A few weeks ago I told my rescue I would evaluate a mom cat who had a 4 week old litter and was rescued from a really shabby neighborhood on the south side of Chicago. I was out of town the weekend she was rescued but was told she was spayed and given shots along with a shot of convenia as she had some kind of ulcer in her mouth that had to be removed.
She tested positive for FIV, and there was some concern about her being feral anyhow, so the rescue took her litter and is raising them separately. I already have 3 FIV foster kitties at my house, so I put her in a roomy cage in their foster room. The first week I pretty much only fed her and let her get comfy as she had been through so much! At the beginning of the second week- last week- I reached in to touch/brush her and she hissed at me but allowed me to touch her while she cringed. Right away I felt bumps under her fur, pretty much all over- on her sides, back, shoulders. From touching her I had the mental picture, if she did not have fur it would have been mostly all brush burns on the trunk of her body along with individual scabs, interspersed.
I immediately called my group and asked if she had been treated for fleas etc. or wormed and was told NO. AUGH! I was so glad I had not let her out of the cage. In the meantime however, she was not showing any signs of fleas, mites, etc. nor was she scratching. Everyone I spoke to confirmed that she had not been flea-bathed or treated, however, and I was told there was no way that she could or would have been bathed by the lady from whose house/yard she had been rescued.
I gave her frontline plus and took her to the vet, who examined her and said yes there are scabs all over her but they appear to be healing. He combed her and there did not appear to be any residual flea dirt on her or the comb. He could not figure out if she did this to herself or how it happened. He said just focus on the fact that she appeared to be healing and have her come back if it looked like there were any new sores or anything like that. I also crushed up drontal and put it in her food but she didn't eat all of it, so I am going to have to figure out another way to get it into her. I don't think she has worms but I need to err on the side of caution.
Back to the scabs- Since then I have brushed her a few times using a drugstore plastic brush that has the black plastic bristles- not too hard and not too soft. She seems to enjoy it, albeit she hisses whenever I come near the cage- and I am careful not to overdo it as I don't want to remove any large scab before it is ready to come off. I cannot see them but I can feel them with my hand.
Since she is an extremely timid cat I have not examined her all over, but the vet did hold her up and it appeared that her underbelly was ok. I have not touched her limbs as of course even cats who are friendly are not particularly fond of anyone touching their limbs- but it appears she does not have these scabs on her limbs. Mostly her trunk.
So my question, sorry for the long description- Does anybody have experience with this? Is there anybody out there who has seen this before from an outdoor cat and what the heck can it be?
My foster boy Curly had bad allergies around his ears and neck for many months- he scratched his fur off. But this cat has all her fur and the scabs are underneath, plus they are not in the typical allergy spots, base of tail, head, neck, ears etc. Also she is not scratching or itchy in those areas, not like Curly was.
I am not sure if or how I will get pictures. I don't think the vet was very helpful other than to rule out that it was a current concern. I would like to know if there is a good explanation, so I can treat her better. Thanks in advance for any help anyone can provide!
She tested positive for FIV, and there was some concern about her being feral anyhow, so the rescue took her litter and is raising them separately. I already have 3 FIV foster kitties at my house, so I put her in a roomy cage in their foster room. The first week I pretty much only fed her and let her get comfy as she had been through so much! At the beginning of the second week- last week- I reached in to touch/brush her and she hissed at me but allowed me to touch her while she cringed. Right away I felt bumps under her fur, pretty much all over- on her sides, back, shoulders. From touching her I had the mental picture, if she did not have fur it would have been mostly all brush burns on the trunk of her body along with individual scabs, interspersed.
I immediately called my group and asked if she had been treated for fleas etc. or wormed and was told NO. AUGH! I was so glad I had not let her out of the cage. In the meantime however, she was not showing any signs of fleas, mites, etc. nor was she scratching. Everyone I spoke to confirmed that she had not been flea-bathed or treated, however, and I was told there was no way that she could or would have been bathed by the lady from whose house/yard she had been rescued.
I gave her frontline plus and took her to the vet, who examined her and said yes there are scabs all over her but they appear to be healing. He combed her and there did not appear to be any residual flea dirt on her or the comb. He could not figure out if she did this to herself or how it happened. He said just focus on the fact that she appeared to be healing and have her come back if it looked like there were any new sores or anything like that. I also crushed up drontal and put it in her food but she didn't eat all of it, so I am going to have to figure out another way to get it into her. I don't think she has worms but I need to err on the side of caution.
Back to the scabs- Since then I have brushed her a few times using a drugstore plastic brush that has the black plastic bristles- not too hard and not too soft. She seems to enjoy it, albeit she hisses whenever I come near the cage- and I am careful not to overdo it as I don't want to remove any large scab before it is ready to come off. I cannot see them but I can feel them with my hand.
Since she is an extremely timid cat I have not examined her all over, but the vet did hold her up and it appeared that her underbelly was ok. I have not touched her limbs as of course even cats who are friendly are not particularly fond of anyone touching their limbs- but it appears she does not have these scabs on her limbs. Mostly her trunk.
So my question, sorry for the long description- Does anybody have experience with this? Is there anybody out there who has seen this before from an outdoor cat and what the heck can it be?
My foster boy Curly had bad allergies around his ears and neck for many months- he scratched his fur off. But this cat has all her fur and the scabs are underneath, plus they are not in the typical allergy spots, base of tail, head, neck, ears etc. Also she is not scratching or itchy in those areas, not like Curly was.
I am not sure if or how I will get pictures. I don't think the vet was very helpful other than to rule out that it was a current concern. I would like to know if there is a good explanation, so I can treat her better. Thanks in advance for any help anyone can provide!
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