saturday night a very small kitten showed up on my porch. he was fairly thin and so i put out some food. it took a few hours of checking on him on and off before he'd let me near him. finally, i managed to catch him off guard and get him into a box, so that he could be transferred indoors and cleaned up and fed.
we washed him with a sponge and water and dried him off, and he spent the night on the floor in my bedroom. sunday i had to leave for a trip, so i put him back outside with a water dish and a can of food.
monday, before going to bed, i checked to see if the cat had returned, since a guest in my home said he'd seen him on the couch on my porch earlier. i found him sitting on the couch. he didn't try to run away this time, so i sat down next to him, and he was calm.
i petted him but then to my horror, noticed that his tail was bloody, that half of it was gone, ripped completely off and nowhere to be found. there were insects crawling among the flesh and fur. i brushed off the insects with a paper towel and cleaned the wound with a moist sanitary towel. i made a safe place for him to sleep outside, under a cushion leaned against the back of the couch, so that he wouldn't be seen by other animals or people.
today on my lunch break he was on the porch again, and there were insects on his tail flesh again. i brushed them off again and brought him inside so they wouldn't eat him anymore. i've got the cat, montreal, in a big box indoors.
he seems to be doing okay. he doesn't move around much, but that might be because he's not comfortable with me yet.
finally, my quesiton: is there anything i can do to speed the healing of his tail? i cannot afford to take him to a vet. he is not bleeding and does not appear in imminent danger. i am simply wondering if there are any home remedies or general practices i should try.
we washed him with a sponge and water and dried him off, and he spent the night on the floor in my bedroom. sunday i had to leave for a trip, so i put him back outside with a water dish and a can of food.
monday, before going to bed, i checked to see if the cat had returned, since a guest in my home said he'd seen him on the couch on my porch earlier. i found him sitting on the couch. he didn't try to run away this time, so i sat down next to him, and he was calm.
i petted him but then to my horror, noticed that his tail was bloody, that half of it was gone, ripped completely off and nowhere to be found. there were insects crawling among the flesh and fur. i brushed off the insects with a paper towel and cleaned the wound with a moist sanitary towel. i made a safe place for him to sleep outside, under a cushion leaned against the back of the couch, so that he wouldn't be seen by other animals or people.
today on my lunch break he was on the porch again, and there were insects on his tail flesh again. i brushed them off again and brought him inside so they wouldn't eat him anymore. i've got the cat, montreal, in a big box indoors.
he seems to be doing okay. he doesn't move around much, but that might be because he's not comfortable with me yet.
finally, my quesiton: is there anything i can do to speed the healing of his tail? i cannot afford to take him to a vet. he is not bleeding and does not appear in imminent danger. i am simply wondering if there are any home remedies or general practices i should try.
