My cat has a deep leg wound with bone showing. Is it a vet emergency?

Such a deep wound with the bones and tendons exposed requires surgical attention from a vet. Contact your nearest clinic or animal welfare charities for a full assessment as soon as possible. Severe infection of the bones could lead to loss of the leg if not treated appropriately

Hello I can't tell from the picture how deep that wound is but it does look infected and there's underlying tissue and possibly muscle exposed. I recommend takinh your cat to see a veterinarian as she could be licking at the site when you're not watching and causing further infection. It may need to be closed or the vet may decide it should stay open (with some infected wounds closing can cause an abscess to form) and put her on antibiotics and pain medication. She might also need an E collar to prevent her from licking the area further.

It appears that the muscle layer is exposed in this wound, meaning that there could be some deeper trauma in the area. Often these wounds can result in deep abscesses if not treated. It would be best to bring him to a vet for wound cleaning, flushing, and exploration. If sutures are needed, wounds are most successfully treated within the first 6-8 hours. Poor guy!

I would take Rusty into a vet as soon as possible. It does look deep to me, and if it is deep, it may need sutures to close it so it can heal correct. In addition, it is infected which requires antibiotics. I would not try to treat this yourself as you won't have medicines needed to do it, and it's never recommended to self treat your animal because may accidentally do more harm than good. I would have Rusty seen by a vet tonight to prevent the infection from getting worse. Please take him into an ER vet clinic; if there isn't one in your area, there will be a vet on call for emergencies. The information to reach that vet is found on a clinic's answering machine or website.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It is unclear why he would have an open wound like that but likely due to some form of trauma. However, this does warrant an evaluation as soon as possible for further assessment and treatment. This will most likely need local treatment and possibly wound closure as well as antibiotics and pain control medications. Good luck and have a great day!

Poor Claws! I don't think you should let that heal without treatment and should take him to a vet. Your vet can clean the wound and then suture it so it heals properly. He will also need an antibiotic to prevent infection.

Poor kitty! Since this wound looks rather deep and he is limping, I would definitely recommend having him seen by a veterinarian - it looks like he will probably need an antibiotic and possibly an anti-inflammatory or other pain medication, in order to treat the injury and help it heal.