Any cat owners here have experience with swollen paws? I have a ~1 year old male cat (fixed and shots) who primarily hangs outside during the day who came home with a rather swollen right front paw today. During his outside time he's prone to climbing trees and hunting mice, birds, snakes and bees (the latter of which I'm hoping caused this). He doesn't appear to be encumbered by this (no limp, no signs of pain) and it just showed up this morning. Some sources online are saying ingrown toenail, I don't clip his so perhaps this is a possibility?
Thanks
>outside catfag
leave my /an/
>>2117471
He was a stray who, alongside two siblings, appeared on my property out of nowhere. I took him in and found homes for the other two. He loves being outside and pesters me until I open the door for him, then returns every night and sleeps inside. He even comes when I whistle.
Try to squeeze his paw and see if the claws come out? And see from there? I'd say give the swelling 2 days to go down before calling the vet (this is an arbitrary number based on absolutely nothing btw, if you feel you need to take the animal sooner then do so) IF it does not bother him, and keep him indoors where you can keep a really good eye on him. Call the vet as soon as you notice limping, lethargy, puss, bleeding, excessive grooming, anything out of the norm for him. If it is an ingrown nail, DO NOT try to take it out yourself; it can be very painful, but also the cat would need to be on antibiotics as their paws get extremely dirty and that's where the open wound would be. Your vet would probably want him on special wood pellet litter and to be kept inside until the wound heals if that's the case
>>2117472
>Comes when you whistle
Shit, I have 3 that come running when my car pulls up.
>>2117468
I recently heard that swelling can be a result of worms.
Do you live in a tropical country? (not to scare you or anything.)
>>2117473
Thanks, I'll check it out when I see him again. He is definitely not exhibiting lethargy or any abnormal behavior as of now so I'm not terribly concerned yet. Should I be trimming his nails on a regular basis?
>>2117477
I live in Philadelphia which I'm sure shares similar filth to that of tropical countries, but upon inspection his shit doesn't seem abnormal (granted he excretes outside more than in).
Huh, same thing happened to my kitten today, allthough she was only outside for like 5 min with my other cat. Figured it had to be a wasp or bumblebee or something. First really warm day of spring today, so insect activity has been high (Norway). The swelling has gone down a lot not, but one paw is still a bit bigger.
>>2117468
Ingrown toenail, bug bite and a break are all options. It's not uncommon for a cat to break a paw jumping from a fence or tree. If the swelling doesn't go down by tomorrow id go to a vet.
>>2117483
Wormies will be long white things coming out of his anus or in his poop, or little orange-ish color rice beans you might find on him or around the house.
And if his nails aren't being naturally trimmed down from outside, you may need to occasionally trim them. Trimming their nails doesn't impede their ability to climb, but putting the kitty caps on them can.
Could also be something like a foxtail imbedded in the paw. I'd recommend going to the vet sooner, rather than waiting.
>>2117468
Will he let you look at his paw or is he to feral?
