Dark, hardened gunk on cat paw

[Effanazr]

Hi! My one year old male cat has this rock hard, dark stuff on his back paw. At first I thought it was dried blood bc every time I tried to clean it up he flinches. He also seemed bit in pain when tht side of the paw touches the floor. After a week or so the gunk got bigger but he was walking just fine. I always let him play outside and im worried tht he might've got smtg from outdoor cats. Haven't send him to vet yet. Im wondering if anyone knows wht it is.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. Could that be tar? It would be hard to get off, and probably would hurt as well. That is just a guess, but you might want to share a pic with your vet and see what they think, and if it could possibly be tar what would be the best way to get it off. But, given you think it is larger than it first was, it would seem odd that he is getting into tar multiple times. Tbh, I would take him to the vet and let them have a closer look at it, just to be on the safe side.

 

[Effanazr]

From the way it looks, i dont think its tar. Anyway thanks for the reply. Im planning on bringing him to the vet this week.

 

[neely]

It's really hard to tell just from looking at the pic but because he goes outdoors that's most likely where he picked it up. What is the consistency, e.g. hard, soft, squishy, sticky, etc? Since you said he plays outside have you surveyed the yard to see if something matches the "gunk" on his paws? Definitely a good idea to check with your vet and please keep us posted.

 

[Sylviacatgang]

Hello! Wondering if you ever figured out what it was?! My cat seems to have something very similar just not as much!