Help! Poor Kitty!

[Ford Girl]

Hi, I need some advise...I've been dealing with this for a week and a half now, and haven't mentioned it to anyone, not sure what to do...it's breaking my heart...

So about 2 weeks ago I saw this very tiny cat running down our ally carrying something in it's mouth, and I noticed our garbage bags are being ripped by something tiny, so I assumed it was that cat I saw running. Last week I came home and saw this beyond skinny, starving, ill looking cat near our garbage cans - same one as I had notice for a week, and I decided to feed him some cat food, I came back out, set it down and he ate it...all of it, I noticed his eye ball looked like it was missing part of it, the poor thing looked all around sickly. Starving, hair missing, a messed up eye. I have been feeding him each morning, just set it out, he comes during the day and it's gone, I've seen him a few times, around our garage.

Then Saturday he comes in to the garage presumably to take a nap, cuz he was purring and wondering around in the rag piles, notices my husband who's working on the truck and meows at him and boots it away (I hadn't mentioned any of this to my man as of yet). Darin says to me..."OMG, you should see this poor kitty, almost dead, with a bad eye, what should we do, Teri you would cry if you saw him?" So I confessed to feeding him over the last week and a half, made him feel better, well not better but you know what I mean....

But now, we are left with questions...

Should I have fed him to begin with? Only asking this cuz he now knows he can find food in our ally/garage way now and will continue to come as long as I continue to feed him. I know the answer I am going to get is yes - and I feel in my heart that I can't leave him to starve. Should I continue to feed him? Should I call the bilaw cops? Should I try to befriend him? Capture him and surrender him? Leave him be as is and feed when I can? I have no idea what to do at this point.

What I do know is that this cat can't come live with us, not in the health and mentality he's in now, not that he would walk right in either - so scared!!! For the sake my my other critters and my wallet. That's not an end result I am looking for.

What can I do at this point? Poor thing, I have been thinking about him every day, I call him Mr. Ally Kat, I think of him when I wake up, go to my car, get home from work, go to bed at night, when I see my critters being spoiled...winter is coming, it was -2 today, freezing!!!

[want4rain]

well Ford Girl, look at the facts.

he has a slim chance of surviving the winter outside if he were healthy.
he isnt healthy.

he can live with you
be fostered with someone else
be euthanized
he can be left outside and you can keep feeding him and cry your eyes out the first day he doesnt come to eat.

you can talk to an org in your area and see if YOU can foster them on their dime. then YOU can decide what home he goes to. or you can send him to a no kill HS??

we have piano lessons now so i gotta jet. i hope you figure something out!!

-ashley

[Winston]

Is there any chance you could set up a little home for him in your garage...at least until he gains some weight..gets a bit healthier....and in the mean time try contacting a no kill shelter in your area....it buys you and him some time to figure something out...It is soo hard! I want to help them all and I feel so guilty when I see a stray or animal that needs a home! But I have my fill and so has the pocket book so I know how helpless you must feel! I dont know what your vet is like but maybe he/she could give you something for the eye? or antibiotics..I know its hard without seeing the cat??

I have new neighbours and there sweet little kitty has been coming across the street to sit on my window ledge and my 2 cats go nuts! They are indoor cats so they dont really mingle well with others coming around...She is so sweet! probably on a few months old...she has no fear of my two..even though they hiss at her! My biggest fear is she will get hit by a car!! So last night the children were visiting next door and I had the chance to ask them if the cats was theirs! it was...I told the oldest boy who is probably 14 "you should keep her in the house...she will get hit by a car!"...well you should have seen his face! he looked like I shot him! all he said was yeah! your right!...I felt bad..but it is so true! and I dont want to see her on the side of the street!

Best of luck with this little guy...There will be lots of people to offer advice I am sure and something will work out..

Cindy

[CyberKitten]

If it were me, I'd trap him with a humane trap, take him in and isolate him from my own cats (I don't want them ill either) and get him to a vet. Then I;d assess how feral he is and work from there - check the gender, try to socialize him/her and work with a local no kill group to rehome him if I can't keep him. I have 4 cats now - not sure I am ready for another at this point. But this is your quandary, not mine. You can borrow traps from shelters or if he is friendly, pick him up and bring him in and then to a vet. He clearly needs care. Some ves will help if you tell them he was a stray.

Good luck!

[kashtin's kin]

Sigh, I know we can't all take in every single animal; I've livetrapped/vacc't/neuter or spayed etc. a family of feral cats-plus a few 'extra' Toms-over the past year, and ended up adopting the kittens and continuing to feed feral momma. I was lucky enough to be able to work out the $ angle with a bit of creativity, but if another cat comes along at this point I would have to throw myself on the mercy of a wonderful cat rescue gal in a nearby town.

You might be surprised at how some seemingly sick and wild-ish cats change with a bit of care and attention (never thought my ex-feral kittens would be happy domestics!), but if you truly cannot keep this poor kitty the folks above have given you some reasonable advice.

A longshot, I know, but kitty could conceivably end up in your home (never say never). Providing some sort of shelter in your garage and feeding him/her would of course be an improvement over starving/freezing...although it's a dangerous world in back lanes etc., and there's the 'eye' issue, along with any other medical attention.

Finding a no-kill private sort of cat rescue (like the woman I was fortunate enough to find) would give the kitty it's best long-term chances, if you really just can't take him/her on. If s/he is tame enough to get into a crate (even if you need to do a bit more feeding/befriending), that would help; otherwise a livetrap would likely do the job.

I managed to lure my ex-feral kittens into my back porch eventually, but the Toms and mom were too wild; I had no experience livetrapping, but got some advice and was able to borrow one (some vets/pet stores/humane societies/private rescue groups will loan them).

It would be great if kitty could be integrated into your life, but whatever the case, good for you for caring and wanting to give this wee beastie a chance of some sort. I would really encourage you to
Google and nose around (i.e. phone vets, pet food stores) in search of some sort of cat rescue run by dedicated, no-kill committed cat people...humane societies and spca's do a lot of good work, but in my case I couldn't give up my ferals as they would have been put down.

Please let us know how things go; it sounds like at this time you and your fella are all that little kitten has going for it .

[chico2]

Fordgirl,please continue to feed him and give him water,he came to your house for a reason,I really believe that..
The others gave you some good advice,please,please help him,the best you can,he has nobody else..poor little guy

[Ford Girl]

Ok, so the reason I said he can't come live with us is cuz I didn't really want another cat, and I couldn't imagine introducing another cat to my critters...it wouldn't go over so well, Pubert hates every other living creature with all his might and barley tolerates Dazy, and Dazy now approches all cats like she does her brother - as if it had no claws!!! That being said, it's not ruled out completly I guess..not sure how many of you read my other post about how schedualed and routine my husband is...that's the other issues, he's not really a cat person, but he has a big heart when it comes to critters.

The first thing I think I will try is to find it a cozy place to sleep whether it be a box or basket, with blankets and an old pillow, covered and protected (the garage doesn't have a cat door or a way in or out freely - not to mention oils and fluids that are not safe for critters). I will keep feeding it, checking in on it. I will call my vet and other cat rescue places here - Calgary has alot of resources, see what they can do to help me out. He's so scared, it could take a long time to get him to come closer to me, so picking him up isn't an option at this point.

Heading home now to see if he's around, I will keep you all posted. Anymore advise and suggestions are welcomed, please, I will do my best for this little guy in themean time...thanks!!!

[sugarcatmom]

Perhaps you can contact someone at the MEOW Foundation for some advice. They might even be able to provide you with a trap if you need it (they're a no-kill shelter in Calgary). I'm not sure if the Feline Rescue Foundation is still around, they could be another source of info, and there is also the Happy Cat Sanctuary which specializes in feral cats, but they're based out of Strathmore. Good luck, and bless you for caring!

[want4rain]

come on now.... you need to put up the illusion of fostering so you can join the ranks of FAILED FOSTER MOMS!! haha

you have a few options. since you are feeding him already, trapping him shouldnt be that hard. either you can keep him, foster him or turn him over to a facility who can fix his health issues and find him a good home. i think leaving him outside to fend for himself would leave him on the side of the road somewhere and i dont think you have the heart to euthanize. sucker....

-ashley

[Ford Girl]

Originally Posted by want4rain

come on now.... you need to put up the illusion of fostering so you can join the ranks of FAILED FOSTER MOMS!! haha

you have a few options. since you are feeding him already, trapping him shouldnt be that hard. either you can keep him, foster him or turn him over to a facility who can fix his health issues and find him a good home. i think leaving him outside to fend for himself would leave him on the side of the road somewhere and i dont think you have the heart to euthanize. sucker....

-ashley

It will sure take time if I am going to trap him, I get about 8 feet from him, and move my arm and he's gone. I rattle the dish and he comes back, but only after I put it down and back away. He's really scared. I saw him tonight, looks better then he did a week ago. He meowed at me, from a distance of course. Each day at a time until we figure this out...I hope he's getting all the food, and not the cats who have homes that are wondering around...

[Frenchy]

Originally Posted by Ford Girl

The first thing I think I will try is to find it a cozy place to sleep whether it be a box or basket, with blankets and an old pillow,

If it's an unheated place , I would suggest hay instead of blanckets , blanckets will trap humidity and stay cold , better go with hay . I hope you can find a rescue that will take him.

[jiorji]

you can build him a shelter for the winter....with a blankie.
And you can continue to feed the poor little guy. Maybe he'll gain strength

[kashtin's kin]

Ford Girl, it's great that you're really working at getting some advice...and even at least open to the possibility of another feline in the household . On behalf of 'feral fans'/critter folks/the 'alley kitty', thanks for all your efforts. (That reminds me, Alley Cat Allies is a huge feral resource in Maryland, and they have a really helpful website...just Google the name .)

I can really relate to the whole 'cat staying quite far away' scenario; it took a lot of tuna etc. feeding and chatting from a distance to get my feral family up close. If you just don't have enough time (i.e. due to kitten's health, or onset of cold weather), the livetrap is definitely worth a try.

Re: the livetrap, I was pretty skeptical and sort of intimidated before I tried one; people warned me I might get a skunk (although I don't think they can spray in a trap...didn't get one, anyway!). Be aware you might find yourself with another cat in the trap, also.

That did happen to me, and I was able to vet/neuter the 'unexpected cat'. (I then released this previously unseen Tom-or 2!-and haven't seen him/them since!) Please don't let that stop you from considering that option; the rescue groups in your area that someone above posted would hopefully help you deal with anything like that??

One thing that may work in your/kitty's favour is the cooler weather. In one way, it of course makes life for ferals tougher, but if you are making progress in befriending the kitten it could help as well. I found that when Sept./Oct. rolled around, the ferals got much more interested in food/tolerating me...the young ones ended up slowly creeping into our [farmhouse] back porch when I started leaving their am and pm food there.

Eventually, 2 of the kittens curled up for a nap on a horse blanket I left out...when I opened the kitchen door to the porch one morning, I just pushed the outside door shut-et voila! (Don't know who was more surprised !) Of course, after that I had to get them into a large dog cage, and it took a while for the little ferals to stop hiding and start to trust me.

If you are somehow able to do something along these lines, it is a bit of work, but us BB people are great cheerleaders and info sharers (guess you already know that, having been a member for a while?!); it was a really rewarding experience for me, as well as being life-changing for the cats .

All you can do is use all the helpful ideas you can get, and take things step by step. There aren't any 'rulebooks' or guarantees...but there is the possibility of a happy ending, or at least an improvement in the life/chances of the kitten. I'm sure we're all rooting for you and the little guy/gal; you're not alone !

p.s. If things did work out in terms of kitty adopting you more 'closely', integrating critters is usually not all that difficult-with a bit of a game plan.
My nutty household has gone from 2 cats/1 dog to 7 cats/2 dogs to 3 cats (4senior felines passed on over a very difficult :sad: 6 month period)/2 dogs to 5/6 cats and the same 2 dogs!! It gets a bit tense at times (with each addition), but we've never had an animal not work out...and sometimes the transition is actually really easy!!

[Love4himies]

Leaving him outside is like a death sentence, especially if Calgary gets a cold winter. Please contact your local SPCA/Humane society for advice and to find out if they are no kill and if you could possibly foster this kitty back to a healthy status.

The shelter should pay for all vet bills, but you may be on the hook for food and kitty litter.

WARNING: Fostering may lead to an increase in current household pet count due to human attachment issues He, he.

[Ford Girl]

I contacted the 3 no kill kitty rescues, via email, the 3 mentioned above, thanks sugarcatmom. I will keep you up to date, see what they say. It's 11 here today, in Calgary, the weather is not very predictable, the weekend looks good too, warm and dry. Something slept in the box I set out, not sure what, it was empty when I got out htere this am, I put more food out. I am going to chat with the neighbours this week, see if anyone owns this cat and to adivse them to keep their cats inside while I try to trap this one...I am assuming that the above places will tell me to try and trap it...

Hay you say....where can a girl get hay in the big city...I will have to look in to that too...the blanket I put out is rated for -7 and the humidity isn't an issue here, its very dry, but I undertand what you are saying Frency about blankets not being the best...don't tell DH I used one of our thermo sleeping bag liners (we had an extra anyways)...shhhh...

Thanks everyone...I appreciate it, and I am sure Mr. Ally Kat does too, even tho he doesn't know how helpful and concerned everyone is for him...

[Frenchy]

Originally Posted by Ford Girl

don't tell DH I used one of our thermo sleeping bag liners (we had an extra anyways)...shhhh...

we won't tell .... about hay , I really don't know where you can get that ... maybe a pet store ?

[kashtin's kin]

Keep on plugging, Ford Girl; you're doing such a good job figuring this thing out as you go along, and using the resources you have . About the 'hay in box' issue, I'm a horse person; as a 'hayseed', I'm up on that subject.

Straw is maybe what the post above meant, as it's a common horse bedding; hay would work, but straw is warmer because the stems are hollow (insulation). With the insulated box that DH made for the mother of our ex-ferals, I used wood shavings as bedding.

This might be a good bet, as you can buy really small bales (i.e. not the 20 k horse size!) at just about every pet store; they stock them for guinea pigs, rabbits et al. As a bonus, the shavings have a nice fresh smell.

As a compromise, you could always tuck an old fleece sort of thing or even an old down vest around the inside of the box (I pick up stuff like that at Thrift Stores ). Thanks for keeping us in the loop, and I hope things do keep progressing postively .

[badger]

I wait until Hallowe'en and look for bales of straw people use for their displays (Hallowe'en is HUGE here), then grab some before it's thrown out or gets moldy. I've used blankets and old sweaters as well but straw definitely seems to hold the heat better, as well as fill up the cracks in my (very) improvised shelters. Some of the designs online use those insulating blankets for campers (like aluminum foil but much tougher) on all the inside walls, then straw. Just try to find one in the dead of winter...

[chico2]

Oh Wow,you girls are just a flood of info,I hope the little boy/girl will use all your resources and stay warm and fed.
Regular feeding is half the battle,he needs to gain strength to survive.
Ignorant people believe a cat can survive out there,but they just cannot,not without someone feeding them:sad:they are not tigers or lions.
I am pretty sure,you can by straw at any Zellers,Wal-Mart around Halloween.
I had a stray once and we put a wodden box out for him,with insulation and blankies,but unfortunately he never returned to enjoy it,I fed him twice a day for 3 years..

[krdahmer]

You have a lot of great advice here and I wish you the best of luck, and I'm not sure if this helps you or not but when I was working with my strays I got so flustered and discouraged and my husband told me something that really helped. That I should do all that I can, and leave the rest up to God. Sometimes you can't do all that needs to be done and I've found that asking for someone to help with the rest makes me feel better and usually helps me see a solution. I hope the rescues can help you with this little one and that there is a warm home in their future!

[Longblades]

Yes, yes, use STRAW not hay. Higher insulating values in straw. We use bales of straw to make a thick walled, roofed and floored cave. Make sure it cannot fall in on itself. Then loose straw, perhaps inside an old burlap bag. You want something the cat can burrow into so the insulating warmth is all around them, top, sides and bottom. We also use pure wool sweaters from the thrift stores too, though I found they were not recommended on most feral rescue sites. But we saw signs that the ferals did burrow into them too. We also had tarps under, over and sideways to keep rain out as ours were in an open sided shed outside. It is colder where you are. Butting your straw bales up against a basement window would help to heat your cave (assuming you don't have any more room in your garage than we do for a straw bale house) and we all know how much of our expensive heating bills goes right out the windows. Water is just as important as food. We gave water twice a day in freezing weather, along with food.

[spud]

OMG, Ok, I found the info I was looking for. Thanks all for this thread, I too am in the same boat. A house full of pets and yet another sweet kitty needing a home.
Good luck with the sweet sick kitty.
spud

[Ford Girl]

Thanks everyone!! I have heard back from one of the rescues, they don't have room right now to help out, but told me the same as everyone else, food, water, shelter, and to call back in 3 weeks to see if there's room or resources availabe to help me out then, haven't heard from the other 2 as of yet.

I haven't seen him in the last few days, altho something's sleeping in the box, and eating the food. I placed the box under the utility trailer, so it's covered from rain, and it doesn't looked frosted in the am like the car windows have been, it doesn't feel damp. It is really chilly at night tho.

We are going camping Saturday morning, won't be back until Sunday evening tho, so I will pile the food and water in the dishes, and check it when we get back. I will ask Pubert's kitty sitter to take a look as well.

[Frenchy]

Thanks for helping this kitty I sure hope a place will open up in a rescue for him.

[kashtin's kin]

Thanks again for caring, Ford Girl, and for doing all you've done. In my experiences with feral (or even feral-ish!) cats, it's not too unusal not to have a sighting of them for a while. Sometimes you don't see one particular cat again, but more often that not they just appear suddenly, once more.

p.s. hope you have a good camping trip...and take some good 'thermoliners' .

[kashtin's kin]

Hey Spud, check back on your own thread too; I posted there, and pm'd ya!
Glad you found all the info here, too!!

[Ford Girl]

Hi guys, so it's been a few days since I've seen Mr. Ally Kat, but yesterday I saw him at dinner time and he looks so good!!! Compared to 3 weeks ago of course. He's put on some weight - I saw no bones, and his eye looks healed in that it's not red or irritated anymore however it's milky white and I'm pretty sure he can't see out of it. He was pretty vocal too. When he saw me he did a purr-purr-tip toe-circle dance for me, you know the one....obviously happier then he was weeks ago.

Last week I added an additional meal of soft food in the evenings incase he wasn't getting the kibble in the am (there are other fat cats around), so his portions are up to 1/2 a cup a day kibble + 2tbls a day of wet. Orijen and Evo, Pubert's food. (Don't tell Pubert he's sharing his catch...he would not approve!! )

So he comes up to the dish while I set it down, I sat down and he started to eat to wet food. He is still nervous. I reached my arm forward towards the dish, he didn't see it coming (his bad eye), he just smelt it and kept eating, I didn't attempt to pet him or pick him up, one thing at a time with this guy, he still looked antsy and scrared but much better. When he was done he took off fast, stopped and turned around and thanked me with another purr-purr-tip toe-circle dance!!!

I have been throwing treats in the bed too, assuming it's him sleeping in there and have moved it closer and closer to the house every few days, it's now just outside the fence instead of in the ally. I have not heard back from the other 2 rescues. I will keep feeding him and look for him to say hello...

I will keep you updated.

[Jim Hall]

thats wonderfull!!!

[JanM]

Wow - you are doing an amazing job, Ford Girl! Good for you.. From the sounds of it, it won't be long before that little critter is in your arms (forever?????).... Well done!

[chico2]

Ford girl,that's good progress,he is probably mistrusting of people,we don't know what happened to him:sad:
It will take time to gain his trust,hopefully nothing bad happens to him in the meantime.
Some jerks believe if you dump a cat he will be ok on his own,or they simply don't care,but domestic cats just cannot survive out there,I know mine would never.
I hope this little soul comes around before the cold comes