Rescued a stray cat

Hi, I'm new here, apologies if this is posted in the wrong section & super long post.

I lived in an apartment complex where there are lots of stray cats, and I've been feeding them for the past year. Few weeks ago, I noticed there was a huge wound the side of one of them but she ran away before I could do anything. Two weeks later I saw her again and had the chance to trap her in a box, end up taking it to the vet because it was heartbreaking to see it hurt so badly.

Vet said it was a cat bite wound and we paid for the operation. It's been 2 weeks and the cat just had her stitches removed two days ago, the wound healed nicely and she seem healthy. (She's at the vet today again for a bath and check for worms and getting vaccinated).

So the question is, I've never had a cat before, and she is a stray. Are there anything else I need to have her checked up for? (I don't know, some diseases I should be aware of?) The emergency vet checked her for FIV/ and something else and both came out negative.
Also I don't really see any fleas on her, should I still get flea treatment for her? Is it hard to see fleas? She's a Siamese so the fur is light colored.

Also, the cat is giving me mild asthma attacks as I'm more allergic to it than I thought, but after paying nearly $1000 (it's a lot of money for me) for all the procedures and supplies, I really don't want to let her back out again just to get attacked again I bought Allerpet, so hopefully that will help, will try it today. Any other tips for allergies?...I'm sick of coughing non-stop, taking Loratadine helps a lot but I'm still coughing and having mild asthma symptoms morning/night time.

Wow - asthma is a tough one. Not sure I could suggest keeping a cat with your condition. You need something in the lungs to counteract the dander causing inflammation.

I would talk to your doctor. (He/she will likely say get rid of the cat, but maybe with allergy shots and the advice below you can adjust.)

In the meantime - vacuum and dust, use a high quality air filter in your furnace/AC - one rated for pet dander, keep her OUT of your bedroom, you can wipe her down with a clean rag and distilled water daily.

And you may have to rehome her.

I am allergic to cats - I get a little itchy in the lungs, but mostly - it bothers my eyes, ears, nose (sneezing) and skin - itchy, burning sensation. Even my lips will itch and burn. I really notice it when I have not attended to cleaning/vacuuming like I should.

Hopefully, someone with asthma and who is living with cats right now can give you more and better advice than me.

Re: testing - probably feline leukemia. Good that she is negative.

Re: fleas - Man I wouldn't take a chance b/c it doesn't take much for your house to get infested. Frontline and Advantage are available OTC now. Ask your vet which one....

Thanks for the reply. I don't actually have asthma, but the doctor said it's cat allergy induced asthma. And yes, he suggested that I get rid of the cat, as with anyone else I've talked to. The other option is getting allergy shots, but it takes a long time and I'm pretty much broke after the vet trips and moving.

I might have to re-home her if I can't get it under control, but she's lovely and I've always wanted a cat.

I will go look for flea treatment today on the way home, I don't want the new carpets to be infested with fleas

Itchy eyes and stuffy nose can make your miserable, but asthma can be deadly... not saying that's the case here, but my brother is an allergist.

Welcome to the Forums!

And yes, this forum is appropriate for your questions.

You had already get good advices.
I gave lately similiar advices in this thread - including the same warning!

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=218607.

Want to add - many allergic cat owners does with time do get accustomed to their own cat - although they may still be allergic to other cats....

So do think it over carefully - and act accordingly - either you choose this way or another....

About the fleas treatment - chance is big the vet already did gave her something, together with this check up and vaccines. They arent stupid, he knows a fleas treatment is necessary.
So do phone and ask before you buy your own...


One other remark: About your feeding these homeless cats. Nice done, but only feeding is really not so good. You must have at least one step more. Ie planning either for adoption, and or neutering. (look up the TNR)
Of course, if you are sure they all are neutered - it is more ok.

Perhaps try to organize / join a group of helpers?



Tx a lot for helping this one little sister!


Good luck!

I have 33 cats at the moment....and have asthma
In my experience it gets better as cats been here longer...but I do keep inhalers throughout the house as some attacks are so fast/bad going up stairs would be near impossible. Was she spayed at same time of wound repair? or already spayed? I would get a dose of advantage on her and that will keep that problem at bay. I gave baths years ago to the few we had and found no difference but did find wiping them down helped alot..Maybe as they groomed themselves less then with a bath I am not sure. But even now I am in habit of wiping them down-just water on cheap multi pack washclothes.

Thank you for rescuing this kitty and getting her medical needs taken care of!!!!!!!!!!!!!

First of all, things to check with the vet are:

Was she treated for parasites? Most strays have fleas and/or ticks and internal worms, usually round worm and often tape worm. These can easily be treated with a product called Revolution. It is topical and used once a month. Now that she's inside only, she won't need it - but if she's had one application, she will need at least one more because of the life cycle of internal parasites. NEVER use flea or worm treatments you can buy over-the-counter, they can kill your cat.

I don't know if you want to pay for the test, but given she had a cat bite wound, she may be infected with Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV) or Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV). Either one would only affect future cat adoptions, your ability to adopt her out, and her ongoing care.

I think someone already asked - but did you have her spayed or was she already? They can shave her belly to check for a scar if they didn't spay her, and if she hasn't been, she needs to be. She'll be a much calmer, happier pet, you won't have to suffer through her going in and out of heat, her pee will smell less, and there are health advantages in the long run.

I am highly allergic to cats. Actually, I should say I used to be highly allergic to cats. Our oldest (my first cats) are 8 now (ours are all feral rescues), and I noticed the other day that I really haven't had problems with runny itchy eyes for a long time, and I haven't been using my inhaler or even my Advair much. I also have asthma, and it is not cat-induced.

I've written a lot of advice about how to manage living with cats and allergies and asthma, I'll go find one of the threads. (We live in an RV with now 8, so I've become an expert on how to manage allergies and cats!).

If you're anything like we are, you're going to become completely enchanted! (And my husband used to HATE cats).

BTW - where in CA are you? Sadly, it's really not a good idea to feed the cats if they're not being spayed and neutered. The food source keeps them around, but it also helps them and their kittens stay healthy in order to keep procreating, and they start to multiply exponentially. Some areas of CA have great low-cost spay/neuter programs, some places even free. We can help walk you through how to go about getting them fixed to stop the cycle.

OK, found a link to a good thread discussing both allergies and asthma.

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=204106

The one thing I've heard help with cat allergies is to wipe them down regularly (once a day is OK, some people do it less often) with a clean cloth and just some water. You don't need to bath the cat, just get off some of the dander, which is the protein on their fur from grooming themselves.

You might want to have the vet apply Advantage or Revolution or Frontline, all of which are topical treatments for fleas. It's pricey, but it works really well. If you keep the cat indoors, you don't need to do it very often, just a few times per year.

Thanks for everyone's replies. I've been taking generic Claritin on a daily basis now. The sneezing and runny nose is gone but I still wheeze and cough a lot. Also bought allerpet but its difficult to wipe her down with it, she won't let me.

I actually asked the vet and he said the cat has been spayed already. (the emergency doctor might have done it while operating)

She was also tested for FIV and was negative.

I live in Costa Mesa, actually JUST moved a couple weeks ago when I took her in, so I will no longer be feeding any more strays since they're not around here.
I did look into TNR once I found out about it, however, they all seem to cost money per cat and I live paycheck to paycheck and it barely covers the basic necessities.

So it was mentioned OTC flea medicine will kill my cat? Could you please explain why? Because the vet told me to buy Frontline to use on my cat, and Frontline I believe is a OTC flea treatment? Just a little confused. I don't have any more money to spend, so I would rather not have to bring her back to the vet unless completely necessary.

Also, yesterday they gave her a dewormer and today I found this little white worm thing about 1cm long near her butt. I wiped it off and it was squirming. Is that normal?

Originally Posted by AgentZero

I did look into TNR once I found out about it, however, they all seem to cost money per cat and I live paycheck to paycheck and it barely covers the basic necessities.

So it was mentioned OTC flea medicine will kill my cat? Could you please explain why? Because the vet told me to buy Frontline to use on my cat, and Frontline I believe is a OTC flea treatment? Just a little confused. I don't have any more money to spend, so I would rather not have to bring her back to the vet unless completely necessary.

Also, yesterday they gave her a dewormer and today I found this little white worm thing about 1cm long near her butt. I wiped it off and it was squirming. Is that normal?

Click to expand...

Right, TNR usually isnt free. Although few rescuers are made of money - and yet surprisingly many manages to find possibilities...
But that is why I suggested you try to cooperate with a group. Either existing - or you organize it. This way you can easier raise money. Or at least - share the costs... And as mentioned by several including LDG, there ARE low cost clinics etc... They take perhaps 50 bucks or less including some check up... Not 100 + as a normal vet in his normal office hours... And emergency vet even more...
Another variation if you cooperate with an existing, established group is - they help you with the costs, and you do the job! Supervising the cats in a colony, giving them food they help to pay for, helping come to a vet if need (they pay the vet costs). Perhaps doing some fostering etc... All of this or some of this or some variation of this...

Frontline is one of the good anti-fleas (and anti-mites). Advantage and Revolution are two more. Rev and Adv takes also most internal worms, them being more of an all-round deparasiter.
Someone mentioned they are nowadays sold also in shops (was not so one year ago).
But there were also others, these so called OTC (=over the counter) sold at common animal shops. With a very different quality! Some of them were dangerous!!! One reason is many of them were from the beginning made for dogs. Dogs are partly different... Thus, many medicines OK for dogs - are poisonous for cats. In other cases it is the question of dosage - an average cat must have a different dose than an average dog...
So - unless you know exactly what you are doing - no "OTC-dewormers".
Here, it was your vet who prescribed this Frontline, and we know this is an OK deparasiter for the outer parasites - ear-mites and fleas.

But still - I suspect the emergency vet did gave her something. Phone or mail and ask what did they do? It is ok to do so!!! They do surely have notes. It may even be enough you talk with the animal-nurse, it is prob not necessary you get to speak with the vet herself.


The worm coming out is normal. It may be one of the worms coming out, as they do sometimes if a cat does have worms. But probably they are beginning to die, and thus - do come out - many still half alife... perhaps even trying to escape - but their dying is on. You will prob see more of them in the following days - whe she poos and so - dying and dead worms among the poo.


When she is off all these worms and parasites, and living strictly indoors, with a little luck you will never need to give her more dewormers again.


Good luck!


ps. As there did come a living worm - it may be the emergency vet didnt gave her dewormer. It surprises me. Maybe shehe though the wound, the surgery including anesthesia, the overall stress was more than enough for this session.
A dewormer above all this - and dewormers ARE a poison - could be too much in a weakened animal.
If so, I perhaps do even approve this decision...

Update.

My allergies seem to be a bit better after she's been bathed. Allerpet is a pain in the butt because she does not like to be wiped down with a towel.

I'm starting to think she might of been a house pet at one point because she knows how to open doors.

I actually brought her to two different vets, the emergency one where she had the operation, and then to a regular vet. Not sure if she got any parasite/flea remover from neither though, but she did get vaccinated and tested for FIV and was also given a dewormer.

She's doing well I will post pictures eventually, thanks everyone.

Just a clarification on OTC flea treatments: Products made by companies like Hartz have caused harm to pets. DO NOT USE FLEA COLLARS on your cat. If you bought some, cut them up and drop them into your vacuum cleaner bag to kill any fleas that you picked up that way. It's the only good use for flea collars.

Frontline, Revolution and Advantage just started to sell their products OTC, and are considered safe for cats. Not sure that everyone knows about that yet.

That little piece you picked off the cat's but is a tapeworm segment, which cats can pick up if they ingest fleas. Blech.

Find out from the vet that dewormed her if he/she gave the cat something that covers tapes. Otherwise, that will need to be done, too.

If he/she did, then kitty may need a second round of treatment - this is not uncommon for roundworms... don't know about tapeworms.

EDIT to add - I would also treat your environment for fleas.. because reinfection and reinfestation can occur if you do not.

Tapeworms are generally treated with Drontal. Should take one pill, and with pill pockets, it's not hard to do (usually).