New Cat

[johnwayne_duke]

Hi,

I currently live in an RV at a campsite on a lake in East Texas, and i will be here for at least a year. Last week a cat showed up at my door, i dont know what kind of cat it is, how old it is or anything about it. I love animals but i am not really a pet person, this just means that i like to come and go as a please and dont prefer to have a pet. But i was not going to just let it starve and so i took it in. This is not my first cat but i have not had any pets for at least 20 years.

I converted an old plastic storage container the right size into a litter box, got some litter (cheap and good stuff and mixed it together). And i got it some dry food, i think i may be feeding it too much because its outside all day and comes in at night and with just being in the RV at night she poops 2 or 3 times. I also got her a nice collar online.

She seems alittle skinny so i gave her extra portions. She seems in good health but i did notice today that she might have ear mites as there is mite poop in her ear and she is always shaking her head, i will try to find a home cure for that. She does not seem to have a chip or have been spayed yet.

I am disabled and i live on one paycheck a month which is already stretched, but like i said im not going to let her starve. I have asked around and nobody knows where she came from.

She seems really gentle and even when we play she seems to try to be careful not to scratch me too badly. She is a total lover and a really nice animal. But again she loves it outside and spends all day outside at the RV park.

I called the local vet and to get her checked out and give her shots and a chip and trim her nails which are really long and very sharp is about $200 which i cannot afford.

I was hoping that someone here would be able to tell me if there is a home remedy for ear mites, maybe shed some light on her possible age (she seems to be about 4 lbs), maybe what kind of cat she is, and any suggestions on care that i can do here at home on my budget. Also how much food is she suppose to have every day?

Here are some pictures.

Thanks so much

 

[johnwayne_duke]

I did find this, so it looks like ill need some olive oil and cotton balls.

 

[maggiedemi]

Are you using a monthly flea topical on the back of her neck? I use Frontline and along with the fleas, it also killed my cat's ear mites.

 

[Sarthur2]

Thanks for giving her a home!

What's your city in Texas? I'll find a low-cost spay clinic for you before she gets pregnant.

 

[johnwayne_duke]

Yes i got a sergeants 3 month liquid treatment. I put it on the back of her neck and back a day before i let her inside. I wanted a normal collar but the lady said this was better.

I am at lake fork in Alba Texas.

 

[maggiedemi]

What are the ingredients in the Sergeants?

 

[johnwayne_duke]

Its Sergeants Silver, says it kills fleas, ticks and repels mosquitoes. Active ingredients Etofenprox 55% and Other 45% no detail of the other is listed that i can find on the package.

 

[maggiedemi]

Not to scare you, but I have read bad things about Etofenprox. Did your cat have any side effects from it? I use Frontline which has Fipronil in it, which seems to kill ear mites too. You have to wait a month though to try something different since you already put on the Seargents. None of the natural things I tried worked. If you can find a low cost vet clinic, I think ear mite treatment is only like $20.

 

[maggiedemi]

I forgot to answer your question about food. My cats eat somewhere around a cup of food using a measuring cup. But I feed half dry food and half canned food.

 

[johnwayne_duke]

Thanks for the help, any idea on possible age or type of cat?

 

[maggiedemi]

Google Russian Blue, do you think that's what she looks like? She looks at least a year old to me. How much does she weigh?

 

[johnwayne_duke]

She weighs about 4 lbs is all. I dont see any yellowing of her teeth, yeah im thinking 7mo to 1year. wow, yeah russian blue looks just like her and she is very effectionate.

 

[Sarthur2]

Hopefully she will put some weight on!

 

[maggiedemi]

She's probably a little younger than a year old then.

 

[johnwayne_duke]

Well it has been a challenge for me as its a big adjustment to my life to add her to my world, but i know its an adjustment for her as well so we both will need to adjust i suppose. Honestly last night i did have thoughts of giving her up. I have financial goals which include a new grandbaby on the way and with all the money it will take to just get her basic health it will cut deeply into that budget. I have been struggling to feed myself lately. But im willing to give it some time.

We have come up with a routine so far that she goes out in the morning, i put some food and water out for her and then i bring her back in just before nightfall. The good thing is that she has given up the RV next door (where she stayed the whole time she was alone) which is empty most of the time and has decided to stay in my yard. She lays under my truck or the RV most of the day. She has also been better about crying to get back out after i bring her in at night.

But i am alittle worried, starting night before last she acted slugish and didnt lay with me on the sofa at all. She went right to bed (she sleeps on the bed in the RV). At first i thought that maybe it was me because i toss and turn all night long with my medical issues and i thought she was just tired because she didnt get any sleep the night before. So lastnight she did it again, went right to bed so i made the bedroom really dark and stayed up extra late to give her some rest. I did notice her stools are a bit stiffer and dryer than they were before.

Today when i went out to see if she was ok earlier today she basically stumbled out from under my truck. She actually had to lean against my truck tire to stay upright. I started talking to her and she just meowed really quietly. I also noticed that she is not as vocal as she used to be, she used to meow all the time, now she is very quiet. She is in bed right now as well.

She seems like she has no energy, she didnt eat that much today either, just a few bites this morning is all. Could this just be constipation? Maybe just depression? I wont be able to take her to the doctor for a few more weeks at payday.

 

[Sarthur2]

No, this sounds like more than constipation.

Can you give her wet food? Some cheese for calcium?

It sounds like she needs to see a vet sooner rather than later. Can you get a payment plan with a vet, or a Care Credit card?

 

[johnwayne_duke]

If i had some cheese i would, i did offer her some milk but she didnt want any. I only have $30 and thats for my food for the next 14 days till payday. I will call tomorrow to see if i can get her in and if they can bill me.

 

[johnwayne_duke]

They said they could not bill me because i have a out of state license. We both slept till 4pm today and she did get up in the middle of the night to eat. I noticed her stool was rock hard, so i got her some soft can food and gave her half the can and she gobbled it down. So maybe by tomorrow it will soften up and she will feel better, and maybe she has passed the worst of it.

 

[Sarthur2]

That's good! Keep giving the canned food. It should help. You can add a few drops of olive or vegetable oil to the wet food and that will help too. Make sure she has fresh water at all times too.

I hope she continues to improve. Food should help!

 

[surya]

Maybe a bad reaction to the Seargents stuff you used? I have heard bad stuff about their products. Maybe you could wash it off her?