Weeping tail on cat

My cat has a hole in her tail. It wasn't there before and I didn't notice until she was sat on the sofa and reddish-brown stuff was coming out all over sofa. I tried to look but she won't let me. It looks like she may of been bitten, because it looks squashed as well. Please help. I am very worried and it is late on a Friday night.


By the time you read this, I imagine you have already seen a veterinarian or the situation has resolved itself. However, I wanted to answer your question for you, your kitty, and other readers.

The most common things that happen to cats' tails are, indeed, bite wounds, most commonly from other cats, or injuries from being caught in something such as a door, barbed wire, or even a trap. The flattening you described would indicate to me that, most likely, your cat's tail was caught in something.

Depending on the location of the injury to the tail, damage can be done to part of the spinal column, causing loss of anal tone or bladder control. In this case, time is of the essence, as medications to control inflammation can be given by a veterinarian to reverse the damage quickly.

In the future, if something of this nature happens late at night or on the weekends, there are a few questions you can ask yourself to determine what is best for your kitty. First, is your cat eating, drinking, breathing, and acting normally? And secondly, is the wound bleeding, or is there just mild discharge?

If your cat is eating, drinking, breathing, and acting normally and there is no significant bleeding, treatment can likely wait until morning. However, if there is bleeding or her behavior or breathing is off, she should be taken to an emergency veterinary center right away.

Best wishes,
Dr. Neely