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Ear Scratching - bandage paw or use a collar??

Posted: Sun May 26, 2019 11:27 am
by Daisycat1976
Hi All, my 25 year old lady called Daisy is still with us and her eating is good and is now drinking out of her water bowl.

She has skin cancer on her ear which she keeps scratching until it bleeds every few days. I have seen some soft Elizabethan style collars but as she is older and a wee bit wobblier due to poor muscle mass in her back legs I was thinking what if we were to bandage her back foot so that she can't scratch the ear with her nails?? Would that be better than a collar??

Re: Ear Scratching - bandage paw or use a collar??

Posted: Tue May 28, 2019 11:11 am
by Lilith
Hi there. It's hard to say.

I once had a cat who came home with a cut back foot; the vet stitched it and sent her home with a great stout tight bulbous bandage ... the minute I turned my back, she'd removed it. It didn't go to waste though; her brother thought it was a mouse and spent many happy hours carrying it around and growling. But just goes to show that cats can get out of anything!

Also even if your girl's back foot is bandaged, she could still bash, and scrape at the wound, and if she's managed to dirty the bandage, this might cause infection.

I did once have some success with a soft collar; it was before the days of commercial ones and I cobbled it together from cardboard and denim attached to an ordinary collar for a girl with eczema on her chin; it gave her freedom of movement and enabled her to eat without grief, but she was a bit of a dope, bless her, and I think a more assertive cat might have removed it.

There's also a gismo called a 'Comfycollar' on Amazon; it inflates into a doughnut shape and guards against licking and scratching; I haven't had occasion to try one but have heard good reports.

I do hope you find a successful solution - all the best.