Feral cat that appears to swing hips when walking

gleason

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There is a feral cat here that looks like his/her hips are swinging back and forth when walking. He/she also looks like her back side is up higher than her shoulders. I can't get close to him/her. It hisses and growls at me. He/she seems to get along with the other cats including some kittens. Is there something wrong with it? None of the other cats have a swing like this when walking. This cat is less than two years old.
 

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If you can get a video, that would help. From the written description, it sounds like how my boy walks. His back legs are slightly longer then his front and just biomechanics that his hips seem to move more then others. He does have arthritis but that is from an injury.
 
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gleason

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I don't know if this kitty is a female but definitely does not have a bulging tummy. This morning when I went to feed the cats in the garage, I saw this one trying to come thru the pet door and was having difficulty but finally did get in. It's like it has a problem with it's hip/hips. This is something that I noticed just in the last few days.
 

Kieka

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Any photos?

My boy has trouble getting through cats doors because he is long limbed and its awkward. If this is a new problem it could be any number of issues. You might be able to mix some Nutramax Cosequin Capsules Joint Health Cat Supplement, 80 count - Chewy.com in with the general food. It is an OTC joint supplement that can help with joint issues in cats. A vet is always the best place to start but with ferals I know that is not always a viable option.
 
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gleason

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I'm wondering if this cat was possibly hit by a car in it's hind quarter. I don't see this cat real often but I will keep my eyes open and see if there is any improvement.
 

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Another option might be cerebellar hypoplasia. We have a little ex-TNR girl, Flick, (I say "ex" because she's now an "ex-TNR-full-time in-the-house-lap-cat") that has a fairly mild case of it, as did her sister, Cody (also one of our TNRs). It's when a kitten's brain - specifically, the cerebellum, is underdeveloped, most often bc the because the mother contracted FPLV. It varies wildly in its severity and how a cat presents itself when they have it. Our little Flick has a sway to her walk, and often looks like she's got scotch tape on her paws. It's not a painful thing though - which is good, as there's no cure. Flick's good example of a VRY happy CH kitty!

A video would go a long way to seeing if that's truly an option....even a photo or two would help all of us cat folk rule some things in/out. I know that's SO easy to watch! :)
 
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gleason

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I will try and see if I can get any pics or video. That may take some time as this cat is very timid and shy.
 
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gleason

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I took a short video which is not very good as I have never done a video before. But when I went to upload it to my post I get the message "The uploaded file does not have an allowed extension." What am I doing wrong. The file extension is .mp4.
UPDATE: I think I got it.
 
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What I see in your brief video is that he hitches up his left hind leg, lifting it higher than the right hind leg. He puts it down O.K. so I don't think it is something like he has a thorn in the pad. Not necessarily painful but something is clearly not right.
 

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It looks like he moved okay at speed. Might be something irritating the leg that he can ignore. I'd say its the leg specifically not the hip. Could be something irritating the paw that isn't superbad but is painful enough to keep off the ground when he can.
 
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gleason

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When I got up this morning I saw this cat going to the storage barn. It was not walking very well. Tipping over every few steps. Before I could get to my phone, it had ducked into the bldg. This morning and yesterday morning there was a big pee spot in the garage right by the litter box. I think this cat can't get into the litter box.
I'm going to setup a camera in the garage and see if I can get some video that way.
 
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gleason

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I'm going to need to get a better video. One that shows it tipping over. I'm not sure if any of our vets (only have 2) will look at a feral cat. I'll have to find out.
 

jefferd18

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He looks like his hip joint has been pulled out. I would imagine he is in a tremendous amount of pain.

This happened to a kitten in a house that my sister used to baby-sit at. The three year old she watched was a bad tempered monster that use to hit and kick people. They got him a black kitten (why?!) and in a fit of rage he pulled the kitten's hip joint out one day. The idiot mother wouldn't take the little feline to a vet, electing instead to watch him hobble around in pain, so my sister put him in her purse one night and just walked right out the door.
 
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gleason

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This cat has gotten worse. It is going somewhere and hiding during the day. We live in the country so it could be just about anywhere. It comes in during the night and feeds in the garage. I'm attaching a short video from last night. Be ware this is very disturbing to watch. The trail cam only takes 7 sec videos at a time so I can't get anything longer. This cat is still getting in and out of the pet door. I can't even catch it.
 

jefferd18

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This cat has gotten worse. It is going somewhere and hiding during the day. We live in the country so it could be just about anywhere. It comes in during the night and feeds in the garage. I'm attaching a short video from last night. Be ware this is very disturbing to watch. The trail cam only takes 7 sec videos at a time so I can't get anything longer. This cat is still getting in and out of the pet door. I can't even catch it.


You can't catch him?- he is awfully wobbly and quite slow. You need to put out a trap and catch him before he dies. He is suffering.
 
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gleason

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He's faster than you think. I walked out to where I thought he might be and came up on him quite suddenly. I surprised him and he surprised me. Needless to say he took off and I didn't see where he went.
 

jefferd18

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He's faster than you think. I walked out to where I thought he might be and came up on him quite suddenly. I surprised him and he surprised me. Needless to say he took off and I didn't see where he went.

Whatever the problem is- it's getting worse. Can you put out a trap for him- or several?
 
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