Help with barn cats

[Barn cat lover]

I love to rescue cats and they live in a barn. They have heat, well fed and watered.

Because I like to rescue cats I don’t have the funds to take them to a veterinarian all the time. One of my favorite barn cats has lost a tremendous amount of weight lately, and when I pick her up and pet her I notice she has hard deposits under her fur on her belly.
they feel almost like the thickness or large toothpicks from a 1/4 to 3/4 inch in length. I did deworm her but no improvement. She is a rescue cat but guessing 6-10 yrs old. She does Not appear to be in pain but she is definitely very thin and moving way slower.
any ideas what could be going on? Thanks much.

 

[Barn cat lover]

I forgot to mention that the cat eats constantly both soft canned food and hard food and drinks water constantly since becoming sick.

 

[poolcat]

Cats are very good at hiding pain. They do it instinctively because they are prey as well as predators. So not showing pain doesn't mean the cat isn't experiencing any. This doesn't sound good, and you're really going to need a veterinarian if you want a diagnosis. They may want to do an x-ray, and possibly blood work as well.

Here's a website that I found a while back. It lists a few sources of veterinary care assistance: Options to Support You and Your Pet with Veterinary Care - HASS It's so good of you to give these cats food and shelter, and I understand that it may be impossible for you to provide for regular vet visits, but I hope you can find a way to get some help for this kitty.

 

[poolcat]

A big appetite combined with weightloss is a symptom of more than one disease. Diabetes and hyperthyroidism are two that come to mind, though neither of those would cause hard abdominal lumps. It's possible, of course, that she has more than one thing going on.

Here's some info on visual signs of pain in cats: Google Image Result for https://vetgirlontherun.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Feline-Grimace-Score-725x1024.png