Semi-feral long-hair soiled himself badly...

So this is a cat we call Turpin. He's been fixed for at least a couple years now and has recently decided it's okay to come in for food and to be very near me. However, he still will not let me pet or touch him with my hands (rubbing against my legs is okay). Last night I noticed a bad odor in the room and then this morning I realized why when he walked away from me. It's really bad, and I am sure it is uncomfortable for him. With a regular house cat, I would handle this in the bathroom with a warm cloth and possible some scissors, but this is clearly not an option with him. I am afraid that if I trap him and bring him to a vet to be sheared he will find the experience very traumatic and I will lose some of the trust I've built with him...and, of course, the cost of the visit would be an issue as well.

Do any long-time caregivers have strong opinions or advice about whether I should trap him and take him to a vet? He has survived many years as a fluffy feral, I'm sure soiling himself many times, so I feel that he will be able to clean it eventually, but it is quite a mess in the meantime!

Thanks so much.

I would trap him and take him to the vets--not only to have his bum taken care of, but perhaps for a general wellness check. An ounce of prevention.... He may need an updated rabies vaccination and deworming.
He'll not like you in the morning, but will love you later on when he is feeling more comfortable.
You might contact the organization/vet who TNRd him: they might offer low cost vet care for feral/stray cats.
Also, unclear from my reading of your post: but if this is a regular occurrence, then perhaps a change in diet is required. He looks, um, a little on the plump side.
PS he looks very relaxed, you did a good job with him.

Thanks for the reply.

Not a regular occurrence to my knowledge, I just know that with him being well into his adult years and being an outdoor longhair he must have dealt with similar issues in the past.

The TNR clinic where he was fixed is only for that purpose, not for follow up care. And the vets they recommend for cats in traps are quite far from me.

He is definitely fat!! Since I have 4 others I can't really remove his food source without removing theirs. I do realize that being overweight shortens life, of course, but have not noticed this type of digestive issue before. He must've found and eaten something weird outside.

I guess I will watch him today to see if it keeps at this level or worsens and perhaps try to call around to closer vets to see if they will take a feral. Poor guy.

Just a little question. Is he called after dick Turpin?

He was named after cross-eyed comic actor Ben Turpin, actually. I had no idea who Dick Turpin was, but now I know! Kitty Turpin isn't much of a thief, so I don't think that namesake would suit him quite as well. 

I spoke with the ladies at the place I got him TNR'd and they said I should probably just watch him and see if he continues to have diarrhea, and that it probably wasn't worth trapping him just to get a mat removed. 

I kind of doubt that worms would be the issue as I was able to sneak an Advantage Multi dose on him while he was eating this past month (as you can tell, he loves food!), but he is definitely out of date on his vaccinations...I can't remember quite when the TNR was but it was for sure more than a year ago.

I may just bite the bullet tomorrow and start calling around to the vets near me to see if any of them would help me out. As you say, it could be a good time to get him re-vaccinated as well. 

I have an older cat who is overweight. He had an issue with his anal glands - he was leaving little bits of poo all over the house. At the last vet check, the vet expressed them and so far, so good. You might want the vet to check that too.

I love Ben Turpin! There is something about his antics that crack me up. That old slapstick comedy is the best.

I will keep the anal glands issue in mind, however he seems to have gotten himself a bit more cleaned up today and no new messes have appeared. It's still nasty looking, but the stench isn't overwhelming and the matting is more minimal. I am VERY glad he has improved as I was dreading the process of taking him to the vet and the bill I would get for services. Hopefully it was just a one-time thing, like whatever the kitty version of eating Taco Bell once a year is.

Well, he managed to soil himself again today. The consistency seems more solid but it is not fully coming out. I picked up a piece he scraped off and noticed some mucusy red on the end of it, so I have made an appointment at my vet for Saturday. Hopefully it is something simple...heck, even shaving his bum might help him go more freely. I'm not looking forward to getting him into a carrier or trap on Saturday! Will have to figure out a game plan...

Fingers crossed you get him there safely and the problem is minor.

So I lured him into a dog crate with food this morning and brought him to the vet. They had to give him a little gas to sedate him. No worms or parasites detected, just bacteria. They gave him an antibiotic injection and sent me home with a few little packets of probiotic mix for his food. It was expensive, but I got him updated on his vaccines and got him a microchip. So hopefully this will be the only visit he needs for quite some time! Sounds like he just got a little sick and will be okay soon. Fingers crossed.

Wonderful!  Thanks for the update.

And they did express his anal glands as well. So far today he seems just fine and I don't smell anything awful. Yay! Also thought it was funny that they assigned him April Fools as a birthday, since he is such a silly cat. They marked him as a Himalayan mix, but someone else said he might be a flame point siamese. Whatever he is, I'm glad he seems okay now.

With those blue crossed eyes, he has to have Siamese in his ancestry somewhere. Glad all goes well.

Ondine said:

With those blue crossed eyes, he has to have Siamese in his ancestry somewhere. Glad all goes well.

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He's gorgeous.