My Cat with an Open Wound on His Neck

I wanted to share something a little different with you today.  I just want to tell you about what happened recently to my cat Rilke.  Rilke was a cat we rescued a few years ago.  He had been born wild but now is a rather spoiled cat, one of five we currently have here on our little hobby farm.

Rilke on his favorite cat tower long before this happened.

One day Rilke was not acting himself, he seemed a bit more tired but we really did not pay too much attention as cats do sleep a lot (especially in the winter when they find a nice sunny spot on the floor).

The next day he wanted to go outside, but did not come in that night.  Again this is not unusual as the weather was warm and we have lots of buildings for a cat to explore and sleep in if they want to.  The following day was a Sunday and he came running in the house and disappeared just as I was going out to check the sheep. 

It was not until Sunday afternoon that I saw him again, and noted he had a large swollen lump under his jaw.  I examined it a few times before deciding to go to the veterinarian.

My veterinarian, Dr. Davis, kept the cat for a few days, putting him on antibiotics and draining some of the swelling down.  Dr. Davis was not sure if there had been a tooth problem or what, and was concerned that the cat might need surgery.

The wound broke and a large flap of dead skin was removed, leaving a huge open wound.  There was no skin loose enough to stitch the sides of the wound together, as such it was left open.

By Friday it was determined Rilke did not need surgery and could go home.  I was given medication to give him orally (he did not like that even though it was suppose to be yummy tasting) and medication to spray on the wound 3 to 4 times a day in addition to washing it gently once or twice a day.

The spray was Vetericyn VF Wound and Skin Care.  Of course Rilke did not care for getting sprayed but then again, he was not too happy about being forced to live strictly indoors only while is wound heals.

Here are is a photo I took a few days after we got the little guy home.

As you can see, he is a very fluffy cat with lots of fur.  In addition to washing the area I also had to cut more fur off as it kept getting stuck into his wound as he loves to roll on his cat tower.

That was two weeks ago and he is healing, I will try to get another picture of him after this is all over.

If anyone is interested I will say that Vetericyn is a very good product, there are several different formulas.  They help keep the wound clean and aid healing, so far I would certainly recommend this product to anyone who has a wounded pet.  Talk to your vet, or order it online.

Click here to buy Vetericyn Wound & Infection Pump Spray Vetericyn Wound Pump Spray 8Oz

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Remember if your pet has a serious health problem please talk to a veterinarian before treating it on your own.

Also do note that cats cannot tolerate some of the medications used on humans so make sure you use medications only for cats.