He showed up one morning, a few days ago with a bit of a gash on his cheek (I'm guessing one of two stray cats was the culprit). We put antibiotic ointment on it and it seemed to be healing. Then two days later, it was bigger and uglier. Of course, this was the weekend. We could have had a vet look at him but $200.00 just for the vet to show up on a Saturday (not including the actual fee, or treatment) did not meet our budget, so we applied hydrogen peroxide as instructed over the phone and things seemed to be healing nicely. That was until he scratched it open again. Ugh!! More treatment, and again, it seemed to be healing nicely, until he did it again.
So today, I am taking him to the vet (no emergency hour $200 fee on a Thursday) for a shot of antibiotics and a once over and we keep the dastardly cone on him for who knows how long... and I watch him run into things as he navigates around table legs and edges of doorways. In all of our years of being cat owners we have never had to have a cat in a cone, so this is new for us. He managed to wriggle out of it twice until we got it "tight" enough.
Anyone want to chime in with their own "cone head" stories?
Omg...don't know who I feel more sorry for, you or the cat. What a story. Patience!! That was for the cat 🤣
ReplyDeleteI shall pass that onto him.
DeleteOur boy has been scratching his chronically itchy ears to the extreme and is going to the vet tomorrow, probably to come home rocking a cone. I feel your pain!
ReplyDeleteOh, itchy ears! That would drive me nuts, too!
DeletePoor guy! I hope he doesn't have to wear the cone for TOO long!
ReplyDeleteMe, too!!
DeleteLook up Surgical Suits for cats on Amazon. I got two for my kitties when they were spayed and neutered. They were amazing! They had over 10,000 reviews so to me, that said ALOT. They were not cheap (about $25 ea) but worth every penny. :)
ReplyDeleteNo it’s a cone he needs because he is scratching his face, not a spot on his body. The cone cost about $18. Thanks, anyway!
DeleteI hope the weather passes quickly and the funnel comes out!!
ReplyDeleteIt has never happened to me to put a funnel on my cat!
Ours have always been fine even after spaying and neutering.
DeletePoor boy! And poor you. Not had to do that with a cat, but when Buudy had his last year it was traumatic both for him and for my legs.
ReplyDeleteI imagine it’s something every animal would struggle with.
DeletePoor little guy! Get well soon. 🍖
ReplyDeleteYes, just need his face to fully heal.
DeleteI worked in the Veterinary field for years and I always hated those cones. Yes, they do keep them from reopening a wound or taking stitches out, etc. But it's scary and claustrophobic for the animal. One of our cats had a cloth cone that worked well... and not as difficult as the plastic ones. Hope he heals quickly and doesn't need it long.
ReplyDeleteThere was an option of a cone that was partially “soft” and partially see through plastic but it was a Velcro closure and I was quite certain Murphy would learn to rip it off very quickly.
DeleteYou can get soft collars now that look like something out of an Elizabethan portrait - that might suit him better. Poor Murphy. Sending love and hope he heals soon.
ReplyDeleteThis was an evening trip to the only place in a nearby town that carries cat cones. Couldn’t even get him a clear plastic one, hence the rose- coloured cone.
DeleteI am the same as you, in all the years of cats I have never had to use a cat cone although I remember being given one once for "optional" use which I am sure the vet thought I should use but I think it lasted less than 5 minutes on the cat. I hope he heals quickly this time and can soon be free of the cone.
ReplyDeleteHe hated it the first couple of attempts ( and wriggled out) but then when he opened his face up again and we moved in one notch tighter he just succumbed and figured life as he knew it was over.
DeleteI feel for both of you. It can't be easy for him and I know it is a pain for we humans too. Hopefully a few days will allow the scratch to heal...cats do tend to heal much more quickly than we do.
ReplyDeleteGood luck!
I sure hope so!! Plus a shot of just- in- case antibiotics should help.
Deletethecontemplativecat here. Our gr-daughters' dog, Lucy, is a big, muscled 85 lb. black dog. Hip displasia was needed. The cone of shame! After a while, they ordered a fabric cone, which made it easier for her to eat and drink. Misery.
ReplyDeleteSorry, Murph. This too shall pass.
ReplyDeleteWow. We were just discussing cone of shame issues at dinner last night with friends. Mr. T has one that is soft and he can eat with it from his regular bowl (I suppose it depends on where the issue is, but he can't scratch around his neck where his problem is. You're probably set for now but if you want to know what it is or where they got it, I'll find out. It's not hard plastic, which is a plus. Jan said Mr. Tux doesn't like it any more than a hard cone but they don't have to go through a lot of mechanics. I really feel for you with this. I hope he's going to be OK and glad he's getting antibiotics and such because who knows where those hooligans who took him on might spread. (There's also a site here https://cats.com/cat-cone-alternatives with some options and if you put cat cone alternatives in Amazon there are some too.)
ReplyDeleteI saw a soft cone made out of fabric at the vet today. Unfortunately it wouldn’t prevent him from scratching at his face with his back leg.
DeleteHope your sweet cat is feeling better soon!
ReplyDeletePoor fellow. Get better.
ReplyDeleteWould it be possible to protect the poor cat's injuries with something less intrusive and miserable than that large neck cone? You are right... humans would hate it.
ReplyDeleteI wish there was another way. I asked if there was some kind of wound sealer, but no, it just has to heal. When he had no cone, he kept opening it up. He’s doing pretty well today and still goes outside and slept on the porch for a while.
DeleteOh dear poor Murphy. I've seen small Dollar Store pool noodles cut into short pieces then strung on ribbon to wrap around a cat's neck as a collar. One of my fur girls had the cone of shame & she hung her head in despair for weeks so the cone worked like a shovel on the floor picking up crumbs, dust ... funny but not funny to watch. Then there were the times that collar was deployed (again for Sooty) on nail clipping days. ... Mary-Lou =^..^=
ReplyDeleteMurphy looks so very unhappy. Hopefully you can remove the cone very soon.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
My brother's dog is currently wearing one and looks the picture of misery
ReplyDelete