Foster cat does not groom himself

[Maggiez]

I just started fostering a male cat that's about 2 year's old. He was abandoned at the shelter, still under the process of vaccination and waiting to be neutered.

His coat is oily, dusty, and I can feel scab under his fur. He keeps shedding some clumps of furs with scab at the end.
I only got him since yesterday, although he's quite relaxed, never went into hiding, and tried to snuggle with me all the time and purrs.
The shelter told me that he probably got the scab from fighting with other cats, since he's not neutered yet and the previous owner left him and another un-neutered cat at the shelter.
But so far, I also noticed that he never groomed himself once. I suspect that the poor condition of his coat was caused by negligence from previous owner, poor diet, and no grooming.

I'm thinking about bathing him but I'm not sure if it's a good idea. I've never bathed my own cats (I have three) so I don't really know how to do it. Should I get those wipes to clean him up a bit? So far he enjoyed brushing, but his coat is still super dusty.

This is my first time fostering. Any suggestions will be super helpful. I hope to improve his health during fostering so he will look more handsome to be adopted soon. He deserves a nice home because he's such a sweat heart.

 

[susanm9006]

I agree, likely stress and poor nutrition. I wouldn’t be concerned though if he doesn’t groom himself for at least a few days as he has a great deal of fear and stress right now. I am concerned about the scab however as it can be a sign of ringworm. If you can’t get him to the vet right away I would use a black light to see if the scab spot or flakes around it glows. Ringworm is contagious so wear gloves while you handle him until you know for sure.

 

[Maggiez]

I agree, likely stress and poor nutrition. I wouldn’t be concerned though if he doesn’t groom himself for at least a few days as he has a great deal of fear and stress right now. I am concerned about the scab however as it can be a sign of ringworm. If you can’t get him to the vet right away I would use a black light to see if the scab spot or flakes around it glows. Ringworm is contagious so wear gloves while you handle him until you know for sure.

I was hoping to feed him higher quality food during the foster time but unfortunately he's not interested in food and barely ate anything (it has been about 24 hours since we got him, and he only licked some wet food). I'll keep observe and see how it goes.

Ringworm sounds scary! His hair loss is not terrible but now I'm concerned. I don't have a black light but will try to find one as soon as possible, since I don't think our local vet can see him immediately. I'm surprised that the shelter didn't mention the possibility. And I always assumed that shelter usually give the cat a full checkup. Should I schedule a vet visit nonetheless?

 

[susanm9006]

Sometimes shelters are crowded and busy so they don’t check cats as thoroughly as they should. You could ask them if the cat and his sore was checked by a vet while he was with them. You can pick up a black light bulb for a few dollars so that would be the fastest way but not perfectly accurate. So a visit to the vet fairly quickly would be a good idea.

 

[Maggiez]

Sometimes shelters are crowded and busy so they don’t check cats as thoroughly as they should. You could ask them if the cat and his sore was checked by a vet while he was with them. You can pick up a black light bulb for a few dollars so that would be the fastest way but not perfectly accurate. So a visit to the vet fairly quickly would be a good idea.

I asked the shelter and they provided a ringworm check up yesterday. They said most of the scab seemed like a healing wound due to cat fight. Because he was left at the shelter with another un-neutered male cat, who's also scratched up. I gave him a lot of brushes and now his fur actually looks better. A quick black light check up seemed fine, but I'll wait for the ringworm result to come back and take precautious at the moment.
His appetite is finally back and now he looks more energetic, and finally start to groom himself

 

[Maggiez]

New update: the foster cat was neutered last weekend and now doing well. He's not marking or peeing outside of litter box anymore. I didn't do the introduction properly, but he seemed to get along with my cats just fine. Maybe acting a bit awkward around my cats sometimes but that's expected because he's so new and my cats are bullies... He is extremely affectionate and love to hang around with us. The shelter is taking him back next Monday so he can be adopted. We really wanted to adopt him but we already have three cats and I feel the time strain when I'm taking care of four. It's heartbreaking to let him go and thinking about he might be scared and confused when going back to the shelter. But we really think he'll find a good home soon because he's such a sweet cat. Ah jeez, I still feel like I might change my mind and take him in before next Monday...
PS. Sharing a picture of him just an hour ago, sitting on my lap when I was in front of my computer. None of my own cats snuggle with me like this lol

 

[Docs Mom]

Aaaahh....he looks like a sweetheart! He is your cuddling kitty, and gorgeous to boot! I won't bother you anymore, but I hope you keep him !!!

This why I can't foster...... I would FAIL !

 

[Margot Lane]

KEEPER