Well, here I go again.....
I have saved ferals and housed strays. We take care of a colony of 19 cats now.... And I am fixing to try and help one more.
Since I am a cat person, I noticed her first dashing around through our parking lot OR sitting still in an empty lot beside my job trying to catch a bird. Then I would see her hanging out behind a restaurant by the dumpster searching for scraps. This last year I have watched her lose weight and her beautiful black hair lose it's lustre... this was last year. She would not let anyone near her. I wasn't sure if she was feral or stray or on the verge of becoming feral.
This summer I have watched her steadily lose weight. And so I started feeding her. It started with just a few scraps of my own lunch on the edge of our parking lot.
I have a spot designated for her now that she goes to now for her food. I have a rubbermain bin with a cat bed inside for her to rest in It is in a wooded overgrown lot in downtown of where I live. She stays there on this lot isolated from everything. The lot is so overgrown that I have found a storgage shed there that she has been living in. I have been taking her two cans of cat food every single day plus dry food and fresh water for the last month or so. She has dirt, filth and muck all over her little skinny body.
I have never seen a cat in this situation.
I was going to just keep feeding her "and her feral baby" and leave it at that. You know, make sure they had shelter, food...etc... Then one day she trusted me and I can tell she now waits for me and for her food. She is excited when I get there.
I can tell she is a stray and not feral. I don't know if she was abandoned or what her story is. But I have never seen anything so pathetic in my life. She has a scar on the side of her face that has no hair. A pretty large scar. And she finally trusts me enough to allow me the privilege of petting her. it took about a month of sitting and watching her eat from a distance. I slowly gapped the distance and gained her trust.
After she got used to me actually feeding her on a regular basis, she began watching for me. She would circle me getting closer and closer. I tried not to rush her because I did not want to scare her but it was hard. I have several scratches on my hands that are evidence of her fear. That was last week. Then one day she rushed me and quickly rubbed against my leg. After the first touch, it moved pretty rapid.
Now I keep her food on an old table on the property under the storage shed, along with her bed and food bowls. She jumps to the table and gets under my hands while I feed her. I can pet her back only while she eats. She is so happy someone is feeding her.
I have only caught a fleeting glimpse of her blue long haired baby. The kitten is not nursing. The mother's milk has long dried up from no food, water or nutrition.
She is bone thin and covered with fleas. There are so many that I can see them crawling through her thin hair. She is breaking my heart and I know if I don't do something more she won't last the winter. I have named her Beauty. She is jet black and I believe she will be a long hair when her hair thickens up with good nutrition.
I called my vet today and I am picking up some Profender and a flea pill for her today I think I will be able to get the profender on her while she eats to kill any tape worms and any other parasites. I am also going to get her a flea tablet so she will be more comfortable and I am going to crush it and put it in her food today. They told me if I can "live-trap" her on my days off to bring her in and they fix her for me and test for for diseases. If she turns out to be healthy, I am taking her to my house and I am going to try to get to join my colony. I have no idea how to worm or deflea the young cat. I wil probably life trap the young one, TNR and turn him/her loose in our woods by our house so he/she will have the option of food and warmth this winter. It's better than living in downtown in an old filthy nasty overgrown flea ridden lot.
The young cat is not nursing, but it is absolutely wild. I have not even seen but a fleeting glimpse of it as it stays out of human range. The mama is eating taste of the wild plus canned cat food as if the baby. I am hoping she will gain weight AFTER I worm her. If I can't get the profender on her, I'll get some milbemax and put in her food.
She is so grateful for food...
I am charging my camera and when I feed today I'll take a pic of her and post it. I will not be able to get a pic of her baby.
This is the absolute saddest cat I have ever seen. I will post her pic when I get home from work. I will take a pic of her den/area too. It is just too horrible for words.
I have saved ferals and housed strays. We take care of a colony of 19 cats now.... And I am fixing to try and help one more.
Since I am a cat person, I noticed her first dashing around through our parking lot OR sitting still in an empty lot beside my job trying to catch a bird. Then I would see her hanging out behind a restaurant by the dumpster searching for scraps. This last year I have watched her lose weight and her beautiful black hair lose it's lustre... this was last year. She would not let anyone near her. I wasn't sure if she was feral or stray or on the verge of becoming feral.
This summer I have watched her steadily lose weight. And so I started feeding her. It started with just a few scraps of my own lunch on the edge of our parking lot.
I have a spot designated for her now that she goes to now for her food. I have a rubbermain bin with a cat bed inside for her to rest in It is in a wooded overgrown lot in downtown of where I live. She stays there on this lot isolated from everything. The lot is so overgrown that I have found a storgage shed there that she has been living in. I have been taking her two cans of cat food every single day plus dry food and fresh water for the last month or so. She has dirt, filth and muck all over her little skinny body.
I have never seen a cat in this situation.
I was going to just keep feeding her "and her feral baby" and leave it at that. You know, make sure they had shelter, food...etc... Then one day she trusted me and I can tell she now waits for me and for her food. She is excited when I get there.
I can tell she is a stray and not feral. I don't know if she was abandoned or what her story is. But I have never seen anything so pathetic in my life. She has a scar on the side of her face that has no hair. A pretty large scar. And she finally trusts me enough to allow me the privilege of petting her. it took about a month of sitting and watching her eat from a distance. I slowly gapped the distance and gained her trust.
After she got used to me actually feeding her on a regular basis, she began watching for me. She would circle me getting closer and closer. I tried not to rush her because I did not want to scare her but it was hard. I have several scratches on my hands that are evidence of her fear. That was last week. Then one day she rushed me and quickly rubbed against my leg. After the first touch, it moved pretty rapid.
Now I keep her food on an old table on the property under the storage shed, along with her bed and food bowls. She jumps to the table and gets under my hands while I feed her. I can pet her back only while she eats. She is so happy someone is feeding her.
I have only caught a fleeting glimpse of her blue long haired baby. The kitten is not nursing. The mother's milk has long dried up from no food, water or nutrition.
She is bone thin and covered with fleas. There are so many that I can see them crawling through her thin hair. She is breaking my heart and I know if I don't do something more she won't last the winter. I have named her Beauty. She is jet black and I believe she will be a long hair when her hair thickens up with good nutrition.
I called my vet today and I am picking up some Profender and a flea pill for her today I think I will be able to get the profender on her while she eats to kill any tape worms and any other parasites. I am also going to get her a flea tablet so she will be more comfortable and I am going to crush it and put it in her food today. They told me if I can "live-trap" her on my days off to bring her in and they fix her for me and test for for diseases. If she turns out to be healthy, I am taking her to my house and I am going to try to get to join my colony. I have no idea how to worm or deflea the young cat. I wil probably life trap the young one, TNR and turn him/her loose in our woods by our house so he/she will have the option of food and warmth this winter. It's better than living in downtown in an old filthy nasty overgrown flea ridden lot.
The young cat is not nursing, but it is absolutely wild. I have not even seen but a fleeting glimpse of it as it stays out of human range. The mama is eating taste of the wild plus canned cat food as if the baby. I am hoping she will gain weight AFTER I worm her. If I can't get the profender on her, I'll get some milbemax and put in her food.
She is so grateful for food...
I am charging my camera and when I feed today I'll take a pic of her and post it. I will not be able to get a pic of her baby.
This is the absolute saddest cat I have ever seen. I will post her pic when I get home from work. I will take a pic of her den/area too. It is just too horrible for words.
Last edited: