Question

My cat cut open one of her foot pads and it’s healing very slowly. What should I do?

Answer

The answer to your question depends on whether the wound on your cat’s paw started as a cut or as a sore. If she did cut her paw on something, it’s normal for the cut to take a long time to heal. The pads on a cat’s foot are composed mostly of dead tissue. Dead tissue can’t heal, so the healed tissue has to grow deep inside the foot pad and gradually move out as the old, dead tissue sloughs off.

Another problem is that every time your kitty walks, she puts pressure on the foot pad and opens the wound a bit, making it very hard for the wound to heal shut. You can make an appointment with your veterinarian to discuss whether a sturdy bandage or a splint could help relieve some of that pressure. Your veterinarian can also check whether the cut is infected and prescribe some antibiotics if it is. It’s possible that a tiny foreign object like a splinter or a little pebble is stuck in the wound, which would also slow healing. Your veterinarian can check for foreign objects and remove them.

The other possibility is that your cat had a sore or itchy spot on her paw and she licked it until she tore the skin on her pad open. In this case, the cut won’t heal until you solve the underlying problem and get your cat to stop licking. Your veterinarian can take an X-ray and do a biopsy of your kitty’s paw to rule out any problems.