My stray cat is limping, paw injured, claw out. Does he need a vet?

Poor kitty, that looks a bit painful in the pictures. My biggest concern here is the smell you are describing. This smell could be due to infection, but without seeing her in person, I can't say for certain. I do think the best thing to do is have her seen by a vet. If the nail is infected, then the vet can prescribe pain medication. Give her vet a call now to make her an appointment. I hope this helps.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Momo! The most common reason for an outdoor cat to limp is from trauma. Either falling from something, get caught up or from fighting with another animal and suffering bite wounds and an abscess. I would keep him indoors and see if resting helps the limp, which it would if it was a strain or sprain. If he stops eating and is lethargic he may have a fever from bite wounds and infection. Bite wounds are treated with pain medications and antibiotics. These medications need to be prescribed by a Vet who can examine Momo. I hope this helps!

Ideally, he should be physically examined by your veterinarian. He may have been bitten by another cat which would explain his symptoms. A cat bite can be difficult to detect and can abscess and be quite painful. Antibiotics and pain medication may be indicated.

Hi, in the first picture it looks like there could be a bit of infection as the fluid seems cloudy. Looking at the second one the skin lesion looks more like podo dermatitis, an inflammation of Jeff's pad. I think it is worthy to have hm checked over, in order to get some medications and help him towards a speedy recovery. If you don't take him to see your vet, his foot will continue to get worse and every time he puts his foot down to walk he will be in a lot of pain. I think your vet will not need to run tests but just give him some medications and therefore cost should be limited. All the best and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach !

You are correct that it could be a strain, or there may be an abscess and you've simply missed it. Given that he's been limping for three days after rest, I would take him into the vet today for an exam. He will need pain meds, and the vet can do a physical exam and possibly x-rays to diagnose why Samson is limping. Please do not give him any human pain meds, many are toxic to cats and are fatal if given.

Poor Tom! Without seeing him I cannot say for sure what he has injured. He could have simply sprained a muscle or broke a toenail. Unfortunately, he could have also broken a bone. I would strongly recommend to have your vet take a look at him. Your vet will be able to localize the pain and take x-rays if needed. They will be able to get him started on pain meds and the proper treatment plan to help him feel better. I hope this helps!

It's a little difficult to see the wound in your picture, but it looks like there might be some discharge on Prince's fur. If he is painful enough that he can't walk I'd be concerned that the wound could be infected or even that it affects the bone. I would recommend having a veterinarian examine Prince's leg - they might recommend taking an x-ray or may recommend antibiotics. If there's a large wound they might even recommend surgical repair.