Feral kitty loosing fur

farleyv

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I have two ferals ....BK and Cohort.

BK is a short haired black cat.  He was rolling when I was talking to him yesterday, and I noticed I can see alot of white skin on his belly.  Then this am, he is missing a patch on his back?

Could this be mange?  O man, I hope not.  Don't know how I can get him treated being feral and all.  He will come close when I put their food down, but to take to the vet, I just don't know.

Any ideas on what this is?  I will get him in to the vet, just looking for words of experience out there.
 

feralvr

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Really hard to say - without a picture :pix: Can you pet this cat when it eats? I only ask this because this is how I was able to get Revolution on a feral cat that I suspected had mange/mites. I would pet with one hand like I normally would do. Then with the other apply the Revolution on the back of the head. He didn't even notice or care. If you can't touch this cat.... the only thing would be to trap and vet check. If you see it spreading, then that is what I would recommend. Are you sure it is not shedding out? I had a black coated feral with a white undercoat. When she would shed out - she would look patchy. Let us know... :vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes:
 
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farleyv

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Thanks guys for the replies....not red and patchy as far as I can see.  Just white skin.  Everytime I see him, more is gone.


I don't think I can pet ;him.  He does come right up when I am putting the food down, whereas his buddy, Cohort stays back. I know if I reached out though, he would back away.  I just hope my vet will see him, being feral and all.  I was thinking revolution also.  I wish they had revolution you could put in their food.  Much easier.  I have pill pockets to make it even better.  Of course, tonight it is going down into the teens after being in the 70s last week.  I have beds for them in the potting shed so I hope he will be warm.

I will call vet  this am.  Will keep you informed.

Thanks again.
 

ldg

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Not possible to trap him and get him to the vet? :cross: :vibes:

I have no experience with this, so no ideas. If it's not a parasite, another option is allergies? Are the bald patches places he can lick the fur off? When Chumley first came to us, he licked various places on himself bald, poor thing was so itchy.

:vibes: :vibes: :vibes: :vibes: :vibes: !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 

ziggy'smom

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I would definitely trap him and take him to the vet. Losing fur is never a good sign. It could be a number of things. If your vet won't see a feral maybe another vet will. I don't see why they wouldn't though. They will probably have to sedate him for the exam but most vets should have experience with that. There are some tame cats that act like wild beasts whenever they get to the vet. I was at my vet a few months ago when the vet tech came out looking like she'd been in a fight. She was complaining that it had taken four people to hold Sparky down. I asked her who Sparky was, a mastiff? No, Sparky was a 7 pound Himalayan. He really gave them a heck of a fight.

If you bring him in in a trap they can give him a shot in the butt through the bars.

It doesn't sound like mites or ringworm because you would normally see sores and scabs with that. It could be due to something he's ingested or maybe an illness similar to cushings disease. Either way it's not a good sign so I wouldn't waste any time.

Good luck:)
 
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farleyv

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I have taken ferals to my vet before.  Some have been ok, one actually climbed the wall when the tech let him out of carrier, and it is a tile wall!  lol

Spoke to tech yesterday, she is going to ask Dr. what he thinks...Should hear today.  I will no doubt be taking him in.  There is one patch that is on the top of his back, so that is a place he really cannot reach.  I see them just sitting in the sun, and I rarely see him grooming, or over grooming.

Always something isn't it?
 

feralvr

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Just checking in here and will send along vibes to BK :vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes: Hopefully the vet will have some ideas as to what might be going on with the fur loss. Would be great, yes, if you could at least pet him while he eats. You could just start working on that part because down the road being able to do that would be so helpful if you have to put on a topical medication. I have had much luck with doing it that way with feral cat's that eventually trust me enough to let me pet them while they eat. Not all are that way though :lol3: Maybe in time BK will allow that, maybe not... Good luck and keep us posted on BK :rub: :vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes:
 
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