Why does my kitten's spay incision have a small hole after stitches?

This incision is fine. It is healing from the inside out. Over the next few weeks thie skin will fill in and the fur will grow back. You may still feel the absorbable sutures under the skin for another month. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Chai.

Hello. It does look like the incision is opening a bit, but just the skin. The underlying muscle looks intact. You may have to put an E-collar ( cone of shame ) on her to prevent her from licking the incision open more. Most of the big pet retailers have them & one of the soft ones made for kitties should not be too stressful for her. I would also pick up some betadine at any pharmacy & gently clean the skin twice daily. No need to scrub. It is not necessary, but it would not hurt to put a dab on Neosporin on the incision, but only if she is wearing the collar. You do not want her to try cleaning the incision with her rough tongue. If the incision reddens much more, or begins to discharge at all, you will need to have her seen over the weekend. She will not fall apart on you, but keep a good eye on things & if it really worries you, have her seen quickly. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thank you for sending the picture! I can see the puckering on KC’s skin that you’re concerned about, but this area looks pretty normal to me. The abdomen is closed in 2-3 layers depending on the surgeon’s preference, so even if there is a little puckering of the skin incision, the abdomen itself is still closed. I also don’t see any evidence of infection or inflammation since there doesn’t appear to be any swelling, redness, or discharge. For now, continue to keep the e-collar on KC and do your best to keep her relatively quiet. I realize that’s an impossible undertaking, so just do your best! I hope that everything goes well!

When we close an incision with absorbable sutures, sometimes the incision rolls in a bit (which it appears that Pookie's incision is doing). That is no reason for concern. My only concern would be that the right side of the incision may be a little red when compared to the left. I would make sure that Pookie has an e-collar in place and cannot lick at this incision to make it irritated. If the incision is getting swollen, more red or has any discharge, I would recommend having your veterinarian examine it. Good luck! I hope that was helpful and that Pookie is fine. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

If this is how her incision looked when you took her back in for the recheck, then your vet probably thinks that it will heal on its own - we call this second intention healing. This is a reasonable way to heal a wound that only affects the skin. If the vet thought that the wound extended deeper than just the skin, then Bonnie would need to have the sutures replaced. The down side of healing by second intention is that it takes much longer for the wound to heal - it could be several weeks of having her wear the e-collar. Because of this, often my clients will prefer that we go ahead and sedate and clean up the wound to place new sutures. Healing would then be expected in around 10 days.

I would leave the remaining suture alone unless it seems to be bothering Kloe. Depending on what type of suture your veterinarian uses, it may disintegrate and come out on its own over the next few weeks, or it may be a type of non-absorbable suture that is designed to stay in place permanently. If the area around the suture looks red or irritated, or if it seems to be bothering her, I would suggest taking her back to your vet to have this checked - he/she can safely remove it if needed.

Hi. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. From the pictures the incision looks ok; though be sure you are monitoring at home make sure there is no discharge, opening of the incision, swelling, heat or redness at the incision line. Make sure that Yuki isn't licking or chewing at the incision. Do not clean or wipe the incision line as this can irritate it and cause Yuki to try to lick. Do no apply any medications. If you notice any swelling or discharge, please take her back to the veterinarian. Also monitor that she is eating, drinking and urinating/defecating normally. The incision line will take 10-14 days to heal.