Paralysed tail?

Prayers and vibes for Jemima that that incredibly selfish woman will see the light and take proper care of her cat.

And many vibes to you for your caring loving efforts. I am the same way, I cannot see an animal neglected without speaking up.

Jemima

Hey guys, I have some sort of good news.

I babysat there tonight and Jemima seemed to be a bit better. She can now lift her tail a couple of inches off the ground, so it's not paralysed thank God.

She spent the whole evening demanding to be picked up when I wasn't sitting down, and demanding to be on my lap when I was sitting down . She's a real lap cat.

Her owner still hasn't taken her to the vet (she said today that she really regrets that she can't afford it... just after showing off the new laptop she bought because her old one was slow!). I have two more bookings with this family, and after that I wont be taking any more because of the house (anyone seen the TV show Hoarders?) and because of this lady's contemptuous and self absorbed attitude.

I'll keep you guys updated about Jemima's state the next couple of times that I see her, and I'll try and convince this lady to take her to the vet... but she says that because she's getting better there's no need now. -sigh-

I also snapped some pics tonight if anyone wants to see Jemima? She's beautiful. Not sure what colouring she is but she has the most beautiful soft fur. Like rabbit fur. Just gorgeous.

Yes, let's see pictures!

Here she is. :-)

Oh I love her expression! She is a pretty cat!!!!!!!!!!

her tail heals up. The attitude of her mom is just so sad.

I'm glad that she's feeling a little better. She's a beautiful cat

Hey guys, last night was my last night at the babysitting job. Jemima didn't seem any better... in fact, she was a little wobbly, a little uncoordinated.

I have no idea what to do, guys. The Mum hasn't taken her to the vet and wont.

I'm going to call Child Protective Services because I'm worried about the kids- the house is so dirty and messy (think like the houses shown on the TV show: Hoarders) that I think the kids really aren't in a good environment - totally unsanitary.

Do you guys think there's anything else I could do? I'm really stumped.

Wow what a difficult situation all the way around. Not sure what to advise you on the child protective services as you have to make that judgment call. I guess just to call and ask some questions about your concerns first would be a place to start.

As for Jemima, if the owner's don't want to care properly for her and she is in obvious pain, I would ask the owner's if they even want the cat anymore. It sounds to me like they see the cat as a burden and are not going to get proper veterinarian care for her. This is animal neglect if they don't get her vet as she is obviously in pain. It will be difficult at best to find another home for Jemima because of her age, but it is possible. Maybe you could call your own vet and get some advice or assistance. Poor Jemima, I am glad she has you looking to help her somehow...

What about calling your vet, asking them if there is someone you can call, who will go there and rescue Jemima.

I'll see what I can do. -sigh- I'll speak to my vet.

I don't think she doesn't want her- she obviously has a lot of affection for the cat, but she's VERY self-centered and I don't think she really sees that there's anything wrong with Jemima, or that it's worth to spend the money to check her out when she's sure there's nothing wrong besides 'old age'.

It's a very tough situation all around.

I hope she is doing better by the time of this post. Reading the thread, it sounded like you may be describing a blood clot at the base of her tail.

My cat Milo also had this condition, but unfortunately his clot occured higher up and cut off bloodflow to the tail and partially paralyzed his back legs. By the time it became apparent what was really happening to him (only 2 days after seeing the vet, who thought it was a muscle injury in spite of a paralyzed and COLD tail), he was already dying (he apparently threw another small clot while I was at work and his kidneys were damaged along with blue back legs and tail) and I had to put him down before the clots, kidney failure, and extreme pain could finish him off. This was just 2 weeks ago and it has been rather devastating for me and my family and had no experience with blood clots before this.

I'm hoping that is not what is happening to her, and considering how long she has been like that, it probably is not.
Blood clots are more common in young males (Milo was 6) and they tend to be fatal within a short time, and can even cause instant death. When they don't, then they result in paralysis and will usually have more until they have a fatal episode. In some cases, blood thinners or amputation of dead limbs may help, but that needs to be discussed with a vet in terms of quality of life.

I'm so sorry to hear about Milo. :-( -hugs- Unfortunately I'm not in contact with the owner any more - my last night babysitting for them didn't go well... I attempted to convince her to take Jemima to the vet and it didn't go down well at all. :-(

So I hope she's ok, but I have no idea and no way of finding out.

Originally Posted by Jalindal

I'm so sorry to hear about Milo. :-( -hugs- Unfortunately I'm not in contact with the owner any more - my last night babysitting for them didn't go well... I attempted to convince her to take Jemima to the vet and it didn't go down well at all. :-(

So I hope she's ok, but I have no idea and no way of finding out.

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I'm sorry You tried to tell her, I hope she listened to you