*sigh* I was sitting on the couch, and watched Gizmo very clumsily climb/jump the baby gate to the room where the food is, and then come back. I kinda laughed and said "Wow Gizzie, I'm gonna change your name to Grace!" Then I noticed she was limping on her right hind leg. She's bearing weight on it, and there's NO swelling. But she's limping on it. I don't think it's broken or anything. I'm so broke right now, my paycheck is half a week late, husband is changing jobs. I've definitely been known to use money marked for something else for the vet, but right now, until I get my paycheck (I'm waiting for a return call), I don't even have money marked for something else right now. So I have NO money, at all. Does this sound serious enough to try to borrow some money for the vet (everything has to be paid for right then), or not serious enough, that she could wait a few days? I'm thinking she'll probably be alright for a few days. I palpated the joint and leg, compared it to the other side, and couldn't detect any swelling or difference between the two sides. She didn't object to me handling it any more than she normally does, either.

Amber

Of course people will say the best thing to do is to take her to the vet. Which, if the cat was not weight-bearing on the limb at all or screamed in pain when you touched any part of it it might just be a sprain. Animals can sprain their joints just like people sprain their ankles. We've got 7 cats and every now and then someone will jump wrong and be ever so slightly gimpy for a day or two.

If it gets worse I would take the cat to the vet immediately. If it does not get better in 24 hours or so I would probably take her to the vet then too.

Just some advice from someone who knows the difference between an animal with a broken limb and then just a little sprain.

Hopefully by the time you've got some money to take her to the vet you won't need to! : )

Annabelle is limping right now too. Though it is getting less noticeable. She's running around, jumping and playing on it. She doesn't seem to mind when Brent pokes at it to see if something is wrong. We're just keeping an eye on her and like I said, it's getting better anyway. We went through the same thing with Daisy a few months ago and we took her to the vet. It was just a sprain also. I do agree with calling the vet immediately though if you notice it getting any worse. You can never be too careful with the little furballs, can ya.

Absolutely, if I weren't scraping to buy groceries (I'm glad the pets are set on food for the next month or so!) I would have already set up an appointment to take her in. Or if my vet would let me charge it, or if my credit card wasn't maxed out. And if she was acting like she was in serious pain, I would call and beg the vet to let me charge it. She's acting just like her normal self, beating up on the dogs, climbing the steps, etc. So I don't think she's in too awful much pain. I am keeping a close eye on her though. She's sleeping right now (normal for this time of day) and I'm hoping that she isn't limping as much when she wakes up. I did find out that I am getting my paycheck on Friday though. Mail was slow and the time cards I mailed out on Tuesday just got to California this morning!

Amber

fatkitties,
If it is a sprain, you should "try" (yes I know that's difficult LOL) to limit the amount she is using it. If you have to put her in a room with toys for a couple days then sometimes that's the best thing - even though they will squawk like the dickens! You want to avoid swelling & any tendon problems that will come with swelling. The fact she is using it....I wouldn't take her in quite yet either, and if you can manipulate it without a verbal outcry, then I do think this will heal with time - but she will heal faster if you can limit her movement.

Also, just a thought, you might want to check her toe nails.....as you know, they "kick" quite often with toys etc, and if you have any carpeting at all, she could very easily have caught a toe nail and ripped it out. Even with trimmed nails this happens, and it could explain why she's not reacting to manipulation of her leg itself or there's no swelling.

Lora

She's getting worse I called the vet this morning. They can't get her in until tomorrow. she's already limiting her exercise herself. By the time hubby got home last night she was moving a lot more stiffly. I found her (she was sleeping upstairs) and brought her down, and between the two of us, determined that it's not her leg, it looks like her hips. When she takes a step, she moves her front paws normally, then hops with her back feet, without bending the back legs at all. Hubby manipulated her back legs/hips and said it doesn't feel quite right to him. So, whatever it is, it's getting worse. She's going in Wednesday afternoon to the vet. Hubby sad "No, we can't afford it, but we'll find the money somewhere." I just love that man, he's not nearly the animal person that I am, but he's never hesitated on thier medical needs. And I also found out that I'll be getting my paycheck on Friday, so that helps take the pressure off!

Amber

Originally Posted by fatkitties

She's getting worse

I called the vet this morning. They can't get her in until tomorrow. she's already limiting her exercise herself. By the time hubby got home last night she was moving a lot more stiffly. I found her (she was sleeping upstairs) and brought her down, and between the two of us, determined that it's not her leg, it looks like her hips. When she takes a step, she moves her front paws normally, then hops with her back feet, without bending the back legs at all. Hubby manipulated her back legs/hips and said it doesn't feel quite right to him. So, whatever it is, it's getting worse. She's going in Wednesday afternoon to the vet. Hubby sad "No, we can't afford it, but we'll find the money somewhere." I just love that man, he's not nearly the animal person that I am, but he's never hesitated on thier medical needs. And I also found out that I'll be getting my paycheck on Friday, so that helps take the pressure off!

Amber

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He's a keeper! Hope Gizmo feels better soon!

Yes, he definitely is a keeper! I'll never forget the first time I needed to call the vet after we got together. I wasn't working, and my horse was sick (this was before we found Gizmo). He called me from the road (he's a truck driver) and I very hesitatingly told him that I thought Sara needed a vet. He was like "Oh no! Is she sick? Will she be ok?" I told him I didn't know, but I really thought she needed a vet. He said "Well call him!" I said "I don't know what it will cost..." He didn't care. Luckly, she turned out to not be very sick, a course of antibiotics had her good as new in a few days. But that is when I knew he was a keeper. He'd never been around horses much before, and was still pretty afraid of her, but she was sick and he didn't care what it would cost, she was to see a vet ASAP. Yeah, I'll keep this one! 4 1/2 years so far....

Amber

Had good news and bad news at the vet. Good news is that he thinks she pulled a muscle in her back, and doesn't think there's anything wrong with her hips or legs. It's really hard to tell with her though, because she howls and throws a fit even if she's NOT hurt. I can kinda tell the difference in her howls though, and told him when I thought it sounded more "ouch" than "leave me alone." To someone who doesn't know her, it just sounds like she's making a whole lotta noise! So anyways, he's pretty sure she pulled a muscle, and gave her a steroid shot to help with the inflammation. Said to keep an eye on her and keep him posted on how she's doing. Got her vaccs too, she was real impressed! I'm not even sure where she is right now, I won't see her for the rest of the day, until she's done being mad at me.
We wieghed her, and she's gained a pound. Last year she weighed 17 pounds, including her crate, which is the newer smallest size plastic Pet Taxi. This year, in the same crate, she weighed 18.4 pounds. So she's going to be getting a change in diet, her dry food will be cut way back, and switched from Nutro Complete Care Adult to Nutro Indoor Weight Management. And she'll be getting Nutro cans, provided I can get her to eat them. If I can't get her to eat canned, she'll be getting tightly controlled amounts of the Indoor WM food. She should weigh 10-12 pounds....that's like a person that needs to lose 100 pounds. I feel really bad, I should have done something along time ago about her weight. It would have been easier to get a couple pounds off her, than getting her to lose almost half her body weight. I am so mad at myself for not doing this sooner

Amber