Cat with hematoma

[meggers32]

Hi everyone,

My sweet, sweet cat, Pierre, has been struggling with ear mites for a while and just last night I noticed that he has developed a hematoma in his ear. The outside of his ear has swelled up from all of the scratching and shaking of his head. From what I have read, the treatment is that it needs to be sliced, anyone have any experience with this? A vet bill is certainly not feasable in my financial future, of course I would do anything for my baby, though. Do any of you do some of your own "procedures" at home under the right conditions? Thanks!

 

[Jenski]

My experience with an old Golden Retriever was that sometimes these went down by themselves. If they did not do so within a few days, the vet would lance them and drain, we'd apply antibiotics, and then we'd replay the whole thing every few months as the dog flapped around and banged her ears again.

That said . . . you may be able to lance or pierce the hematoma, but I would be very, very careful on a cat. Avoid all blood vessels, and be sure to make the strike at the very bottom of the hematoma so it can drain properly, otherwise you're wasting time. Be sure to clean thoroughly afterward, and apply antibiotics.

The cause of the problem ~ ear mites ~ should probably be addressed first, as these can cause a lot of other nasty problems for all animals. To save cost you might want to call the vet and ask about just picking up some ear mite medicine.

 

[KristaChickenWhisperer]

Hematomas are tricky, and can get very large.

I strongly suggest not doing any procedures on your own at home, since it is very easy to accidentally poke other vessels, especially in the ear. (There are a lot of them in the ears.)

I realized that a vet bill is not in your grasp, so I recommend calling a local animal shelter, they may have discount services, or know of a vet who might do it for pretty cheap. It sounds crazy but they are out there! You may even find one who is willing to do payment plans.

Good luck with the kitty! I hope the hematoma goes away on its own!