Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think my cat might have rabies.

159 replies

Thepersonineedisnannymcphee · 05/09/2017 09:25

He's chewed all the flesh from the tip of his tail, he was panicking because it was wet. I know it sounds mental but there is a possibility he was bitten by a bat and in England one species can carry a rabies virus.

Goodness, I sound crazy.

OP posts:
MoonfaceAndSilky · 05/09/2017 10:05

Oh well that's good, at least it can be fixed.

DrumrollCheese · 05/09/2017 10:06

Poor kitty.
At least he's in good hands.
My cousins cat had all but about 2-3 inches of his tail amputated after being run over and he cats about just fine.

Neutrogena · 05/09/2017 10:07

That's a horrific picture.
Do you consider the cat 'part of the family' ?

lovemylover · 05/09/2017 10:14

Poor cat must have been in agony, i did wonder if it could be neurological as there is a condition that causes cats to chase and bite their tail
Have you any idea how he could have been injured?
Hope he is ok after his op, chewing it might have been him trying to get rid of the pain

Penfold007 · 05/09/2017 10:17

A cat's tail is part of their spine, your poor cat must have been in agony. Hope he soon feels better.

Peaceonearthplease · 05/09/2017 10:25

What a morning! Well done Cake

QuimReaper · 05/09/2017 10:26

Gosh poor you OP, and your poor cat! What a horrible scene to wake up to. The vet didn't say anything more about what the nature of the damage was? Could it just have been a tick or something as suggested upthread, or did he find some injury? Our cat was bitten by (we're pretty sure) another local cat she's always spatting with on the tail, I wonder if something like that could have happened. I know their tails are very important but they do sometimes strike me as so vulnerable.

P.S. whatever Neutrogena is building up to/implying, just ignore them. He / she does it on every thread.

Serialweightwatcher · 05/09/2017 10:28

Aww that's so terrible - poor cat and poor you ... scary stuff - hope all goes well and he recovers quickly Sad

TheSpottedZebra · 05/09/2017 10:28

What an odd post, Neutrogena.

Poor cat and poor you, OP. Hope he's on the mend soon.

Original poster
Thepersonineedisnannymcphee · 05/09/2017 10:29

There was definitely no sign of extreme injury yesterday, with how bad it was I would have noticed any blood as I was observing him. Vet could see the original small injury and said he'd just stripped the flesh around it.

I have my suspicions what caused it though.

Idiot cat sat on top of the gerbil cage yesterday.

Cat ( is actually called Mouse) is very much part of the family.

OP posts:
acatcalledjohn · 05/09/2017 10:30

Poor thing! Hopefully all will be well after surgery and kitty cat won't feel the need to eat himself next time something is up with him.

Do you consider the cat 'part of the family' ?

No, it's a disposable ball of fluff which the OP has no feelings for. That's why she's panicking about the cat's wellbeing and has taken him to the vet and agreed to have him operated on.

Christ on a bike.

honeysucklejasmine · 05/09/2017 10:31

Bloody hell, poor Mouse! Hope they recover well OP!

Original poster
Thepersonineedisnannymcphee · 05/09/2017 10:33

I suspect it was wet yesterday because he'd cleaned the cut/bite/injury caused by gerbils, hence no blood but also why he was so irritable and aggressive. Then he just didn't stop cleaning and started mutilating

OP posts:
FreudianSlurp · 05/09/2017 10:35

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ghostyslovesheets · 05/09/2017 10:40

oh poor cat :( and poor you

he will be fine - we had a cat that did the same - all over my step fathers bed at 3am! He lost his tail but lived to a fine old age.

PrincessWonderRabbit · 05/09/2017 10:55

Neutrogena is a troll and I'm sure will be dealt with by MN soon.

Mittens1969 · 05/09/2017 10:56

Many years ago, when I was growing up, our cat had a litter of kittens. One of the kittens had half his tail cut off in the door. He was the feistiest kitten in the litter; the loss of half his tail didn't cause him any difficulty whatsoever. We found a home for him with a very active toddler and it was a perfect match.

Your pussy cat will be fine, it doesn't sound like it was a bat bite, and it won't be rabies. It's great that you got such a prompt appointment. Smile

Juanbablo · 05/09/2017 11:01

Poor cat and poor you! My cat is also called Mouse and has had his fair share of traumatic tail injuries. Must be the name. I hope your Mouse has a speedy recovery.

FoxyRoxy · 05/09/2017 11:03

Oh your poor baby, I hope he recovers quickly. I can only imagine your horror coming down to that this morning 😱 hopefully he now stays away from the gerbil cage...

Neutrogena is a gf, ignore.

Original poster
Thepersonineedisnannymcphee · 05/09/2017 11:08

The potential ( highly unlikely!) bat bite was 2 months ago. He's an indoor cat but he's legged it out for 3 days, and came back with one singular pinprick bite mark.

So my ( over active!) imagination immediately made that a bat bite, which gave him rabies, and in turn we'd get it and I'd never be able to enjoy a bath with a Lush bath bomb ever again.

Dramatic? Me? Never!!

OP posts:
Boatmistress17 · 05/09/2017 11:10

'Gerbiled' sounds as bad as rabies tbh!!

Ginkypig · 05/09/2017 11:10

Iv known a cat who lost his whole tail after a car accident he survived and due to all the injuries he sustained he looked like a mangy stray even after he recovered but did beautifully without his tail.

He didn't really seem to notice it had gone and was jumping on to 6f walls and out prowling with the best of them.

BlueTongueSkink · 05/09/2017 11:34

Gosh the poor thing! Glad you were able to see the vet so quickly. Hope he's better and back to his old self soon!

Original poster
Thepersonineedisnannymcphee · 05/09/2017 11:56

Home now, just waiting to call and find out how he is.

My vets are really good. I've always had animals seen the same day. They took him for surgery immediately as the vet said it was quite bad. All under his tummy was soaked in blood too where he'd been lying on it.

OP posts:
Seeingadistance · 05/09/2017 12:42

So sorry that this has happened - what a nightmare to wake up to - and glad that Mouse is in good hands and being taken care of by the vet.

Hmmm... my kittens were sitting on top of the gerbil cage yesterday and the gerbil was having a go at their tails. Will need to see what I can do to stop that happening!