My cat is limping and money is tight. What can I do to help him?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Unfortunately, it is difficult to know what kind of injury he has sustained and what kind of therapy he needs. This could be as severe as a fracture or something more mild like a soft tissue injury. The fact that he is crying when the leg is manipulated indicates that he is quite painful requiring pain control medications at least. If he does have a fracture, he may actually require surgery. For this reason it is crucial that he is indeed evaluated by a veterinarian. You could consider taking him to your local humane society as often times they offer less expensive veterinary care. I hope you are able to get him some help. Good luck!

Oh no, poor Jim! Unfortunately if he did break his leg, he could still put weight on it when needed so that fact does not rule out a broken leg. The only way to rule it out is with x-rays at the vet clinic. It is concerning that he won't put any pressure on his paw at all, and I don't feel this can wait for another week. I will give you some resources that may help you afford a vet sooner. You can see if your vet accepts payment plans, if there is a low cost clinic in your area, or you can apply for Carefree Credit online. http://www.carefreecredit.co.uk https://www.rspca.org.uk/whatwedo/vetcare http://www.easipetcare.com

Poor Kirk! I would try to keep him relatively contained and avoid letting him jump or play a lot. If he will let you look at his paw you can try to check the nails and foot pads for an injury but only if you can do its safely without getting scratched or bitten! Do not give him any medications without your vet prescribing them as cats are very sensitive to medications and do not tolerate human meds at all.

I am sorry to hear about Luna. If Luna is limping there are many different possible causes, including soft tissue injury (such as a muscle sprain/strain, torn ligament), a fracture (it isn't always obvious when a pet breaks a bone if the fracture is not displaced), a torn or sore toenail, a skin infection of the toenails or bottom of the foot, nerve disorders, or in older pets tumors of the muscle or bone. I would recommend examination by a vet if the issue has been present since Sunday with no improvement. Unfortunately there are no safe pain medications available over the counter for cats, so I would just try to keep her quiet/restrict her activity/keep her indoors until she can be seen.

I am sorry to hear your cat is having lameness. Cats are masters at hiding pain and illness so they don't typically scream out unless there is substantial pain there. But limping and a pet not willing to place a foot down is an indicator of a certain level of pain there or else they would put entire weight on the limb and paw. This most likely is not a fracture because that pain would be very evident with her not allowing you to touch it and there would be a substantial amount of swelling there. So that leaves a muscle sprain or ligament partial/complete tear. The key is to localize where on the leg the pain is coming from, look for obvious swelling, and then treat the pet with anti-inflammatory medication if sprain is suspected or do an x-ray if the knee or joint is suspected as the source of the pain to rule out a ligament rupture. Unfortunately there are no safe over the counter pain meds available for cats but your vet has safe products to prescribe for your cat for conservative treatment at the very least to see if this will improve her condition.

As your cat hasn't been eating and is limping it is best to schedule a veterinary appointment ASAP. The limp could be caused by a number of things including injury to the leg, such as a break or sprain, wound or infection from a bite or scratch, or muscle or nerve damage. If the limb is hurt severely enough or if infection is present it may make your cat not want to eat. Until you can get to the vet, limit all activity to prevent further injury to the limb, and try to entice eating by warming up some wet food or adding some warmed boiled chicken to your cat's food. However it is necessary to schedule a vet appointment ASAP.

Please take Witt to a veterinarian for an exam and possibly xeays. Limping is always a sign of pain. Pain can be caused by a sprain, foreign body lodged in the paw, fracture or other musculoskeletal trauma. This could also be caused by an abscess or inflammation etc. Please take your kitty to your vet today, so the vet can take the pain and initiate treatment.