Feral cat that smells

[keeneland]

We have a feral cat that smells a bit like that of a wild fox. It seems pretty healthy other than a bit of sinus and I have noticed that it seems that it may have an ear that has some crusting inside. It gives itself baths and grooms daily but the smell isn't going away. I thought it might have been something it was picking up where it had been sleeping but that doesn't appear to be the case. I haven't been able to get this cat to the vet yet but I have treated it for fleas. This isn't a poop or pee smell but smells like a wild animal. Anyone with any ideas what could cause this odor?

 

[FeebysOwner]

No offense, but could the smell simply be because it is feral, aka wild? If a wild fox has a smell about them, why not a feral cat? Sure, it could be due to whatever sinus or ear issue that might be going on, which hopefully you can sometime in the future have looked at, but if it appears to be doing well otherwise, I wouldn't worry about it too much. Unless it spends all of its time in your yard, you don't really know where else it goes or what it does.

I'll be interested in hearing from others who deal a lot with ferals to see what they think.

 

[mani]

In my experience, feral cats don't smell unless there is some other factor.. all cats try to keep themselves as clean as possible. An ear infection can definitely create an odour.
Is it a strong smell? How close are you able to be to the cat?

 

[Caspers Human]

Our littlest, Elliot, smelled like an animal when we brought him inside.

The whole house smelled like a zoo for a week! We took him right to the vet when we captured him and got him neutered, straight away. The first day we brought him home, he peed in the house and it made the whole house smell so bad that I thought I was going to puke! I was this far from putting him back outside!

We couldn't blame the cat, really. It was his first day inside, he was groggy from the anesthetic and he didn't know where the litter box was, yet.

We cleaned up the mess and used Nature's Miracle to get rid of the smell. It took about a week but, when the neutering started to kick in, the smell went away. Today, the cat doesn't have an animal smell, at all. He smells, mostly like a normal cat. The only thing is that he's a really gassy cat! Holy Smamoley! That cat can really let off a stink bomb! OMG! He can really clear the room! One night, he farted so bad that Casper, his elder housemate, made an "ick face" and ran out of the room! We haven't quite figured out what's making him fart so much. It's got to be the food he's eating, I suppose.

Anyhow, some cats just stink. If they haven't been neutered, this is another good reason why you should get them neutered. Elliot got better after he was snipped. Then, again, if you have a gassy cat like ours... Sometimes, I think we should rename him, "SMELLiot!"

 

[mani]

Certainly an unneutered boy can have a smell.

You know, now that I think about it, Sundar, who is far from feral, can have an odour about him.. or at least he used to... that was sort of 'earthy'. I never did find out what it was.

 

[keeneland]

This cat is TNR female who has recently started coming in the house. I am starting to think this smell might be from a health issue. I do want to get this cat to the vet to be checked out but as everyone is aware with vet bills being what they are I am looking at $300 for a check up. I know Vet's have to eat too but I cringe when I have to spend $300 out of pocket on myself for medical bills. I am starting to think this smell might have something to do with that ear. Hopefully I can get this cat to the vet for rabies, tapeworm treatment, Bravecto etc. next week. Will the Bravecto kill ear mites? I had another feral a couple of weeks ago and got a steroid shot for it's sinus issues and it cleared up within hours so hopefully the same treatment will clear up this other feral with the exception of what's causing the smell. Thanks!

 

[di and bob]

There are pet wipes, even at Walmart, that could be temporarily used to see if it will help. There is that new odor remover that says it can be used ON pets, called Pooph that is supposed to work well. Spray it on a cloth though, spraying sounds scare cats. As for her ears, get some ear cleaner that is antibacterial on Amazon, and see if that helps. i give my cats 1/2 tab Zertec daily for a while for sinus problems. Call your vet and see what they say. Is she by chance pointed? (black feet, face and tail? or darker colored, even orange) I ahev found taht cats with an Oriental background have an 'odor' to the skin that is very different from nonpointed cats. But it is not offensive, very subtle.

 

[Kwik]

Hi-welcome to TCS- nice to meet you

Never met a feral who smelled bad,typically a true feral is Meticulous about grooming,it's a matter of survival NOT to smell! Its very typical of a stray to get pretty scruffy & smelly...

Having said thst certainly an infection can give off a rather foul odor ,it doesn't necessarily have to be from the ear but can be a skin infecgion,wound or excessive grooming due to parasites or some other underlying condition.... excessive grooming can definitely create a musty ,foul odor...... I think it safe to say this cat needs to see a Vet

 

[keeneland]

That is a very good description of the odor ..... Musty!

 

[keeneland]

Well I have got Kitty a vet appointment for next Wednesday! Wish me luck on being able to catch her the night before. For what ever reason the smell has gotten better. I think she has some sinus issue as she has eye watering plus her ear issue. Hopefully this will get her taken care of health wise. She is 8 years old and has not had a easy life so we hope to make her remaining years better! Thanks All!

 

[Kwik]

Well I have got Kitty a vet appointment for next Wednesday! Wish me luck on being able to catch her the night before. For what ever reason the smell has gotten better. I think she has some sinus issue as she has eye watering plus her ear issue. Hopefully this will get her taken care of health wise. She is 8 years old and has not had a easy life so we hope to make her remaining years better! Thanks All!

Fantastic-do keep us posted,hope you have an easy time getting her there

 

[keeneland]

Just a update on Kitty .... I found out tonight what is going on with the ear and I think that is where the smell is coming from. She trusted me enough tonight to curl up against me and I was able to get a look at that ear. She has a boil or a tumor in the corner of the ear about the size of a swelled up tick. It is running and that is where the crustiness and smell is coming from. I just hope it's something the vet can treat and it's not some type of cancer. I will give a update after our Doctor visit. Thanks

 

[mani]

Thank you for the update. It's wonderful that she's curling up with you!
Good luck and let us know how you're going.

 

[Kwik]

..... well be waiting

 

[keeneland]

I have just got Kitty back from the Doctor. She has Nasopharyngeal Polyps. I had experienced this before as we lost our Tom House Cat about 3 years ago to this very thing. He was having trouble breathing and it affected his balance. It was about the same as a person getting MS as he would just fall down and it was heart breaking to watch him struggle. The Vet told us that this surgery was very expensive and it was a lot to put the cat through with no guarantees as sometimes these polyps can be cancerous. Based on his advice when it got bad enough we had our kitty put to sleep. I am afraid I am going to get my heart broke all over again with the little girl.

Anyway we got this little girl all the treatments she needs today to be full time house cat. The Vet expected her to be groggy a couple of days after going through the procedure but she shows no side effects other than being scared to death from the trip. He is treating her with antibiotics but he said the polyp may come back in a matter of months. He was quite sure the head cold, sneezing, eye watering and the polyp running are all part of the same issue. The discharge can cause the Smell that I had wondered about. As for the future we are going to keep her in as a house cat and see how she does. I have read that the average Feral only live to be about 3 years at the most. She has lived 8 years on her own and we will try and make the rest of her life as easy as we can. ...... Thanks Everyone.

 

[Kwik]

Those are the statistics and it's mind blowing how these babies survive out there for so long,it breaks my heart to just think about what they've endured to survive..... Your precious Kitty is made of some real tough stuff and I Believe in Miracles,she is one so I'm praying for her Recovery and many more happy healthy years in her forever home - Loved . BLESS YOU!

6 months ago I brought in a Feral,a 7r old rogue F1--- he is now Timmy the Housecat ,from a wild,terrified "unadoptable" feral he is now the sweetest,most loveable ,good lil guy you'd ever see!They just needed someone to give them a chance to LIVE and not merely survive

I'll be praying for your girl(& you)

 

[keeneland]

Just giving a update on Kitty .....she is a housecat! I never thought that a cat that had been feral so long would ever have wanted to be in the house but it's like she has been in all her life now. She still has a little respiratory sniffles but other wise she isn't having any balance issues.Our DMV said the polyp would come back in a matter of months but we can only hope for the best. There is no longer any running or crustiness in her ear and there is no "Smell" at all from her anymore. She seems to love the attention she is getting and we are enjoying her company this holiday season. We can only hope that she has several more Christmas Seasons in our home! Best to all ..............

 

[Caspers Human]

Just giving a update on Kitty .....she is a housecat!

A cat that knows which side of her bread has the butter on it! Isn't she?

 

[Kwik]

Just giving a update on Kitty .....she is a housecat! I never thought that a cat that had been feral so long would ever have wanted to be in the house but it's like she has been in all her life now. She still has a little respiratory sniffles but other wise she isn't having any balance issues.Our DMV said the polyp would come back in a matter of months but we can only hope for the best. There is no longer any running or crustiness in her ear and there is no "Smell" at all from her anymore. She seems to love the attention she is getting and we are enjoying her company this holiday season. We can only hope that she has several more Christmas Seasons in our home! Best to all ..............

Christmas Blessings- yay!!!!Best news ever- thank you for sharing the great report.....keep us posted and we'd all love to see some photos

 

[keeneland]

This is our 8 year old feral, now turned housecat .... Puffball