My cat had abscess surgery. Why isn't her drainage tube draining?

Yes it is definitely possible for an abscess to form if there was any bacteria that was introduced underneath the skin in this area. It is good that it is draining, but now Luna needs a short course of antibiotics prescribed by your vet to get this to heal well. Also having it flushed with an antiseptic (usually we use Chlorhexidine solution diluted) will help this help well. I am sorry that Luna has this complication following surgery, but hopefully you can get this to resolve soon. Best wishes and take care.

Hello, I'm sorry to hear about Lili! I'm not 100% sure what the question is but I'm interpreting you're wondering if I agree with what the vet did to manage Lili's wound. From the information given, I do believe placing a drain (tube) was definitely necessary to help this wound heal. Bite wounds tend to get infected, and if the bite was deep, and had been present for a week prior to starting antibiotics, there was likely a deep pocket of infected tissue down in that wound - and unless the body was provided with a way to continue to drain this infected fluid and push the infection out, it would have continued to fester. Infected bite wounds *cannot* be sutured closed without placing a tube for the body to be able to push out that infection. Sometimes we cannot tell the extent of the injury or infection until the animal is sedated and we can adequately explore the wound and see what damage is present. I'm sorry Lili seems more painful - this also doesn't surprise me, simply because of the tissue handling necessary to manage that wound. Hopefully your vet dispensed some good pain meds to be giving Lili while she is healing. I imagine in a few days, once the antibiotics start to kick in and the wound can start to heal, she will feel significantly better! I hope this helps!

I don't think that it being hard is normal for an abscess, but this appears to be a very large abscess. You should call your vet to discuss this new finding, as they may have some insight depending on the suspected cause and the exam findings. The purpose of the drains is to allow the fluid to be released as the wound is healing. If they weren't there and the hole your vet created closed up, then all of that fluid would be trapped under the skin and it would re-abscess.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Tiffy. I would be concerned that the pus is recurring if the lump has started to grow. She may need surgery to properly drain it. She will need to see her veterinarian again. I hope this information helps!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Windsor. Based on your description, it sounds like he has an abscess under his skin. I typically treat these with surgery to lance the wound and flush out the pus. I then place a temporary drain to allow continued drainage of any residual pus. This allows you to flush the drain at home with a disinfectant solution. I continue the antibiotics and usually do use Clavamox. He will need to see his veterinarian again. You can try warm compresses in the meantime. I usually use a warm washcloth for 5 minutes three times per day. I hope this information helps!

No worries. Some dogs are really good about rubbing their bodies on just about anything in the house to scratch their incisions. The penrose drain is likely somewhere in the house. Most penrose drains need to remain in for only 2-3 days minimum. If the surgery was done today, then it is still ok. Just contact your vet in the morning to see if they wish to reinsert it or not. Chances are your vet will just leave it as is, especially if Sunmers incision is otherwise healthy looking and free of infection. Take care of that fur baby!

It looks like a penrose drain was placed these drains usually stay in 3-5 days. It is normal to see a blood discharge or seriosangenous fluid like it see in the picture. I would monitor the wound for drainage. It should be decreasing each day. If at anytime the patient is lethargic or not eating/drinking I would take him back to the vet to have it checked.