Bleeding In Cats: Minimizing Damage

There is no doubt: we love our pets and therefore we are very alarmed when something happens to them. Sometimes we feel so scared that we don’t know how to intervene, we don’t know what to do and how to behave to help our animal friends. Today we want to offer you some suggestions on how to act in case of bleeding in cats, to limit the damage as much as possible.

Bleeding in cats

There are many causes that can cause bleeding in cats. It must be considered that they are very restless animals and, although they are said to have seven lives, they often suffer serious physical damage during their adventures outside the home. Often the cause of the bleeding is an accidental trauma or cut.

Hemorrhage can be of various types:

• Anal bleeding : This can be caused by frequent problems, such as constipation or diarrhea. But it could also be a symptom of a more serious problem, such as poisoning, infection, parasites, or rectal cancer.
• Pulmonary haemorrhage : also in this case it is caused by trauma, however the damage that occurs is internal. Sometimes it can be caused by a blood clotting problem. The animal has a more intense breathing than normal and, in addition, it expels blood through coughing.
• Bleeding nose : the reasons why a cat is bleeding from the nose can be various, not always serious, but do not underestimate this type of hemorrhage. It is probably due to the rupture of a blood vessel, or to a foreign body penetrated inside the nostrils which caused irritation and, therefore, bleeding. But it could also be due to blood clotting or blood pressure problems, a tumor or an infection . It could also be a symptom of rat poison ingestion .

These are the most common types of bleeding in cats. The last typology we looked at needs to be dealt with urgently. As we have already said, it is not certain that this is a serious problem, but this can only be established by a veterinarian.

However, when the bleeding is caused by a bump or cut on the skin, you can take steps to minimize the damage your cat may suffer, as we will see below.

Most appropriate ways to treat bleeding in cats

There are three different methods to control bleeding in cats and to keep it from degenerating. These consist of: compression of the affected area, use of a bandage or a tourniquet. Let’s go through these methods one by one.

Compression

In this case it is important to compress the area where the bleeding occurred using a sterile gauze. It must be kept pressed on the wound for about 5 minutes.

Initially you will need to apply some force and, as the minutes pass, slowly release the pressure. If the bleeding does not stop after about 5 minutes, the affected area will need to be bandaged.

Bandage

First you need to clean the wound with an antiseptic. The bandage must be able to stop the bleeding, so it is important that it is tight, but not too tight.

If at first you can’t stop the bleeding, change the bandage which will surely be stained with blood. If your cat continues to bleed after a while, it’s time to apply a tourniquet.

Tourniquet

The tourniquet is essential when the compression and the bandage have not been able to stop the bleeding which, therefore, continues to be abundant. It is of fundamental importance to remember that the tourniquet must be applied between the heart and the area where the wound is present. You will need to tighten the tourniquet until the bleeding stops completely.

If you have gotten to the point where you need to apply a tourniquet and even if you have managed to stop the bleeding, it is good to take your pet to a vet who will assess the animal’s general health and resolve any problems or complications.

As we have seen, sometimes you can intervene yourself to stop your cat’s bleeding but, in other cases, the intervention of a professional is required. The important thing is that you always do your best to minimize damage.