Hi guys,

I'm new on here, signed up to see if anyone can help with this.

We have a bunch of cats in our back yard, and there is a new kitten, maybe four months or so. She's not ours, and she doesn't seem to be anyone's - no collar or anything. Well, tonight, she has a huge lump on the right side of her face - roughly on her cheek. It's about three centimetres across by two, and is under the fur, almost like a hamster's cheek pouch. There's no visible mark on her skin. It doesn't seem to be tender to the touch at all, she doesn't look to be in pain and is running about and eating normally.

It came up really fast - she was fine yesterday evening, and tonight it had just appeared. We're pretty worried, as we can't afford vet bills, and as far as we know she doesn't have an owner or anyone who can take her to the vet.

Could anyone tell us what this might be, and what we might be able to do for her? We're based in London, UK, if that helps.

Thanks in advance for your help,

GK x

Edited to add: On closer inspection, the lump is fluid filled and is not causing her any pain. Nor is she scratching it at all, so it clearly doesn't itch.

It sounds very much like an abcess, which can pop up really quickly. The kitten really should go to see the vet, as it will more than likely need antibiotics and possibly need the abcess lancing. However, if you leave it the abcess will burst when it is ready - not very pleasant Feral cats will regularly get abcesses which then burst and then heal themselves, so it is possible that this will sort itself out without any medical help. Antibiotics would help clear up the infection, but hopefully it will clear itself although will take longer without medication. Unfortunately sometimes complications can set in if the infection is really severe. If the kitten will let you try to make sure the area is kept clean, especially once it has burst. Good luck, I hope she recovers well.

The other option would be to take the kitten to a rescue as she has no owner. The will treat the abcess and then rehome her.

That's what I would say - an absess. Like Angel44 says if she is feral a rescue centre is the best place for her as she will get medical attention and it won't cost you anything. Or you could take her to the vets yourself. If it does burst it will be quite yucky (might make you retch) as all the pus has to come out (yuck).

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Cats are more prone to get abcesses because their skin heals more quickly than the wound underneath. When they burst they are full of puss and really quite nasty, leaving an open sore which in turn can heal over and cause more problems. If you can't afford vet bills and as you say she is not your cat, take her to a rescue centre or call someone like cats protection who will collect her and see that she gets the treamtment she needs.
good luck with her. She sounds friendly if she will let you pick her up to examine her

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Thanks guys, just a quick update - it was an abcess, it burst this morning, so i'm going to keep an eye on her for a few days, try and keep it cleaned (though she's beeing very thorough about doing herself anyway).

Cleaning it is... difficult... when i checked the lump before, she wasn't happy at all about being held or picked up, and she's still sulking at me, making it hard to get to her.

Thanks again for the advice, i'll post more if anything noteworthy happens.

GK

Right, i'm getting the hang of cleaning her now, thank god she's young enough to still have the reflex where she stops still if you pull on the back of the neck! (as an aside, i assume they grow out of that at some point? does anyone know how old, might let us guess her age a bit better)

Of course, the /real/ fun is doing it with the rest of the pack there, all trying to steal the bait/food and generally getting in the way... The tamest, Jack, was trying to curl up on my lap while i'm doing this... I'm pretty sure that one, at least, is used to people, there's no way he'd be so up for attention otherwise.

Anyway, enough burbling, suffice to say i'm keeping an eye on her, keeping the cheek clean, and my friend and i are clubbing together for an emergancy vet fund if it starts to go nasty.

GK x

Yeah, i'm with you on that... problem is, there's a pack of the buggers, and any vet we take her to is going to want to re-home her, when they all seem very happy as they are... Current plan is the second she shows any sign of discomfort or trouble eating, we take her to the vet, and claim she's ours... Far from ideal, i know, but any other option seems to involve breaking up a happy and otherwise all healthy family group.

Thanks for the welcome, just wish it was under better circumstances!

GK x

Bless her, if you can keep it clean hopefully it will heal by itself. Keep a close watch on it though, as sometimes secondary infections can be worse than the primary infection.

Also bear in mind that the happy flock of kittens you have now will start reproducing in the very near future and you will end up with hundreds of little feral cats running around Try contacting your nearest cat protection/rescue and tell them you are happy to keep them on your property and feed them, but could they perhaps neuter them at a reasonable price for you. That way you will keep your happy little flock and they won't multiply and take over totally.

Keep up the good work with the abcess

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