Injured cat

Question
Hello,
My 2 yr old male cat was missing for 16 days. I had given up hope because my husband had searched the entire country side for him. He has been hit by a car and had drug himself back home to us, even climed two flights of steps leading to our screened in porch that we leave open for him and his brother.  He has also lost most of his front paw. He is at the vet now, day 2. After the X-rays, vet says there is nothing he can do for him because the tissue has already started to fuse itself back together. Can you tell me if you have ever had anything similar to compare to for comparison as to what I am to expect?

Regards,
JH's Mom

Answer
Kathy,

It is my understanding that in situations like JH's the vet will treat for pain, monitor for proper healing, possibly administer antibiotics if necessary and see what the function of the cat's limb is after he is fully healed. In the event that JH's paw doesn't heal well or isn't functional there is a chance that he may have to have the leg amputated at some point down the line - if this happens he will do just fine getting around. From this point forward it might be best to consider making JH and his brother indoor kitties and perhaps allow them access to a screened in enclosure (commonly called a catio) if you would still like them to be able to go outside as this will prevent future incidents where the cats could be hit by cars or hurt by people, dogs or other predators. In any case I think that given JH's current condition whether he ultimately loses his damaged leg or not he should probably become an indoor only kitty or a catio kitty because he may be more likely to be vulnerable to predators or being hit by a car, especially if his mobility is affected.

If you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me again at any time - I'm more than happy to help in any way that I can.

Kind regards,

Ali