My cat had stomach surgery. Can I pick him up without hurting him?

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I hope Shadow is feeling better. As it has been about three weeks since Shadow's procedure, his incisions should have mostly healed by now, and it is unlikely that picking him up this way once caused any trauma. I hope this helps and am happy to answer any other questions you may have!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Zoro. If he seems comfortable, it is fine to pick him up and carry him. He will let you know. Do your best to limit his activities such as stairs and jumping. This can be difficult though as cats can be quite independent. Just monitor his incision site for any swelling. I hope this information helps!

From what I can tell it seems to be healing well. If she is showing any signs of sickness or the incisions don't continue to improve, get her in to see your vet for a recheck. Put the cone back on if she starts paying too much attention to her incisions and overgrooming. It is likely to still be itchy for some time as it heals.

Congratulations on adding Charley to your family. It is fine to carry Charley as long as you support her entire body so that you do not put any strain on her abdomen. Ask the staff to show you the proper way to hold her so that you do not inflict any injury. It is very important to hold her properly until the incision is healed in two weeks. Also make sure to get an Elizabethan collar, pain medications and written instructions. Best of luck.

I think there's enough going on here that it would be worthwhile to take her for a recheck by your vet. It's not terrible looking, but there is some swelling along the incision margins and a small defect in the top of the incision. I would expect her incision to look better than this after a week. For now, I don't recommend you do any sort of treatment at home, because this may make things worse. As long as you get her to the vet in the next day or two, she should be fine to wait. I hope that helps and your kitty gets better soon.

This presentation could be due to a trauma or localized spot of skin infection (likely to be caused by bacteria). The area should be shaved first and washed profusely with clean water. Disinfection can be started at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths twice daily. Buster collar may be useful as well to avoid any licking/scratching. Sudocream or zinc oxide cream can be applied on the wound after cleaning and drying it up. Keep him indoors and keep in touch for updates. Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

Hello. This incision looks normal for a week after surgery. Some swelling like you are seeing is normal especially if they are active and playing. It is normally just some inflammation of the muscle wall and subcutaneous tissue. It can take a few weeks for this to resolve and flatten out, but it will.