Cat with frostbitten ears...help, anyone? update, pics

[Omeletta]

I have a cat with frost bite on his ears, they just started to turn black, is there anything I can do? Vet isn't quite open yet...He's is pain, and quite cantankerous. I'll post a pic after chores.

Tanya

 

[patandchickens]

Don;t think there's much of anything you can do, although definitely once the vet opens you'd want to call and talk to them, take him in if they want, b/c they may have some pain relievers they can prescribe (you probably already know this but DO NOT give him OTC human meds such as tylenol!!) and may recommend putting one of those lampshade-type collars on to keep him from pawing at it.

The usual plan for horses, which I'd think would be similar for cats, is to treat any pain, prevent the animal from rubbing the area, but just leave it alone and let whatever wants to fall off fall off. Sometimes topical antibiotics if it starts to get infected. And keep the animal warm -- once he's gotten frostbite, the general area (the remaining parts of the ear, in this case) will always be extra sensitive to cold and extra susceptible to further frostbite, so it'll be important to have a talk with the kids about kitties and very cold weather

I know he's not happy know, but he'll be fine (if perhaps slightly funny looking) once it sorts itself out. Hang in there,

Pat, in Ontario where it only got down to -16 last night and is already up to almost freezing! go figure.

 

[Omeletta]

Gee Pat! How about sharing that weather with the west, Eh? Seriously, thank-you Pat. I've owned cats all my life and never had this happen before. Thanks for your advice.

Tanya

 

[Omeletta]

Here's a few pics of Puff-a-lump, our sweet boy...he seems to be doing ok, was playing with the string on the camera!

Poor Puff!

Tanya

 

[OHChick]

hi there, neosporin is all you can really do. i rescued a kitten from the side of the road, his ears were frostbitten too. our vet (who's a friend of the family) said just to keep them moist (not wet). neosporin or vaseline is what he recommended. my little guy is fine now. the tips did fall off as did the tip of his tail (yuck i know) but he's alive so he's a lot better than he was the day i found him! good luck to your kitty.

 

[Buster]

aloe vera is good to use on frostbite too.

 

[ruth]

First, let me preface my suggestion with the statement that I know nothing about frostbite. However, I have a real hard time with "there's nothing you can do" so I will always try something (no matter what the case/condition). In this case, I would spend a lot of time gently massaging his ears. Maybe, just maybe, they aren't so far gone that you can't get some nice warm circulation going to the tips of his ears and, if so, they won't die and fall off. Again, just my humble suggestion that when feeling helpless, try something/anything - AND - PRAY.

The Lord has healed many of my pets - including our cat Morris who was given less than 5% chance of survival by our vet when I ran over Morris severing his spinal cord near the tail. Morris went home the next day and is alive and well. Though his tail hangs down - the tail did not die and he has full use of bowels/urine which vet said "would never happen even he survived". He walks, talks, runs, jumps just like he did before the accident. He doesn't, however, sleep under the car tire anymore.

 

[silkiechicken]

The ears don't actually look that bad in those pics. I was imagining black black. Good luck.

 

[Omeletta]

Thanks, ruth! Prayer is always the best! I'll try the message thing, sounds like it could work. Thanks, silkiechicken. No, they don't look too bad, but I've not dealt with this before, and he is a much loved furball.

Tanya

 

[Smitty's Farm]

Hey there! Just checking to see how your kitty is doing. The pictures don't look to bad, but I've never seen frostbite on a cat before. He's a gorgeous cat. I hope he heals up ok. Stay warm! How are the bunnies doing?
Kim