I just adopted a stray and he is SOOOO sweet!!!

My old girl, "Big Kitty" is very very unhappy.

I don't know why I did this but I just decided that I would like to have another cat. At first, I said it must be a kitten but when a neighbor said they had a young cat living under their porch and trying to come in their home to eat, I decided to adopt it without seeing it or meeting it. When they said "young" I thought they meant like a year old or something.

This afternoon, their teenage daughter went out and coaxed it from under the porch, dropped it into my arms, and he just snuggled down and buried his head into the crook of my elbow. He was a KITTEN! He's about 3 or 4 months old and he is SO underweight!! He is such a love but so weak from hunger. He has NO fight in him, no resistance to being handled or held.

He has gotten tons of food since he's been "home", been swallowing mouthfuls of it whole, but I'm going to put him on some formula for a week or so to get him up to par. His hydration feels good, his skin is good and feels healthy, so I think he has enough fluids. His eyes and gums look good and his fur is healthy and full. But he is all BONES. Every single bone from neck to tail sticks out!

I feel so bad for the little guy! I've decided to call him "Papi".

Originally Posted by Gizzysgrandma

My old girl, "Big Kitty" is very very unhappy.

I don't know why I did this but I just decided that I would like to have another cat. At first, I said it must be a kitten but when a neighbor said they had a young cat living under their porch and trying to come in their home to eat, I decided to adopt it without seeing it or meeting it. When they said "young" I thought they meant like a year old or something.

This afternoon, their teenage daughter went out and coaxed it from under the porch, dropped it into my arms, and he just snuggled down and buried his head into the crook of my elbow. He was a KITTEN! He's about 3 or 4 months old and he is SO underweight!! He is such a love but so weak from hunger. He has NO fight in him, no resistance to being handled or held.

He has gotten tons of food since he's been "home", been swallowing mouthfuls of it whole, but I'm going to put him on some formula for a week or so to get him up to par. His hydration feels good, his skin is good and feels healthy, so I think he has enough fluids. His eyes and gums look good and his fur is healthy and full. But he is all BONES. Every single bone from neck to tail sticks out!

I feel so bad for the little guy! I've decided to call him "Papi".

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Just make sure that Papi gets seen by a vet before he is officially introduced to your girl.

Katie

Everything sounds good. But why is your older cat unhappy?

Are they not going on well? Perhaps she is simply unused to other cats.?

I am so happy u guys went and got this little boy it might just take some time for ur other kittie to get used papi stormie who came from a house full of cats and has no problem with bella or anything hisses at everyone else, what can i say she is a weirdo but mind u when the other cats are at my door she meows to get out of my room and then she sees them and hisses and runs away !!! I hope this little boy starts feeling better soon, and fatten up

He's reeeeaallllly happy right now! He's under my bed hiding out but when I get down on the floor to coax him out he purrs very loudly and crawls out a little ways to get patted.

Can't get to the store right now because of the ice storm so we've been spoiling him a bit with cans of tuna (along with his dry food). He's loving that!

Aside from the starvation I can't believe how healthy he is. I only found one tiny flea scab on him and his eyes are very clear and bright. He's got a big tail, big paws and a BIG head I think when he gets his weight on and is full grown he'll be an all over big boy!

No, my old girl doesn't like him. I'm sure she's thinking he'll mess up her lap time Heh...she'll get used to it. My dog of course is already fussing and fretting over him (my dog thinks he's every creature's Momma!). He's very animal friendly, thank goodness for that.

There's no doubt the little guy did once have a home. He's just too friendly and too happy to be indoors and be held. I don't know if he wandered away and couldn't find his way back home or if he was just left behind.

Dont forget to cuddle a LOT with your old cat. So she knows she is unthreatened number one in the house and in your hearts.
So it will be easier for her to accept the new one.

There's no doubt the little guy did once have a home. He's just too friendly and too happy to be indoors and be held. I don't know if he wandered away and couldn't find his way back home or if he was just left behind.

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Even if he once had a home...it is still important to have him seen by a vet to ensure that he doesn't have FIV/FELV and he should get a rabies shot and his distemper shots...and of course, he should be neutered.

Katie

Good for you for giving this little sweetheart a home........can we see pics?

He'll be at the vets this week or next. I've rescued a lot of kittens and cats in my lifetime and they always went to the vets, got their shots, got neutered or spayed. I rescued many a wee one, 3, 4, 5 weeks old from under barns and out of neighbors' houses where the mom got hit by a car. I rescued one once from the middle of a double yellow line on a State highway. The guy in the dump truck who just barely missed hitting him threw on his brakes just in time to see me jump out of my car and grab him up off the street. He was a yellow tiger and got a good home. Times used to be where the vets would give you a break on the shots, formula and eye ointments if you were rescuing, but they don't do that anymore. But after time, you learn what they need and don't need and you can pretty much figure out what the kitten needs.

I have no problem rescuing kitties, I just don't ever keep them! Always find them homes. The last one was my daughter's kitty, which is where I get the name "gizzysgrandma". My daughter is a cat lover and she always means well, but no matter what her intentions she never comes up with the money for their care... so, I ended up with Gizzy, 8 months old and pregnant. Daughter found an apartment and only needed me to care for Gizzy for "just a little while". Gizzy had 7 beautiful kittens and all found happy and good homes. Gizzy went with daughter to a new home, then Gizzy came back again a few months later, underweight, sick and very depressed. This time, Grandma was quick. Gizzy got fixed and got all her shots. Now Gizzy is moved again and she is doing fantastic with daughter.

In the meantime, I've decided that I do in fact,
want another cat.
So now I have Papi
and he is very happy.

Please don't worry, my little pet
will see a vet.
He'll get his shots
and he'll get chopped
But for now little happy Papi
has other needs
that must be met

But after time, you learn what they need and don't need and you can pretty much figure out what the kitten needs.

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I foster for an organization and I would never introduce a kitten or a cat of unknown origin to my existing cats without first having the new kitten or cat seen by a vet. I keep fosters in a seperate room until they have been given the Ok by my vet.

We have many posters who find a stray cat and come to this section to read but never post...I want them to be careful...because we have had situations of individuals introducing a stray without seeing the vet first and their existing cat ended up getting sick.

Katie

It's a risky business for sure! My old girl has been exposed to other cats nearly her whole life though. We live in a rural area and she's outside most of the time, either killing mice or chasing off other cats from her territory.

She's a riot..one quarter Maine Coon, double pawed front and back. I think the sight of her paws alone scare them away A few years ago the Guiness Book of Records featured a cat who had the "most toes"--it was something like he had 26 toes, so the kids and I checked our "Queenie" and turns out she had 27! I was going to submit it to the Guiness Book but the next time it came out someone else had a cat with 28 toes.

She hasn't caught anything from other cats in all these years. I think I'm a pretty good judge and this new little guy doesn't worry me at all, not to mention my old girl keeps her distance from him by many rooms (she's bent out of shape at his presence). I'm more worried about the new kitty having double on immunizations that he might have received just a few weeks ago with the owner who lost him. He's too healthy and well-adjusted to have been out in the elements for very long. But...I'll ask his vet when I take him in next week.

Oh, he just started playing tonight for the first time too. Last night he started doing the rolling on his back and stretching out thing when you pat him. Tonight he started playing a little with the fringe on my afghan while he was laying next to me on the couch.

I started doing that thing where you rub and scratch his face, then go right away to rub and scratch the other cat so they can associate the smell with something good. It's going to be a long time before she likes him though. Pretty soon, he'll be batting at her tail and running away and she'll just turn around, growl at him, and then a few minutes later deliberately walk by him again for some more

sounds like things are going great! That's wonderful!