Help!! my cat has a HUGE lump on his head!!

YorkiePud_3

I would absolutely not use salt just yet .... it could really sting ... I'd stick to warm water just to clean off any surface dirt ... and he might start looking poorly too. They can really feel ill with an abscess. It could have been coming on for quite a few days before it's suddenly got so bad you can see the swelling.

My little girl had an abscess on her front leg and her leg was swollen three times the size of the other leg!! She was actually poorly on herself the day after I had her to the vet though ... it can make them feel off it.

As has been said though ... anti b's and an injection and she was right as rain, so I would definitely phone the vet tomorrow and get him in ... hope he goes on ok!!

shelly

I'd say boiled cooled salted water will be fine. I know when Coco had surgery on her chest the wound was weeping a little and the vet advised using salty water to bathe it in until I could go and fetch some hibiscrub. Used salty water solution on her eyes to when she had a slight infection.

If you are unsure call the OOH vet and get their advice.

foxy-roxy

Thank you everyone, will go and bathe it now for him and let you know how he gets on at the vets, i seriously don't know how people cope with children AND animals, i am harrased with 2 dogs and a cat!!

YorkiePud_3

*LOL* well I just have animals and I reckon it's a harder job looking after them than having kids ... !!!

Don't worry if the lump keeps oozing though ... it's better out than in! I wouldn't actually squeeze it cos it will be sore but if some gunk does come out, just wipe it off with a clean tea towel (don't use loo paper or cotton wool because of the loose fibres and filaments on them) ...

lowis

def sounds like an abcess. a cat i had years ago had one in the same place, it sort of appeared overnight and was all infected and weeping, we took him to the vet, he cleaned it up and found an airgun pellet in the wound...some !!!!er had tried to shoot him 'for fun' no doubt.

emlou2009

when i was younger a vet advised my mum to bathe wounds with cooled tea as it has antiseptic qualities and doesnt sting like salt

i remember cos when i was about 14-15 i bathed my old mans eye with it twice a day when he had a infection and had a op to pull the white eyelid over his eye to let it heal _pale_ did the trick though

MrsTinks

I've had to deal with 2 of them in the last month (one on the dog and one on the boy cat) - clean with cooled boiled water and salt dissolved in it... That will do for tonight Tomorrow vets - it may be he needs anti biotics and they vet will be able to see if there is anything in the abcess. The dog had one under her eye which had the tip of a thorn in it where she obviously stuck her fat head in a bramble somewhere daft git...

BTW neither of mine required vet treatment but just lots of cleaning of the wounds to keep them open to drain... it stinks to high heaven though!

MrsTinks

Do NOT use tea! If in doubt call a vet - unless you know enough about herbal remedies then you should not use anything like teas, tinctures or other alternative treatments. Saline solution is safe.

(and obviously DEF don't use something like dettol on a cat... )

SnowyOwl_2

Poor kittie! As other posters have suggested, this sounds like an abscess to me too. Just wipe up the gunk, and a trip to the vet for antibiotics will do the trick. One of my late kitties, Baba, had one on the top of his head. The vet just gave him a jab and some tablets, and let it heal itself. Another of my late kitties, Tabitha, had one on her tail. She was in so much pain and not eating, the poor girl. The vet squeezed the pus out of hers - she (Tabitha not the vet) screamed the surgery down. When we left the consultation room all the people in the waiting room were very quiet and staring at us. Tabitha was in much much better form right away though and scoffed as much grub as she could get her chops round.

emlou2009

the vet that advised my mum that plain, cooled tea was safe was actually my grandad, a vet for 44 years...

salt water is still preferable, but if there is a risk of the salt water getting into their eyes then tea is the lesser evil and is fine