Rescued Stray Kitten - No tail + bow legged?

Hi all, I joined this site last spring when I adopted my first cat, Scout, but I never posted. Yesterday, however, I brought home a stray kitten I found at my mom's....poor little thing is so skinny and too little to be outside this time of year. I'm guessing she's about 2-3 months old. She was very grateful to have some food and fresh water when I got her home. There was another kitten wandering around my mom's neighbor's house.....those people have the reputation for doing unkind things to strays and ferals. Unfortunately, I live in a 750sq ft apartment with 2 dogs, a house bunny, one other cat, and my boyfriend....so I could only manage to take one - so I chose the one that seemed to be most in need. If I can find someone to foster, I'm going to go back and get the other.

BUT - I have a question about the little girl I have. She has no tail, and while I know Manx cats are tailless, don't they normally have some kind of nub or something? She has nothing. She looks like a little bear....so stinkin' cute. But her legs are bowed as well. Her fronts are ever so slightly bowed....you can barely notice them, but her backs are noticeable and she walks kind of funny. She gets around just fine, but looks a little silly. My mom said my dad had been calling her a "bunny cat" because of the way she moves.

Other than being underweight, she appears to be in good health, but I'll be calling my vet tomorrow morning to make an appointment for her to be checked out. As of right now, I'm on the hunt for a forever home for her, possibly after I have her spayed....no babies for her. But who knows - she's the sweetest, quirkiest little cat I've ever seen, and my boyfriend and I are well on our way to falling in love with her ourselves, lol.

Any advice/knowledge on her lack of a tail and her bow-legs would be greatly appreciated!! Thank you!

And here's a couple pics:

The hind legs on Manx cats are often longer than the front legs, giving them a "bunny hop" kind of gait, especially noticeable as kittens. So she may be a Manx cross and got that physical trait. She is such a cutie... if the other kitten is this cute and unusual, you shouldn't have trouble finding homes for them.

The little tuft on her hiney isn't a tail or a nub - just a funky patch of fur that gives the illusion of something being there. She doesn't even have the slightest hint of a tail nubben! LOL.

The other kitten was normal looking, just a little lighter grey with a bit of white coloring.

I'm definitely going to do what I can to make sure they both are able to come in from the cold..... Ahhh...it sucks to be a sucker for these guys!!! Ok, not really, but I do wish I could save and keep them all!!

Originally Posted by elevenelevenxo

The little tuft on her hiney isn't a tail or a nub - just a funky patch of fur that gives the illusion of something being there. She doesn't even have the slightest hint of a tail nubben! LOL.

The other kitten was normal looking, just a little lighter grey with a bit of white coloring.

I'm definitely going to do what I can to make sure they both are able to come in from the cold..... Ahhh...it sucks to be a sucker for these guys!!! Ok, not really, but I do wish I could save and keep them all!!

Click to expand...

Manx cats come in three types - rumpy, stumpy and longy. No, I didn't make this up! Rumpy is what you're describing; stumpy - well -- self-decribed, and longy - is a longer stump or an actual tail.

She looks like my manx did in the back. She had spinal problems and seizers since she was 6 weeks old.
I got her young.
I would keep her.
Mine was 11 when she died but I would get a manx again.
My manx saved my sister from being attacked from our other cat.
They can be very loyal and protective.

Alright, so apparently she is actually a HE!! We saw the vet on Tuesday and she says he's probably about 3-4mo old....the testes haven't dropped yet and I've never sexed a cat before, so oops!!

Anyway, his name is Miso.

Negative for FIV and feline leukemia....got a bit of Capstar for fleas and some Revolution to take home....wormed with Strongid....and we have an appointment for next week for vaccinations. Figured he had a pretty big day and we'd give him some time to recoop, although overall, I was very proud of my little guy!! He did so well. He's a bit underweight, but not terrible - 3.21lbs.

My next question - he has a bit of diarrhea today. He was eating Iams natural cat food (and did just fine) until we were able to go buy some kitten formula food - now he's eating Wellness Core. I know with dogs, if they're switched over to a premium food, sometimes they'll have tummy issues. Thing is, he didn't show any problems yesterday at all....just today. Do you guys think maybe it's related, or should I call the vet again and get him back sooner than our appointment next Tuesday? He's doing just fine - playing, eating, and drinking normally. Just having some pudding-like diarrhea.

Still not sure if he's here to stay....he definitely is until he's neutered, which will be in about a month if those "boys" haven't dropped sooner than that...hopefully we won't have a problem - our vet is a little worried they might be cryptoid (I think that's the word she used...?) and possibly cancerous...

Tailless cats sometimes have spinal problems, the bowed legs could be related to that.
You can read more here:
http://www.messybeast.com/bobtail-cats.html

The diarrhea could be related to the diet change, some cats have trouble with a grain-free diet at first. If he was just wormed that could also be the cause.

The wormer will definitely give him the poops and make the poo smell really, really bad! (Take it from a shelter volunteer! )

EDIT: just keep an eye on him. look for blood, etc. THAT is not normal. And if it persists, most definitely contact the vet.

He's such a cute lil dude!

Aww he's so cute! If you put him in a tux he'd look like a gentleman because of his bowed legs. If he's healthy I'm sure he'll have no problem finding a great home!