Straightening a Broken Tail

We just adopted a Siamese Mix from a shelter. When we first saw him a month ago, I distinctly remember that his tail stuck straight up (he's about 4 months old). When we brought him home this week, his tail now has a nearly right-angle bend near the base. It doesn't seem to be bothering him, but we suspect that it got caught in a cage door at the shelter and they were too busy to notice. Has anyone on this list heard of being able to straighten a cat's tail after it has been broken and healed crooked? Can the crooked tail cause health problems later on? We just want to do what's best for him.

I would take him to the vet and ask the vet whether the crook is due to it being caught it something.

Katie

Please take your new baby to the vet right away -- he needs to be checked out anyway, but he especially needs that tail looked at. If it is indeed broken at the base, there could be all sorts of neurological complications, because it may affect the nerves that control his ability to eliminate waste.

Meanwhile, don't even TOUCH his tail, and handle him very gently...

The tail has already healed. The vet thought it was congenital until we pointed out that it wasn't like that last month when we first saw him. It doesn't seem to bother him in the least; he seems to have full mobility in it except for the point where it bends. Above and below that point, it moves just fine. He's even been chasing it just like a normal kitten.

Well, that's good -- if the vet isn't worried, maybe all will be well. I sure hope so! As for straightening... gosh, if it's healed without causing him any trouble, I'd leave well enough alone. Maybe you should name him Pythagoras or Isoceles in honor of his unique angle... :-)

Just a warning, we had a cat when I was a kid who broke his tail. He was an in and out cat, and we don't know what happened, but I suspect he was hit by a car. It dragged on the floor for a while, until finally it healed. (I'm sure he saw the vet, but there was no surgery or bandage after the initial injury.)

Well, over time, this kitty broke his tail again, mid tail, and later lost the end of the tail, in two separate accidents (and two separate surgeries.) I wonder if he had feeling in that tail, because I have never known another cat who was so careless with their tail.

So while your kitty may do just fine with a kink in his tail, maybe at the next vet visit they can do a test to see if he has feeling in the tail.