Help with extremely skinny stray

Hi all,

On tuesday night a extremely skinny male cat showed up.. I swear I have never seen anything so skinny in all my life..

He is very friendly, loves being petted and held.. I have been advised to de-worm him, I used a product but it apparently only kills round worms? So I have to get something else.

He eats good, has even put on a bit of weight.. Oh BTW my mom says I can keep him! Woo!

So what I was really wondering is if anyone can tell me how to make him gain weight/strength faster? He isn't very well...

Ok you need to take him to the vet to be dewormed, deflead, vaccinated, and set an appointment up for him to be neutered. That is step one. I would advise having him tested too if you have other cats in your house.

For food, he needs a high quality cat food, nothing special just a high quality food. Nutro, Chicken Soup, Innova, Wellness, Authority just to name a few. He will gain weight over time. Wet food is always a good thing too!!

Good luck and let us know how the vet visit goes.

Thanks

I am feeding him the same stuff that I'm feeding my other cats.. (prism)

The thing is- I want to help him Holistically... Is that an option?

This is him

First...I would bring him indoors and provide him a nice safe place. Second, I would take him to a vet and have him evaluated.

Katie

I can't bring him inside.. I have indoor cats that despise other cats, plus other small animals that I don't want to put in danger of being eaten

Originally Posted by Tricias_petz

I can't bring him inside.. I have indoor cats that despise other cats, plus other small animals that I don't want to put in danger of being eaten

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He still needs to be taken to a vet to receive shots and to be neutered. If you cannot provide this for him...then you need to find a rescue to take him. I am very adament that outdoor animals should be spayed/neutered so that they are healthy and do not add to the overpopulation.

Katie

He is in very bad shape. I've seen skinny cats before, but the way his hipbones are sticking up...he definitely needs a vet visit soon! He may have a health problem like a painful tooth causing him to have trouble keeping weight on. And of course he needs to be neutered once he gains a little weight.

Remember it is not a good idea to leave food out all the time for an outside cat, because it will attract other strays who may fight with your boy, or it will attract raccoons. Just put a bowl down twice a day, and pick it up when he is done. Or once you get a feel for how much he eats, put that much in the bowl.

It would be nice for you to keep him but he might do better indoors without other cats until he can gain weight and recover. Shelters are wonderful for getting stray cats back to health and it costs you nothing. Just be sure it's a no kill shelter and he will be fine. They will also neuter him, which is very important.

Cats often do not let us know they are sick, so they look better than they really are. Your boy doesn't look well though, so he could be pretty sick. Please take him to the vet or shelter soon.

Thanks for your help everyone.

I am going to see how he does for a another couple of days.. and if he doesn't continue to improve (he already has), I will take him to the vet..

I am definitely going to have him neutered- I am well aware of the population issues!

Taking him inside is not an option at this time, however I have many barns and sheds that I can safely put him in...

If it comes down to me not being able to care for him as I am now, I will most definitely take him to a shelter. But right now I am able too...

The reason that I am not taking him to the shelter already is that I am trying to find out if he HAS a home (he isn't a typical outdoor cat), and the shelter is already over-populated.

I see. Feeding him and giving him a safe quiet place in which to recover is the best you can do for him. Once he is stronger, neutering will help in so many ways, not just with the overpopulation problem, but you know this...

He looks like a sweet boy, just not feeling too well. Thanks for looking after him. You might consider calling the shelters to see if anyone is looking for him. Sometimes that's the first place owners look for a lost pet.

Thank you for trying to help this skinny one.

When a stray is so skinny, it is probably due to both malnutrition and worms. Unfortunately, waiting to see whether he improves or not really has nothing to do with his need to see a vet for the following reasons.

1) The problem with de-worming medication that you can purchase anywhere but at the vet is that it does not kill the worms, it merely expels them - and it is only round worm. The problem with this is that it increases the risk of other cats contracting them when they otherwise might not, and it also does not adress the problem of the larvae, which live in the cat and then become worms. So the larvae of the worms kitty had/has need to be addressed as well, and there is no medication that can be purchased at a store that does this.

2) Even the medication given by a vet has to be administered at least twice - three weeks apart - and the type of medicine is dependent upon the type of worm(s) present.

Our little Flowerbelle was infested with just about any type of worm you can think of when we rescued her. In fact, when we finally brought her home from the hospital, the vet forgot to check a stool sample a final time. Had hubby not liked the sound of her cough, she would be dead. We took her to a different vet for a second opinion, and it turns out she had lung worm. This is rare around here (I don't know about where you live), but she was so bad off that she was literally drowning, and had we not brought her to the vet, he estimates she had about 2, maybe three days left to live.

3) From the pics, it looks as if kitty has either fleas or ticks (probably both) - and if it's not that, then he has a cold and/or eye infection.

PLEASE DO NOT USE STORE-BOUGHT MEDICATIONS TO TREAT FLEAS OR TICKS. FLEA COLLARS CAN KILL CATS (and do and have). A product called "Frontline" or "Advantage" should be used. These can be purchased on-line or at the vet only. But they can be purchased on-line as they do not require a prescription from a vet.

However, if he gains weight, that will help him fight of diseases and infections.

To help him gain weight, feed him a very high protein diet. You can buy kitten food - this is high protein. To supplement the dry food, you can boil a chick (or some pieces of chicken) with NOTHING added. Mix in some of the broth and small bits of chicken. Cats can digest this easily, and it will help him gain weight. If you make a kind of glop out of the chicken broth and dry food, you can sprinkle a little brewer's yeast on it to boost the protein. The problem with that is he may or may not like it.

The problem I have with all of this is the eternal argument - to help or not to help - if they're not going to be spayed or neutered?

Because I have been involved with rescue for a number of years, I may have a somewhat cold-hearted position on this. But if kitty is not going to be neutered, you are helping nurse back to health a cat that will then be responsible for creating more homeless cats. He will also be open to many diseases and infections, because when females are in heat, male cats fight, and they often get seriously injured. So instead of one cat passing due to malnutrition, disease or injury, there may be five or seven - or if only some of a litter die of malnutrition, disease or injury, then the two or three that live will then have five - seven of their own of which some of each litter will likely end up dying of disease or starvation.

So while I really applaud your efforts in wanting to help this cat, please try to help him in a way that makes sense for him. At the very, very least he needs proper de-worming medication - because if you help him gain weight, you're also helping the worms.

If you cannot afford a vet visit or to have him neutered, perhaps you can find a different organization or shelter in your area that can help him? With this link, you can type in your zip-code and a list of many places in your area will pop up. This way you can call around to see if there's anyone else that may be able to assist. http://www.pets911.com/organizations/organizations.php

You can also click on the link in my signature line to see if you can find any low-cost spay/neuter services in your area.

Thanks ,

Laurie

1) I am well aware of this.. I will only treat him with natural products or get something from the vet...

2) I know that too


3) I'm going to treat him with immune system boosting herbs... and I am going to treat with for fleas, tricks, worms, all with natural products.

Because I have been involved with rescue for a number of years, I may have a somewhat cold-hearted position on this. But if kitty is not going to be neutered, you are helping nurse back to health a cat that will then be responsible for creating more homeless cats.

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I am going to have him neutered! I know a woman who works with the shelter and vet to trap/neuter cats... In fact she had all of my other barn cats done..


Don't worry! If he doesn't continue to improve with proper worm treatment and whatever all else, I will take him the shelter...

But right now, I don't think that vaccines would be an option, I am not fond of them in the first place, but with him in such poor condtion, I doubt they'd help him at all. I may be wrong, but thats what I think... And I'd rather help him here, instead of having to add to their problems.

I am just curious as to what natural remedies you are going to use to get rid of his worms and prevent him from getting them again? Immune System boosting herbs are not going to kill and prevent worms.

OMG Did I say that?? I only meant that to help him get stronger.. I know that Garlic is very good for fleas, ticks, and sometimes worms... Rosemary works for fleas.. I'm going to do more research/consult a friend to see what will help him most....

Other things like Lavendar repell all insects, so I'm going to put some of that in his bedding ( I made a house for him)

I appreciate what you are doing to help this poor kitty. Don't use garlic for him...as it is harmful to cats (as are onions). Maybe you can take a poo sample from him to the vet, and they can at least prescribe the right worm medication. Strongid is very safe...it is even used for kittens. It kills roundworms but not tapeworms.

I agree that he looks too thin to subject to vaccinations yet. But once he fills out, I think he should get them. I have lost pets to distemper, which is easily prevented with vaccinations.

Poor guy, I hope he puts on weight soon!

I've been reading here at TCS about diatomaceous earth for fleas and worms. Try a search on it. It sounds very promising, but I have no personal experience with it. It might be helpful if you have multiple outside cats, to keep them worm and flea free.

I didn't know that about Garlic... Hmm! I have fed my other cats raw food that has garlic in it.. it is on one of the lists of top quality food! Thats weird!

Okay... The vet that is around here ( I live out in the country) I s what you'd call a country vet. Big animals mostly... There are others in town, but I haven't had much to do with them.. I'm sure they'd have the stuff I'd need though...

I've been reading here at TCS about diatomaceous earth for fleas and worms. Try a search on it. It sounds very promising, but I have no personal experience with it. It might be helpful if you have multiple outside cats, to keep them worm and flea free.

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I found a product with that in it.. I should get it. Thanks!

Oh, the woman that does the neutering help has them vaccinated too.. so I suppose once he gets better then I'll do that!

I didn't believe garlic could be bad for cats, either, until I read the info here at TCS. Check out this thread...
http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...ghlight=garlic

I cook with a lot of garlic, and no longer give very many scraps to my in and out boy Will. Sometimes if I'm cooking on the grill, I'll make him a small portion and leave off the garlic seasoning! Since your kitty is already compromised, I think you should err on the side of caution and keep garlic out of his diet.

I found this on vetamerica website. Hope it helps


Manufactured by Homeo Pet
fast acting liquid homeopathic product formulated for removal of hook, round, and tapeworms. dosage: three times daily orally or with food or water. under 20 lbs 5 drops. 20-100 lbs. 10 drops. over 100 lbs. 15 drops. prevention 7 days treatment 14 days. all natural ingredients. no known side effects.