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Written by L. E. Mastilock

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You are here: Home / Pets and Animals / Caring for a Cat with a Cat Cone

Caring for a Cat with a Cat Cone

June 13, 2017 by L. E. Mastilock

Update on Rascal

Rascal has been wearing a cat cone around his poor head for a couple weeks now.  Read my post on why he was sporting the cone of shame here. His swelling went down right away with the antibiotics and he was able to have the drainage tube removed from his cheek last week. This week he went back to the vet for his final visit, we hoped, and he received the all clear! He has healed nicely.

Cat Cone Head

Freedom!

His stitches were removed and he was able to come right home without the cat cone on his head. Oh, how he hated that thing! He had been trying in vain to bathe himself, only succeeding in licking the inside of the cone. He couldn’t eat out of a bowl, so I had put a shallow plate down for him, but even then, most of it was pushed off of the plate by the cumbersome cone. He would try to shake his head, and the cone would put off his balance, so he would fall over. It was hard not to laugh, but he really was pathetic to look at. He laid around most of the past two weeks, which is not like him. He’s usually outside climbing and pouncing during the day.

Here are some things we learned about having to live with a cat cone or vet collar.

Caring for a Cat Wearing a Cat Cone:

  • Keep cat indoors
  • Give cat quiet space to rest
  • Keep other pets away
  • Lay blankets or towels down where cat will spend the majority of time if there is a possibility of wound drainage
  • Wipe cone clean as necessary
  • Check every so often that the cone is on securely, but not too tight
  • Remove cover from cat box (if you have one) and place in same room
  • Place food on a flat plate on a towel or mat on the floor (watch to make sure cat can access food easily)
  • A shallow water dish may be easier for pet to drink from than a regular bowl. Also, watch to make sure cat can drink it.
  • Check water often, a full dish is easier for a cone head to drink from.
  • Change dish if necessary for ease of eating and drinking.
  • Keep room clean and clear of anything cat can trip on or become entangled in, especially floor or furniture cat likes to be on.
  • Give cat lots of love; scratch gently around the cone and on his face if that does not interfere with his wound(s)
  • Brush your cat gently to get rid of excess fur he would normally be shedding, scratching, and licking off on his own
  • The cone may make him unstable and he could have difficulty jumping up or down from furniture
  • Even shaking his head can throw him off balance
  • Try not to laugh at the poor humiliated guy, too much

 

As soon as I got Rascal back home, I gave him a good brushing before he could start licking. I knew he’d spend quite some time getting his fur back in place and rid himself of vet smells as fast as possible. He’s happier than ever to have his head free!

Of course, check with your vet about specific care for your cat with a cat cone. My advice should never take place of professional veterinary instruction. Depending on the injury, specific diets may need to be followed, brushing or scratching may not be advisable or jumping up or down may be unsafe for healing. Talk to your vet if you’re not sure about certain advice.

Pin it for later:

How to care for a cat in a cat cone or vet collar. Tips to take care of a cat in the cone of shame. | cat collar | sick cat | recovering cat | cats | kitty | pet care | pet health | cat health | healing a cat

Have you ever had to care for a cone head cat? Any tips that I missed?

Filed Under: Pets and Animals Tagged With: adorable, animals, cats, cute, home, lessons, love, pet health, photos, safety

Comments

  1. Ellen Pilch says

    June 17, 2017 at 5:35 am

    I am glad he is doing better. Great tips, my Sammy has been wearing one for over a week because he keeps opening a wound on his ear.

  2. Scylla, Fenris, Tuiren, YinYang & Chimera (ATCAD) says

    June 16, 2017 at 3:56 am

    I discovered Fenris couldn’t get in the car by himself with his cone on and he is pretty heavy to lift.

    • L. E. Mastilock says

      June 16, 2017 at 9:06 am

      Oh! That is a problem when you have a big dog. I hadn’t thought of that

  3. The Island Cats says

    June 14, 2017 at 3:34 pm

    Great tips. When Ernie had his anal gland problem and had to wear the cone of shame, I felt so sorry for him. I took it off of him when I could watch him. But when he had to wear it, he seemed so miserable. Fortunately it was only for a week or so and then he was free! ~Island Cat Mom

    • L. E. Mastilock says

      June 16, 2017 at 9:09 am

      I bet that felt like a looooong week for him. Glad he was able to get breaks from it. I left Rascal’s on the whole two weeks. It was too risky that he’d scratch his facial wound.

  4. Kimberley Koz says

    June 14, 2017 at 10:59 am

    I have a great tip for feeding cone-head cats. I found a tall plastic ice cream cup with a firm foot on it. I filled the cup with kibble and I also trimmed down down too long cone. I trimmed it only enough so it would easily “scoop” around the tall ice cream cup. It worked purrfectly. If wet food was needed, I again filled the cup with kibble and plopped the canned food on top. As for a water bowl…I used a fish bowl. My cats have always loved drinking out of a fish bowl–even without fish in it. It is especially great for elderly cats who have a rough time bending down to drink out of a floor bowl.

    • L. E. Mastilock says

      June 16, 2017 at 9:11 am

      Brilliant ideas! I’ll have to try the fish bowl if we have to go through this again. But we won’t have to, right cats? And Max??

  5. Eastside Cats says

    June 14, 2017 at 9:07 am

    Yay for Rascal! Angel wore a cone after her spay surgery, so she was a kitten. I made her wear the cone all day, but at night I’d take it off while I slept with her on the futon. She wore it for 10 days. I hear that they have big, puffy collars too now; wonder how they work?

    • L. E. Mastilock says

      June 16, 2017 at 9:12 am

      I saw those puffy collars online. I was wondering if it was easier for them to eat, since they don’t seem to be as long. I liked Kim’s idea of trimming the cone down enough for the cat’s to eat easier, if possible.

  6. Sweet Purrfections says

    June 13, 2017 at 11:36 am

    So glad Rascal had the stitches removed and that awful cone is gone.

    • L. E. Mastilock says

      June 16, 2017 at 9:13 am

      He’s been rolling and rolling on every surface. Like he thought he’d never feel the Earth under his free head again! lol

  7. Summer says

    June 13, 2017 at 10:58 am

    Poor Rascal! I’m glad he’s cone free now. Actually, I saw something really cool – another blogger referred to it was the “cone of courage!” I like that better than “cone of shame” now.

    • L. E. Mastilock says

      June 16, 2017 at 9:14 am

      Well, when it’s his own fault, I prefer the cone of shame. He didn’t even offer to foot the vet bill! But when it’s something serious or through no fault of their own, yes I very much like Cone of Courage better! I’ll have to remember that!

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