I have joined this forum community because I need advice on caring for a stray cat. I know nothing about cats; truth is I'm a "dog person" and I'm afraid of cats 
Yeah,I shared most of my life with German Shepherds and Rottweilers, but I'm scared of cats.... I just don't know how to "read" their behavior.
Anyway, this is a rather long story and I'll try to make brief. Some 3 years ago our neighbors moved. When they moved, they just quit feeding 4 or 5 stray cats. That upset me quite a bit because in my mind you just don't do that! So we ended up feeding them. Today my husband - who used to preach to me, "don't feed the stray cats" - is the kitties' daddy, lol I hear him talking to them, he feeds them dry kibble, packets of fresh tuna, etc. He build a feeding station with a sloping roof to protect them and their food. He even hung a couple of fly traps so the food will be a bit safer from those pesky flies, and in the Summertime he feeds them very early in the morning before the flies go active. He decided to not feed them late at night because raccoons and other "wildlife" come around. So much for the man who "does not like cats", lol
We were able to trap one female and had her spayed; she eventually was sort of adopted by the young student couple who moved next door to us, but she - "Miss Kitty"- still comes over to our yard to say hello.
Ok, so much for the short story - I apologize. My question is this: is there a dewormer that can be added to the food? The cat is skinny (his mother was also very skinny but I don't know if it was due to worms/parasites or just the way she was built). The kitty - an adult now - is so, so cute, all gray but no tail (the mother also had no tail... not sure was happened to her but she disappeared nearly a year ago).
There is no way we can catch the cat, he's just too "wild". He will come out from his hiding spot when he hears my husband's truck ("Hey, put some food in there!") but will not come close at all. We tried setting the trap several times but ended up catching an opossum instead.
Do you have any advice for us? Ideally, I'd like to catch him, take him to the vet for a check-up. I asked a lady who is a foster mom for cats and she mentioned something that you apply on the cat, between shoulders, but that requires getting hold of the cat.. can't do that, unfortunately.
Any and all advice is greatly appreciated
Yeah,I shared most of my life with German Shepherds and Rottweilers, but I'm scared of cats.... I just don't know how to "read" their behavior.Anyway, this is a rather long story and I'll try to make brief. Some 3 years ago our neighbors moved. When they moved, they just quit feeding 4 or 5 stray cats. That upset me quite a bit because in my mind you just don't do that! So we ended up feeding them. Today my husband - who used to preach to me, "don't feed the stray cats" - is the kitties' daddy, lol I hear him talking to them, he feeds them dry kibble, packets of fresh tuna, etc. He build a feeding station with a sloping roof to protect them and their food. He even hung a couple of fly traps so the food will be a bit safer from those pesky flies, and in the Summertime he feeds them very early in the morning before the flies go active. He decided to not feed them late at night because raccoons and other "wildlife" come around. So much for the man who "does not like cats", lol
We were able to trap one female and had her spayed; she eventually was sort of adopted by the young student couple who moved next door to us, but she - "Miss Kitty"- still comes over to our yard to say hello.
Ok, so much for the short story - I apologize. My question is this: is there a dewormer that can be added to the food? The cat is skinny (his mother was also very skinny but I don't know if it was due to worms/parasites or just the way she was built). The kitty - an adult now - is so, so cute, all gray but no tail (the mother also had no tail... not sure was happened to her but she disappeared nearly a year ago).
There is no way we can catch the cat, he's just too "wild". He will come out from his hiding spot when he hears my husband's truck ("Hey, put some food in there!") but will not come close at all. We tried setting the trap several times but ended up catching an opossum instead.
Do you have any advice for us? Ideally, I'd like to catch him, take him to the vet for a check-up. I asked a lady who is a foster mom for cats and she mentioned something that you apply on the cat, between shoulders, but that requires getting hold of the cat.. can't do that, unfortunately.
Any and all advice is greatly appreciated
