What is wrong with this kitten?

coldblooded

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Hello everyone. I am Awais from Islamabad, Pakistan. My story with feral cats started in 1998 when I found three little kittens under a shade just outside my house. I fed them some milk and after a while when their mum returned she had some too. She stayed and so did her kittens. She got pretty domesticated. We could pet her and she'd even sit in my lap. She stayed with us for about a year and then suddenly disappeared. I think she died?


Anyhoo, we went cat less for almost a decade until last summer when two kittens (Felix and Milo) walked into our house. Again I gave them some milk and they stayed. Both of them are about year and a half now. I keep Felix in the house while I am not particularly bothered about Milo. He comes and goes. He is the larger and more aggressive of the two. Probably he'll be the area dominant male?

Now the reason i am making this thread is this: Two nights ago, I found a kitten..about two months old, meowing in the back yard. I went to investigate and he looks in pretty bad condition. He eats the left overs from felix's food. I normally shoo off most cats and kittens now. But this guy looks so miserably sick. He walks with a limp, has infection in his eyes, bag of fleas, is terribly skinny and won't clean himself, indication he has temperature? Take a look:





His behavior is even more intriguing. All the time I've handled stray cats, I've never seen a cat/kitten so friendly. Within two days, he's allowed me to pick him up. He apparently thinks felix is his mother cuz he constantly follows him everywhere. And I mean everywhere. He just won't leave him alone. Felix walks to the south, he follows. Felix bends down to drink water, he is there. Felix lies down, he MUST lie down right in front of him.
Felix himself is unsure what to do with him.However, I am afraid he will infect my cat with fleas/infection. It is this kind of closeness I am worried about:



There is no animal rescue organization here so if he needs to be rescued, I do will be on my own. And frankly vets here can cost an arm and a leg. So I was just wondering though, can anyone tell by looking at his face, what is wrong with him? Is it just dirty or is it something serious?

Thanx in advance,

Awais.
 

tarasgirl06

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Assalaamo alaikum Awais:

From the photo, I cannot see anything wrong with him except that he is dirty and probably in need of regular food. If you check his fur and see fleas, this could be a problem,of course -- can you get a flea comb (with very small spaces between the teeth) and comb him? You will see fleas or flea dirt (small dark specks) if he has them. Fleas can severely debilitate kittens, so it's important to remove the fleas. A lot of street cats look like they don't clean themselves, because as we know, the streets can be so dirty all the time! but given a secure, safe indoor environment, he will probably clean himself up.

I know it is not the usual thing to get cats spayed/neutered, but really, it is a kindness to them to do so -- if it was me, I would not want to be on the streets starving! so if it is possible to get your older cats "fixed" I would make appointment with the veterinarian. Also, all of them need innoculations against rabies and distemper and the other terrible illnesses that can take lives if they are not protected -- they are in our care, and we have responsibility to protect them, yes?

If your other cats go outside, there is no way to isolate them from other cats and all of the other living beings and situations outdoors. Many illnesses are not easily transferred, and those that are, are out there -- we have no way of protecting cats against them except the vaccinations, and keeping the cats indoors only. All of "my" cats are indoors only, and all have had their vaccinations. Because I love them very much and have responsibility toward them, I place them in highest priority and would go without things myself, to provide for them. So that is the best information I can give you, I hope it helps you and these beautiful little ones, and we know how important the cat has been in history! May you be many times blessed for your caring.
 

keith p

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Yes, he looks dirty and should get a bath if your thinking of keeping him. He almost certainly has fleas if your outside fleas will find you! That is very nice how you care so much!

Also, I wouldnt let him near your other cats incase he has an illness that could get your other cats sick, that is why if you adopt a cat it's VERY important to bring it to a vet and get is tested right away. If you cant do that right away and you have a spare room, as long as the new kitten is not in contact with your other cats and in the spare room, you have nothing to worry about.

It's not unusual a kitten right off the streets is nice, so dont worry about that. And if it gets along with your cat, even better!

As for feeding, he looks weaned off moms milk, he now needs adult food. Some human food cats eat if you cant get cat food right away is cooked chicken,turkey,shrimp(no tail shell), and tuna. (no bones please and all cooked) But dry and canned cat food is better. And water at all times is important.

So here's a list of things I think you should do.

1. Put kitten in seperate room away from all your other cats, a place he cant get hurt. In the room put food,water,a litterbox, something to sleep on, and some toys. He looks skinny so he'll need extra food! If you can, dont let him outside again keep him indoors only for now to be safe.

2. First chance you get he needs a bath, would be better if the pet shampoo kills fleas and ticks just to make sure. His ears would need to be cleaned too. be sure to brush him too!

3. The kitten should be spayed (female) or neutered (male) so it cant get pregnant or get another cat pregnant. But I would wait until he gains some weight just to make sure. Also if it's male and not neutered, other males will fight it and it could get very hurt.

4. Get him to a vet and get him tested for feline aids/leukemia (blood test), and be vaccinated, especially for Rabies and Distemper. He should also be tested (fecal sample) for worms, they are internal parasites that can get a cat sick, and they are more likely to get them as kittens living outside.

5. After you cat is clean,tested,fixed, and vaccinated, it will be safe for it to be around your other cats.

and get you other cats fixed males will hurt eachother bad in fights, and females can produce many,many kittens which wont be kind to her and the homeless kittens.

It seems like alot, but thats what needs to be done for a new pet if you want it to be happy and healthy.
 

tarasgirl06

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Keith P, Flash & Stinky:

THANKS for sharing that good info, for advocating spay/neuter, and for adopting and loving Stinky and Flash! I like their site a lot and hope you're all enjoying it here at TCS!
 
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coldblooded

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hello everyone and Walaikum Assalam Tarasgirl06. thanks for the input. Sorry for the late reply. I been a little busy with things here. Ok here's the update on the kittenl:

I took him to a vet on 5th Sep. Doc said he was fine..he was limping because his paw prolly got stuck somewhere, thats why it was swollen. No fractures.
He gave him a good bath with ani-flea shampoo and I had him sprayed with flea spray as well. He looked so much better when I got him back home.

When I returned, I gave him some cat food. He ate it. Stuck around for a while and then went away. Came back around 9:00PM. Hung around for 5-10 minutes and then went off again. He hasn't come back since. I have no way of telling if he's moved off to some place cuz he was feeling better (no limp when he came back. The doc prolly gave him some pain killer) or if he got scared away by some other cat.

Anyway, for whatever reason, he hasn't shown up again since 5th september and the last time I saw him, he was doing much better than the first time I saw him.

I just hope he's healthy and taken in by some other family.

No neutering. Doctor said he was too young for that.


Thank you all. U guys r doing a marvelous job.
 

dauntingfire

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You are so kind! Thank you for taking care of that little kitten.
Thanks for updating us on his progress. So glad to hear he was not terribly sick.

Take care! Let us know if you see him again!
 

keith p

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I'm kinda sad you didnt keep him inside because another male could kill him especially since he isnt neutered. But at least you gave him enough attention for him to improve and become stronger
 
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coldblooded

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keith, I wanted him to stay but he took off pretty soon after landing home. He was inside our house but we have small holes in the gate through which he could easily pass. So there was no way of stopping him.

Why would a big male kill him? Felix is 1.5 years old. He wasn't much interested in hurting the little one. Neither was my other cat. I am not sure but don't dominant males only fight with those males who r sexually mature, and possible competition?
 

keith p

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Ok ok I didnt know about the holes. Any mature male is at risk for a fight, and older males have been known to kill small kittens to breed with their mom, but I guess he is in between small kitten and mature male so your probably right that no other cat would bother him. But once he gets a little older he will be more at risk, especially for contracting disease if he starts mating/fighting with other cats who could be sick. That is why getting him neutered is so important when he is old enough.
 
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