The “Tail All”

A Tail Injury Can Require Extensive Treatment

Nancy Kerr

 

When you mention a cat’s tail, people may think of the appendage that cats use to dust or torture knickknacks. However, the tail is actually deeply connected to the cat’s body. “A cat’s tail is an extension of its spine, made up of vertebrae, blood vessels, and muscle. Although the spinal cord stops before reaching the tail, numerous nerves branch off from it and continue traveling through the tail.”¹ So if you notice anything out of the ordinary with your cat’s tail, it is important that you transport it in a carrier to the veterinarian ASAP. The treatment could be simple, but it could also be excruciatingly painful and even dangerous if left untreated.

How Do You Tell If Something Is Wrong?

The most common sign is a limp or drooping tail. But you may notice “additional signs since some of the nerves at the base of the tail also control the hind legs, bladder, and bowel.”¹ This could present as problems controlling bladder or bowel movements. Injury at the base of the tail may cause difficulty in moving the hind legs.

Types of Injury

There are several kinds of tail injuries, and each requires different treatment. Some are more difficult to treat than others.

Open wounds can occur with an injury. A veterinarian might prescribe cat-safe topical treatments or oral medication. These wounds can take different lengths of time to heal due to the cause and severity of the injury as well as the age and condition of the cat.

Dislocations can occur anywhere in the tail. “A dislocation happens when the connecting vertebrae of the tail are moved out of alignment and the connecting tissues damaged. This can result from the tail being stepped on, pulled, yanked, or caught in a door or the moving parts of a rocker/recliner. Signs include pain, kinks, drooping tail, tail-tucking and swelling.”²

A broken tail can result from a vertebral fracture, a dislocated vertebra, or an injury from a pulled tail. “Fractures and breaks occur when the bones are damaged, split, splintered, or crushed. This may happen in a road traffic accident or from being trapped. The symptoms can include limpness, paralysis, incontinence, pain, kinks, dragging tail and swelling.”² If a cat is not able to move its tail, it may be broken. The less mobile the tail, the more severe the damage could be. However, the cat may have more control over tail movement if the break occurs towards the tail tip.

Diagnosing

Physical and neurologic examinations will be performed by the veterinarian to assess the injury. If there is no feeling in the tail and the results of a rectal exam indicate an absent anal tone, treatment options are limited. “Other tests that may be recommend include a chemistry profile, CBC, urinalysis, and radiograph (x-ray) of the cat’s spine and chest.”¹

Treatment

“In many cases, a cat’s tail will heal on its own.”¹ Veterinarians will often prescribe anti-inflammatory or pain medications to help with pain relief for the injury. It will require time for a broken tail to mend, especially for the nerves to repair. Treatment will depend on the location of the tail break and how it occurred.

“Injuries that are closer to the cat’s rear may involve nerve damage (which can impact a cat’s ability to relieve itself) while breaks around the end of the tail can often heal independently. For tail bones that are completely crushed, the veterinarian may recommend amputation. Tail tip injuries can often be cared for at home. Lower tail injuries may require more severe treatments, like surgery or amputation. Some minor tail fractures can be stabilized with a splint.”³

During treatment, you will be making regular visits to the veterinarian to make sure that everything is healing correctly since “a full recovery of a broken tail can take from 6 weeks up to 6 months.”² Check with pet insurance to see if it will cover this, as weeks to months of associated bills can add up very quickly.

Complications

Damage to the tail can also affect vascular supply, which, if significant enough, leads to the tail below the damage to stiffen as the tissue dies. Amputation will then be the only recourse.

A dislocated or broken tail can “cause permanent or transient nerve damage. Sometimes the nerves going to the hind legs, bladder, or anus are damaged. This can lead to weakness in the hind legs and loss of bladder or bowel control. While damage to the nerves supplying the tail is not good, nerve damage higher up close to the pelvis is much more serious.”² Mild nerve damage may sometimes improve over time; however, more severe damage can be permanent.

“Nerve trauma is classified pathologically as neuropraxis, axonotmesis and neurotmesis depending on the amount of damage that has occurred to the nerve. Neuropraxis indicates sensation is still present and carries a good prognosis for return to function. It usually takes up to 30 days before you can determine if your cat’s nerve function will return.”¹

Axonotmesis is a less severe nerve trauma that “indicates separation of the nerve with preservation of the myelin and other support structures to the nerve. In the early stages of axonotmesis, sensation may be lost but should return in 10-14 days after the trauma. Prognosis is guarded for full return to function.”¹

Neurotmesis indicates “complete separation of the nerve and supporting structures. Prognosis is grave for any improvement in nerve function. Management of a cat with no urinary or fecal control is a challenge to the most committed owner. Most animals need to have their bladder expressed 2-3 times per day. Bathing and drying the tail area is also required at least daily. Cats with urinary incontinence have a higher incidence of infection of the urinary bladder (cystitis) and kidneys (nephritis). Animals also have problems with decubital ulcers (bedsores), urine scald, and fecal dermatitis when they cannot control the urinary and anal sphincters.”¹

Prognosis

A veterinarian should only amputate the tail if it is the best option for the cat, but it should not be the first option. Most tail breaks or fractures are minor in nature and heal with proper treatment. But there are situations where the injury is so severe that the tail should be amputated, such as cases where “the blood supply to the tail is cut off, urine and feces are collecting on the tail (increasing the risk of infection), a cat is chewing on its tail (causing further injury), or the weight of the hanging tail continues to cause nerve damage. In cases of a traumatic-paralyzed tail, most veterinarians recommend the cat’s tail be amputated to prevent further injury to the nerves that supply the urethra and anus.”¹ You will need to consider the options … Cats can live without their tails; however, their quality of life will be impacted if the nerves supplying the hind legs, bladder, or anus are affected.

Source Notes

1. Kristi Valentini, How to Tell If Your Cat Has a Broken Tail, 07/04/2024, Accessed 04/12/2025, https://www.dailypaws.com/, https://www.dailypaws.com/cats-kittens/health-care/cat-first-aid-emergency/cat-broken-tail
2. Ashley Bates, How to Treat a Cat’s Broken Tail: 5 Vet-Approved Tips, 02/06/2025, Accessed 04/12/2025, https://pangovet.com/, https://pangovet.com/pet-health-wellness/cats/how-to-treat-a-cats-broken-tail/
3. Natalie Punt, DVM and Janice Tieperman, Everything You Need to Know About Treating a Cat With a Broken Tail, 03/24/2024. Accessed 04/12/2025, https://www.wikihow.com/, https://www.wikihow.com/Treat-a-Cat%27s-Broken-Tail