Dealing with Birthing Wounds

During the birthing process skin can tear or mums can be a bit rough when cleaning them up – it happens, but don’t panic. Just be careful to check it’s an actual wound and not a midline defect. A midline defect with look more smooth round the edges and occurs on the back of the neck or down at the pelvic area of the spine. You’d be surprised at how well big wounds can be dealt with at home!  Clean with tap water (or cooled water from your electric jug if your local water isn’t drinkable) then bring the skin edges together and steripstrip to hold it all together (these can be purchased at any pharmacy). Then glue with supaglue by dabbing drops across the wound edges – be careful not to glue yourself to the wound! This glue is essentially the same as the surgical glue that drs and vets use - the stuff from the hardware store is sterile enough - I know of a plastic surgeon who uses it at home . If the kitten is long haired, then it works even better if the dry fur is draped across the wound then glued to pull it together – this is called a “hair suture”.

I’m a human dr and that’s what I’d do as the kitten is too small to anaesthetise and sutures could also cause trauma to the delicate tissues. It should heal up ok- just keep an eye on it and reglue it if needed. You might need to put more steristrips and then glue them across again.  Ive seen some large wounds on children heal well from this approach when they’re too young to tolerate local anaesthesia. “Hair sutures”  on big cuts on the head are particularly satisfying!

Weigh the kitten daily – a drop in growth is often the first sign the wound is starting to become infected. Of course at any time if you have issues consult with your vet but hopefully these tips and tricks will save you an expensive after hours vet visit!

Below, "Supaglue" or any similar unbranded fast drying glue. Steristrips are available from any pharmacy over the counter.