Healing in cats consists of a natural reaction of the body that has the purpose of healing wounds, beginning immediately after the development of the lesion, producing a series of reactions including hemostasis or arrest of bleeding, the formation of scabs to seal the wounds, the regeneration of a fine elastic matrix after the scab falls off and finally the remodeling of the definitive tissue.
This process is divided into three phases, a first inflammatory phase in which macrophages and neutrophils are recruited to the lesion, a second proliferative phase lasting a few days in which fibroblasts, keratinocytes and endothelial cells migrate to produce a new epithelialization with formation of granulation tissue and new blood vessels. The last stage is that of maturation in which the excess collagen is degraded and the tissue is finally repaired.
How long does it take for a wound to heal on a cat?
If you're wondering how long it takes to heal a cat's wound, you should know that the normal healing time is:
- Shallow wounds lasts one to two weeks.
- Surgical or deep wounds take several weeks or a month.
This is the case as long as the wound is cared for and clean, if the wound is not properly controlled the process can be lengthened, it may not heal or systemic damage may occur.
Have you ever wondered what you can put on a cat wound? Generally nothing is required if the wounds are very minor or superficial, but some serious wounds require that debride dead tissue to remove necrotic debris, the foreign bodies and contaminants, it should be drained when necessary and maintained properly cleaned with antiseptics such as chlorhexidine.
Causes of non-healing wounds in cats
Generally the wounds of our cats heal without any problem with the necessary care. However, there are certain circumstances that can cause your little feline's wounds to not heal properly, that is, they may have healing problems.
First of all, it is important that the cat has an Elizabethan collar to prevent it from licking the wound, as this delays the healing process by removing with its tongue the new tissues that are being rebuilt and It may be a reason why your cat's wound does not finish healing. If you have more cats, you should prevent them from also licking the wound of the affected cat, as they could cause the same damage.
Another cause may be that the wound becomes infected, especially if they are open wounds, as they are exposed to bacterial contamination. When a wound is infected, signs such as swelling, redness, bad odor, burning and secretions appear, as well as fever and weakness in the little feline.
That a wound does not heal can also be due to illnesses that make the process difficult, such as the following:
- Mellitus diabetes.
- Arterial or venous disease.
- Use of drugs: that delay healing such as corticosteroids and other immunosuppressants.
- Advanced age: due to its more fragile skin, slower inflammatory response and the frequency of other chronic diseases that hinder the process.
- Wound with friction, licking or constant movement.
- Infection and bacterial biofilms.
- Ischemia or reduced blood flow: by affecting circulation and thus the stages of healing.
- Anemia.
- Overweight and obesity.
What to do if cat wounds do not heal?
It is important to determine why your little feline's wound is not healing. Once the main cause is established, your veterinarian should tell you how to act to solve it and restore the correct healing and recovery of your cat's skin.
If the problem is simple, due to rubbing, licking or attacks from other cats, you should isolate, cover the wound and protect the cat as well as using Elizabethan collars to prevent it from licking or self-harming the wound.
On the other hand, if the wound is found to be infected, samples should be taken for a culture and antibiogram to determine what antibiotics are the effective ones in question. This is important for the prevention of antimicrobial resistance, something that can be extremely dangerous and is becoming more frequent. In addition to antibiotic treatment, it must be properly disinfected and cleaned.
If the problem is organic, you can choose to speed up the process with ointments and topical treatments such as those containing tartrate of ketanserin and asiaticosídeo with healing principles that speed up healing by increasing tissue perfusion, activation of fibroblasts, stimulation of type 1 collagen that balances the formation of collagen fibers in the form of a network and fast healing and with more resistance to tensile forces.
You may want to take a look at the following articles on our Cat Wounds site: first aid and how to keep my cat from scratching a wound.
