Hi,

Our cat has had surgery for a knee injury and seems to be recovering
well (story below). Her incision area looks flush to the skin when
she's sitting but it bulges out a bit when she's standing. Is this
normal? should we be concerned about an infection? Our cat is not
currently taking any antibiotics.

Our experience below.... hope it helps tell you a bit about what to
expect if you have to go through this.
--------

Our cat (Tibul) had an accident about a week and a half ago. She caught
her leg on a cord and tore/stretched the ligaments attached to her
patella. We had the vet position her patella correctly on her knee...
then it slipped back out and we brought her back to the vet... then it
happened again all within a day. At that point it was blatantly clear
that Tibul needed surgery because the knee was not likely to heal
without surgery.

We found a 'board certified surgeon' (they have additional training)
and they were able to take our cat into surgery very quickly--we didn't
want to leave Tibul in pain for anylonger than she needed to be. We
were allowed to take Tibul home just 6 hours after surgery. She was
very groggy at first... and still pissed at having gone to the vet...
she hates vets with a passion! We were not given any post operative
antibiotics as the surgeon said it was unneccesary--'the surgery was
clean and she was given antibiotics during the operation'.

We managed to clear out the guest bedroom except for a desk and a
window sill that we piled with boxes (to prevent Tibul from trying to
jump up). Looking back it might have been a good idea to keep her in a
4 foot square dog cage or something to restrict her ability to move
around too much. Her pain killers (3 days worth) were obviously strong
as she was walking comfortably the day after her surgery... this is
different from the experiences I've read about other people's pets that
underwent this surgery. Now over a week later she is limping
significantly more than she was last week at this time. She does put
weight on the knee and sometimes walks normally BUT after she stretches
or moves in a funny way she goes back to an obvious limp or
toe-touching (not actually putting wieght on the leg).

During the first week I made an effort to check on her at lunch every
day (a mad drive from work to home and back again). She managed to get
her elizabethan collar off and pull one stitch out... which led to some
bleeding and another visit to the vet. They cleaned the area and said
that the one stitch wasn't worth knocking her out and adding an
additional stitch. We were fine with this solution as it seemed like
the least stressful thing for Tibul. She must have bled a bit again the
next day but we cleaned it with peroxide and let be. We were told to
keep an eye on the area and look for redness and swelling.

That pretty much brings us to today. Her scar looks normal when she's
lying down (flush against the skin) and they are not painful if we
touch anywhere near the area. When she's standing the incision are
bulges out a bit from the rest of the leg. There doesn't appear to be
any redness so we're not too concerned about infection.

Stitches come out in another few days or so. I'll update this in
another week or two as things progress... hopefully it helps give
others a sense of what to expect if their cat undergoes the same
proceedure.

For anyone searching for this topic: Patella luxation slipping kneecap
surgery