5 Day Old Kitten Foot Shrivelling

[amberger]

Hi. This kitten was born April 23, she became wrapped in the umbilical cord. When we freed her, we saw that one of her legs hung uselessly and the paw pad was blue. Rushed her to the vet, vet said not to worry. Now the foot has shriveled up to the knee. I am planning on calling the vet Monday morning, as they are closed for the weekend. What can I do for her until then? I am worried about her, I have never dealt with anything like this

 

[abyeb]

Is there an emergency vet you could take her to? I would be concerned about loss of circulation to the leg.

 

[amberger]

There is no emergency vet around here anymore. There was loss of circulation when I took her to the vet the first time. The vet said it would either come back or not and that the kitten would be fine. She did not say anything about the foot shriveling up though which is why I am concerned. The rest of the leg looks healthy, she is not bleeding and does not seem to be in pain, at least as far as I can tell.

 

[Margret]

I've never run into this before, but I suspect that it's already too late to save the foot. Definitely get the kitten to a vet as soon as possible; if the foot is dead it can turn gangrenous and that could take her life.

I'm sorry; I don't know of anything you can do before getting the kitten to the vet. Make sure she keeps nursing and stays warm; let her mother take care of her. Even if the foot can't be saved there's no reason this kitten can't live a long and happy life providing she gets the proper veterinary care. I'm sure she'll be able to adapt to the loss.

Please keep us informed. We worry.

Margret

 

[amberger]

I do not we will be able to save the foot, either but she seems to be in good health otherwise. She nurses regularly, moves about some, she is not crying or anything like that. The rest of her leg looks completely normal.

When she saw the vet Monday they were confident she would be able to adapt, but at that point it was believed she could potentially lose the use of that leg, it had not begun to shrivel.

I will definitely let you know what the vet says.

 

[mservant]

I would worry about gengrene too, but if the mother is still feeding this little one and it is feeding and seems well other wise then perhaps cat-mom knows best. Watch closely and call your vet again as soon as you can.

 

[amberger]

UPDATE:
The lower leg has completely shriveled and seems to be detaching from the rest of the leg. The upper leg continues to look healthy, with pink skin NO BLACK SKIN on upper leg. Kitten continues to nurse, is able to scoot around as well as her siblings, no unusual crying. I will be calling the vet in the morning and will update with what she tells me.

 

[StefanZ]

No gangrene, yippee!

 

[StefanZ]

Cats and kittens DO have quite a some ability for self healing. Its not always its enough but sometimes is.

The stump may even fall off by itself.

Otherway the vet will need to amputate. Three legged cats usually manage just fine, esp if home cats. Some are even good hunters.

We also know now hers healing and immune system is high above average.

 

[Margret]

Thank you, StefanZ . You reassure me.

Margret

 

[mservant]

and for this little one to overcome what ever has caused this limb problem, and that the vet doesn't have worries for future development when they see her. Will be waiting for updates.

 

[Margret]

and for this little one to overcome what ever has caused this limb problem, and that the vet doesn't have worries for future development when they see her.

The kitten was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around her leg, cutting off circulation to the foot; it's an injury, not some kind of systemic problem.

Margret

 

[amberger]

UPDATE #2

The leg has almost completely detached. We see the vet in the morning. Kitten continues to be in good health.

She is fast!

 

[Margret]

The leg has almost completely detached. We see the vet in the morning. Kitten continues to be in good health.

She is fast!

And I bet she'll be even faster once the dead leg is totally gone and out of her way! Her mom has her work cut out for her.


Margret

 

[amberger]

little Trinity is home, free from the dead leg. Her leg is a little infected but we're taking care of it. Ver said she looks good. Thank you all for your prayers and good vibes. This story definitely has a happy ending.

 

[Margret]

Oh, good. It's so nice when a kitten is saved.

Margret

 

[Sarthur2]

Wonderful! Is she on antibiotics?

 

[Jody h]

Hi. This kitten was born April 23, she became wrapped in the umbilical cord. When we freed her, we saw that one of her legs hung uselessly and the paw pad was blue. Rushed her to the vet, vet said not to worry. Now the foot has shriveled up to the knee. I am planning on calling the vet Monday morning, as they are closed for the weekend. What can I do for her until then? I am worried about her, I have never dealt with anything like this

I am so sorry this happened! This had happened with five of my litter getting tangled together and two had their legs caught in cords like this. I feel awful for what happened! Sadly I took them to the vet and was told that it had broken and that it would lead to future complications in life Such as amputation! So we agreed that the best option was to have them put to sleep.
I was scrolling the web tirelessly for an answer, but sadly the reality is one day old kittens with broken limbs don’t fare too well

ring the vets they will give you the best advice! It may not be broken and may just be loss of circulation. For anyone whos reading this you are in my prayers xx

 

[Margret]

Jody h , this is a thread from 2018. The kitten lost her leg but is doing well (or was as of 3 years ago) and she is no longer a kitten.

I'm so sorry to hear about your kitten loss, though. We love them even before they're born; it's terrible to have to euthanize a little one who's barely begun to live.

Margret