Cat's nose injury not healing? (eating, weight, blood, dog) - Cats - - City-Data Forum

JLB1228 · 02-06-2015, 12:04 PM

So my Coco, our little stray we brought in last summer... One of the things that made us say "that's it, she needs to come inside!" was that she suddenly showed up at our door one day with a scrape on her nose. Well this was at least 6 months ago now and her nose just looks worse and worse! She's been to the vet twice now and both times the doctors said there is nothing they can do about it. It looks like she just has a chunk missing in her nose

It used to scab up, then the scab would fall away and be fresh for a bit until it scabbed again. I'd say maybe a month ago it stopped scabbing. And I swear it's slowly getting bigger and deeper.

Has anyone ever seen or heard of something like this?!

I am thinking that it could be her FIV? That her immune system is not working and so it's not healing and getting worse? Is her nose just going to disappear? (I've watched too many horror/zombie movies

)

Also around the time I noticed it was looking worse, she had a bout of not eating and seeming genearlly sick. We took her to the vet and she did blood work which revealed a high thyroid, but a day or so later her "sickness" disappeared and shortly thereafter we got her eating a new food. She's perfectly normal again now aside from her nose and still drinking more water. We're not really sure if we should start her on thyroid meds at all now! She's got the FIV, a decent heart murmur, a high thyroid, no tail & half a nose! Oh and plenty of sass

Rene S · 02-06-2015, 12:49 PM

IMO I'd get another opinion. Did your vet send a tissue sample in to the lab to be analyzed?

Many years ago, something similar happened to my grandparent's dog's nose, and it turned out to be skin cancer. I sure hope that's not the case, but it sounds quite similar to what you're describing. :-(

catdad7x · 02-06-2015, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rene S

IMO I'd get another opinion. Did your vet send a tissue sample in to the lab to be analyzed?

Many years ago, something similar happened to my grandparent's dog's nose, and it turned out to be skin cancer. I sure hope that's not the case, but it sounds quite similar to what you're describing. :-(

That was my first thought too. I'd get a second opinion if possible.

JLB1228 · 02-06-2015, 02:07 PM

Oh wow hadn't even thought of that! It was 2 different vets who saw her and neither mentioned that and her blood work didn't raise any alarms in that regard.. but still, I will certainly inquire about that possibility thanks.

catdad7x · 02-07-2015, 12:38 PM

I'm really guessing here, but could it be some sort of flesh-eating bacterial infection? Is that even possible with cats? I know it is with humans. If not cancer, what else could it be?

Heidi60 · 02-07-2015, 08:59 PM

My cat is currently having high thyroid problems and will have radiation treatment for it later this month. It is nothing to ignor as it is probably contributing to her heart murmur, feeling sick, and will cause weight loss and worse if not treated correctly.

We nearly lost our cat just a few weeks ago because the vet didn't medicate her properly resulting in huge bills at the specialty vet's just to get correct the mistakes. If we had known to go to the specialty vet in the first place, the cat, and our wallet, would be better off. He was able to prioritize and identify her issues and within 24 hours he pulled her back from the brink while the first vet just wanted to put her down.

I also agree with other posters that further testing might be necessary to dianose your cats nose issues.

Best wishes to both of you and keep us posted.