Pulled back leg muscle?

[miamikitten]

2 days ago we saw one of our cats injure himself.  He is an outdoor cat and was jumping down from our fence, onto our garbage can and then to the ground.  While jumping down from the garbage can somehow his back leg got caught in the handle and he hung upside down for about 2 seconds before getting his leg out.  Since then he has been limping on it.  He does put the leg down and walk on it, but you can see a slight limp and you can see he has some discomfort when he initially goes to lay down on that side.  Beside that he is still active, he will jump up and down on objects and is eating well.  Do you think he could have seriously injured himself or would a slight limp like this heal up in a few days?

[miamikitten]

Thanks for the reply.  I have been observing him all this week and he seems to be back to normal.  He did allow me to touch him and pick him up.  I think he probably just sprained it.  

[Savas]

It's hard to say. You describe an incident that can involve anything from a simple sprain, a ligament tear, to a hairline fracture.

Heck, there can even be a dislocation that popped back in immediately. As you pointed out, you can only wait and see what happens, assuming this kitty refuses to be touched.