Elderly feral cats

[bastfriend]

As Patches my indoor feral enters her tenth year, I wonder how her old age will be.   While her vet visit was a success, the blood work shows no problems yet she's skinny and lower energy than she used to be.  But then maybe that's normal aging.  I worry about whether I'll be able to provide her proper care and what "proper care" even is with a cat that you can't give a pill to and who is suspicious and smart.    How have others here dealt with this?   Has anyone had a cat that remained semi-feral into old age that can share their experiences?

 

[whaler]

i have the exact same worries about pretty girl Bastfriend.

she got a roundworm infestation recently and i wasted about $30 worth of drontal before i had the vet give me a dose of profender. she won't eat a pill pocket even if it is empty so i made my own by using chopped grilled salmon. that was a FAIL. i then tried putting the crushed pill in her favorite food (wellness core chicken flavor) along with a half a packet of fortiflora. another FAIL. then i tried putting a crushed pill in kitty crack (fancy feast) along with fortiflora. she would not eat that either, so i just left it - she ended up going over 24 hours w/o food, so yet another FAIL. it was at that point that i got the profender.

as she ages (roughly 6-7 years old now) i worry about it even more

 

[bastfriend]

Sounds like Pretty Girl and Patches have similar levels of suspicion.   Years ago when I did the only apartment move I've done with Patches her last vet visit was recent enough they did give me a sedative to slip her in her food - and just like for you there was no way on earth I could get it in to her.  Not in pill pockets, not in her favorite food, nothing.   So even though I've got sedatives for her now I'm not sure how much good it will do me!  (the move was accomplished through trickery)   I thought Drontal was supposed to be "the stuff" for roundworms, they gave it to me for Hercules, sounds like Profender is better?

Back to elderly stuff, my worry is what will happen is she'll just have to have a natural death when the time comes or get extremely sick enough to where it comes down to that.   Still that's how cats lived and died for most of human history till we humans got fancy with the vet care.    I still have a feeling it will be very hard though and hope it is still many years away.    Right now I'm just so relieved that Patches doesn't seem to be traumatized by her vet visit.

 

[whaler]

i think you have it harder with Patches than i do with pretty girl. back in september when i had to get her in for a checkup as well as her rabies vaccine she did eat the sedative when it was mixed in her food without any problem.

do you remember what the vet gave you back then? with pretty girl i used 2.5 mg of acepromazine so it was a very small amount. i believe that you can get acepromazine in flavored chews as well as a transdermal gel for next time.

drontal is imo the best de-wormer as far as efficacy. the only reason i got profender is that it is a topical so i knew i would have success with giving it to her. profender just does not do the job, at least in cases of moderate/severe infestation. when i first trapped pretty girl she was given a dose of profender. after she was with me for a month or so she vomited a roundworm so she was given another dose. another month or so goes by and there is a section of roundworm in her feces so two doses and it failed. after trying panacur-c and having no success i got her to eat a dose of drontal (don't ask me why she ate it back then but not now) and worm problem solved! i also have used profender on a feral two different times, each time a different cat, and both time it did not take car of the situation. now, for the ferals, i get some drontal from the local shelter and give them that every so often.

 

[bastfriend]

I think it was lorazepam - though it's been a long time.  I remember it was supposed to be related to Xanax.   She was having none of it though!   Maybe acepromazine is tastier?    Did those gels and chews have to come from a compounding pharmacy or can the vet just order them from somewhere?     Hercules ate the Drontal on the wet food right up so that's at least one feral cat I can medicate!  

 

[whaler]

perhaps you are correct that the acepromazine has less taste or has a less offensive taste :dk: i believe that your vet can order the gel or chews - i might be mistaken though.

i have had no problem getting any of the ferals to take oral meds if i cut the pill up and wrap the pieces in some grilled salmon. i always do it this way since i want to be certain that they are getting the entire dose. sometimes they get a bit "finicky" about what flavor of food i give them and they just wait until i bring something different - the little brats!

 

[bastfriend]

Yep, it's Whaler's Feline Gourmet Heaven!   Daily specials today including salmon stuffed with acepromazine

    I joke, but I'm taking careful notes....

 

[whaler]

:lol3:

after hearing about what i give the ferals for "treats" i have had a few people tell me that my ferals eat better than they do!