Kitteh is really sick

[zombiequeen]

So I have a sweetheart of a cat (well, he's my mother's) named Spiggit. When she adopted him 2 summers ago, he was extremely malnorished and being starved by an old man that didn't want him around. The old guy thought that not feeding a KITTEN that was in his yard would make it go away, not, you know, starve it to death. Oh well, he got adopted, yay, onwards.
Kitteh poofed out for winter, all fat and muscley and looking like a regal tom. Mum never got him fixed or his shots. Still, he was fine, fat and fluffy.
Last summer, he got really thin. But he got fat and big again in the winter.
This year though, he got thin for the summer, like he was the year before. However, he's getting thinner now, instead of getting fat for winter.
His gums are yellow-white. You can see his hips, ribcage, and the bumps on his spine. He's very fluffy though, so seeing his bones stick up through the fur, it's just wrong.
I'm afraid he is really sick. We've been giving him fatty meat and such to build up fat, but he's just getting thinner.
I'm so scared he's going to starve and die...but my mum just hurt herself and her car is totaled...and even if she had the money she just feels that if he's sick, why should we take care of him, he'll die either way. Hubby and i can't afford to take him to the vet...what should I do?

[teh_blumchenkinder]

It's likely (highly likely) in my experience that veterinarians have a credit system-- pay a little bit every so often. Just explain your situation, have credit-rating stuff handy, and you might have to search around a bit for it...
Hugs and kisses for Spiggit. Hopefully this specific problem isn't what happened last time-- long term problems that go unaddressed usually means a more difficult time of healing.
EDIT: get him his shots! It might even be illegal where you're at!

[It's me]

I just hit google.... don't have good news for you though.

http://www.blurtit.com/q735254.html

[zombiequeen]

We don't have the money to get him his shots, and my mother refuses to. Hubby and I might not be able to pay our car insurance, so we definitely don't have the money for his shots.

[AriGriffin]

Try contacting these groups.

http://www.petandwildlife.com/dog-in...vet-bills.html

[zombiequeen]

I'm going to try calling a couple local veterinarian offices to see if they can help me, but I remember them not helping us get vitamins for a cat years ago because we didn't get her vaccinated as a kitten. They said that because she didn't get kitten shots, and she was an adult. They didn't want to give her kitten shots as an adult, but also didn't want to help her get vitamins for her pregnancy.
I'll try some of the other clinics though, because if I explain our financial situation, maybe they'll let us do a payment plan or something? Or work something out because of what my parent's situation is?
I just don't like how my mum is handling it, and my husband is doing the whole "if she can't help him, she won't let us." Which is true, but if I can get it done for little to no cost, we can pay for it and we'll just take Spiggit when we move.

[teh_blumchenkinder]

Good idea, Z. Just stay calm, treat your bundle of fur with love, baby him and give him treats, don't let him out, that sort of thing.
... Do you ever switch his food? Do you think there's any chance that he got into something, like cleaners or repellents?

[zombiequeen]

Unfortunately, mum declared him a strictly outside cat the year we got him because he is mischievous unless given attention. He sleeps/hides out in the garage, full of chemicals and nasties. He started getting thinner after mum gave him this all natural dewormer. "feline WRM CLEAR" from HomeoPet. She finished doing the dosing round, because he wasn't fattening up like he should be this time of year, and after that, instead of maintaining or gaining, he started losing weight! Could it be the meds?

[teh_blumchenkinder]

I doubt it... but I am so not a veterinarian it's not even funny. It probably just added a bit more stress to his system, is all. Likely the same thing when you think you have allergies and take an antihistamine and go on with life-- but really you have the flu!
Check the garage he stays in, make sure everything's clean-- and for the love of fur, check for anti-freeze and other puddles from where cars were parked! I doubt it's antifreeze poisoning, but check anyway. Does anyone use bait/poison in the area? If your mom (or neighbors) only baits/poisons mice and rats at a certain time of year, that might be it. He could have very well eaten something that died from poison-- which is why I hate hate hate using poison.
... He might have chemical sensitivities that the dewormer might have aggravated-- just like some people can't use things with sulfates in them, or can't use certain make ups, the like.
That's why I'm encouraging you corral him-- like in a room. Maybe not the bathroom. That way, if he gets worse at all, you can take him in immediately, and you can monitor his behavior... and make sure he isn't taking in anything untoward.

[zombiequeen]

I'll ask my mum if we can keep him in the backroom or something, but I doubt she'd go for it because she's the one who thinks he's fine.
I'm checking for puddles here in a few minutes. I'm also wondering if the bologna my mum's giving him every day is hurting him? For our dogs the vet said put the medicine on bologna, but I wonder if that's bad for cats? He doesn't eat canned food, and I'm not allowed to give him the canned tuna or salmon.

[teh_blumchenkinder]

Don't worry so much about canned/not canned. I'm concerned about if any of the food he's eaten-- dry, caught, or otherwise-- has been detrimentally contaminated. After all, it's not uncommon for pet food to be recalled due to chemical contaminants. You might want to check on that. And, like I said, it could be seasonal application of chemicals-- lawns, pests, yearly chores-- that could've done it... or he could have a disease of some sort.

[MaggieTheCat]

I worked at a pet supply company that was owned by veterinarians for 3 1/2 years. They had a lot of articles that they and other vets they know and employ write that are free to the public, a lot of which I read. I also have 3 cats, so here is my advice.

Note I am NOT a vet, this is just personal experience and what I know having worked in the industry.

Any cat that is not vaccinated regularly is always in danger of getting a disease, even if they're a strictly indoor cat. Having an outdoor cat that is not vaccinated makes the odds much, much better that the cat will get sick. Your cat more than likely has at least some contact with other cats, likely some strays/ferals that are also not vaccinated, and that's how diseases like rabies and distemper, both of which are usually fatal, get passed around. Even if he has absolutely no physical contact with other cats, diseases can be passed through other cats' urine and feces, so even if he finds a pile of waste somewhere and sniffs it, there is a chance he can contract something.

You do not need to have a vet administer vaccines, except in the case of rabies (I'll come back to that.) If you can find the vaccines to buy at a pet supply store, or even if a vet will sell you a dose, you can do it yourself, if you know how. There are tutorials and videos available online. It is much, much cheaper to do this than to get a vet to do it; vaccines usually run anywhere from $3-10 each, whereas getting it done at a vet's office is usually at least $30 or more. Rabies vaccines must be administered by a vet in case the cat bites someone and you need proof that the rabies vaccine is up to date. In almost every part of the U.S. that I know of, it is illegal to not get your pet vaccinated for rabies. If you don't, the animal could be taken away from you. If you don't get your cat rabies vaccinated and it bites someone, the cat will be taken away and there is a good chance it will be destroyed. Rabies is not something to be messed around with.

Stop feeding the cat bologna. Now. Faster. A SMALL amount of human food, always in the form of lean meat, is okay for a cat; usually when I cook steak, chicken, pork roast, or fish, we give the cats a tiny little bite. Usually around 1-2 teaspoons per cat. Deli lunch meat is also okay, but it is full of sodium so we don't give that to them very often. Something like bologna is likely doing more harm than good; it's full of preservatives and sodium and probably fat. Just because you're feeding the cat fatty food does not meat it's going to gain weight, and even if it does, it won't be good weight. Get the cat a very high quality cat food (preferably canned, at least until he starts eating again and gaining weight.) There was a thread on here within the last week or two detailing what to look for when buying pet food (the thread was about dog food but the same rules apply to cat food.) I'll look it up and link it later. Do not buy cat food from the grocery store, unless you check the label and make sure it's high quality and not crap; most stuff that grocery stores carry is going to be crap. If the cat won't eat cat food, or if you or your mom need to feed it human food, boil a chicken breast in plain water until it's done and you can shred it. Don't add anything to it; no oil, or butter, or salt, or seasoning of any kind. Leave the water plain. It's not ideal to feed a cat even this kind of diet constantly, but it's a heck of a lot better than bologna.

Note: I know some people make their own food for their animals. I have never done or researched this. I'm sure it's possible but I also know that cats need a certain balance of vitamins, minerals, protein, etc. that is difficult to achieve unless you know what you're doing, and not providing these essentials can make a cat sick.

Regarding getting into stuff in the garage, has the cat thrown up or had diarrhea lately? Usually if they get into something, you'll know since they'll leave messes for you. How long has he not been eating/gaining weight?

One of our cats has kidney disease. We found out about it when she stopped eating much for about 2 weeks and became extremely lethargic. She lost about 3lbs in that two weeks. She was dehydrated, so she needed an IV to get her hydrated again, plus some antibiotics because she had picked up an infection while her immune system was down. She's on a special diet now of food that's made specifically for cats with kidney diets.

Bottom line: The cat needs to get to a vet ASAP. I don't know what's wrong with it and no one else is going to know until a vet sees it. If your mom is not taking care of the animal, seriously consider finding another home for it until you can afford to take it yourself. Do you have any friends who could foster it for a while? What your mom is doing is bordering on cruelty and neglect and she has no business having a pet if she's not going to take care of it.

After re-reading your OP again, he MAY have some kind of gum disease or an infected tooth that is causing him pain when he chews, thus, he won't eat, thus, his weight loss. In which case, again, it will have to be treated by a vet.

Here is the website that has the articles written by the vets I worked for (in case you want to do a little research on pet food, vaccines, diseases, etc):
http://peteducation.com/

Here is the link to the pet food thread:
http://www.customerssuck.com/board/s...ad.php?t=67557

[zombiequeen]

He's eating just fine, he won't eat canned cat food, and my mum won't do anything for him. In fact, she said "if he's that sick, I'll just have dad shoot him so we don't have to worry about it anymore."
I think she was kidding, but everyone around here has the same feeling towards cats. I mean, if he doesn't get better, I'll take him to a shelter, but the shelter's around here have bad reputations/kill animals. No one here can afford to help him out, I asked my brother if he would be willing to pay half of the C-snip costs, and he said no.
I'll tell mum that the bologna is a bad idea, and maybe she'll stop giving it to him. Today she gave him some salmon patties with garlic, onion and spices that were leftover from last week, but he didn't eat much of it. I think it tasted too much like canned food for him. I've been giving him pieces of my sandwich (usually minimal-processing/low sodium chicken on potato bread) if I see him outside during lunch.
He's not lethargic or anything, it's like he doesn't realize something's wrong.
He's only outside, I have no way of knowing where he goes, or if he's been sick.
I'm seriously crying because I'm so worried about him...

[K'Z'K]

Yellow-white gums? Emaciated despite eating? Forget food advice. This cat is critically ill, and will die without proper veterinary care. Perhaps even with it, since it sounds like he's pretty far gone. WAY beyond anything you can do at home.

Very pale gums indicates severe anemia. Yellow indicates liver failure. Emaciation can be caused by lots of things, none of them good. If a cat came to my hospital looking like you describe, we'd want to admit him to the ICU, and would only send him home AMA. He'd probably need blood work, Xrays and/or ultrasound, IV fluids and meds, a feeding tube, an Internal Medicine consult....

Take him to the vet NOW. He may have to be euthanized--in fact, I'd bet on it--but that's a hell of a lot better than the slow death he's going through now.

As for payment plans, I've never known of a hospital that will just "work with you"--those who try that get seriously burned, as the majority of people who claim they'll make payments are deadbeats. They may accept CareCredit, however, which is basically a credit card that can only be used for medical things and can have a long no-interest payment period. But know that the care of this cat will not be low cost. My hospital will euthanize for free if it's the humane thing to do and the owner really is broke.

Also, do NOT allow your mother to "adopt" another cat if all it's going to get is food (the alleged dewormer is complete bullshit, so it doesn't count). That's neglect (and in the case of skipping rabies vaccines, possibly illegal). Checkups, vaccines, and spaying/neutering is the MINIMUM level of care. If you're not willing and/or able to do that much, DO NOT HAVE PETS. You shouldn't have any either, since the rolling eyes indicates that you do not understand why the vet would not just give vitamins to your neglected cat. It ain't because they don't care or just want money--it's basic standards of care (plus, a healthy cat doesn't need vitamins).

Yes, this is harsh, but it's true. Someone who cares so little for a cat should never have one.

Now get this cat to a vet and put him out of his misery.

I am not a vet, but I am an emergency/critical care tech. I can't diagnose under any circumstances, and I can't triage without the cat in front of me, but the description alone sets off all of my alarms.

-K'Z'K

[AriGriffin]

Garlic, onion, and spices are extremely toxic to cats. Do not feed table scraps to pets. Their digestive system cannot handle all the fillers and junk that is put into human food.

Call or e-mail the following groups. If they are not located where you are, they should be able to tell you of a group that is near you that will help.

Angels 4 Animals- http://www.angels4animals.org/
Phone: 916-941-9119
Fax: 916-290-0598
Email: staff@angels4animals.org

United Animal Nations- http://www.uan.org/
Phone: (916) 429-2457
Fax: (916) 429-2456
E-mail: info@uan.org

Cats in Crisis- http://www.catsincrisis.org/
Closed for requests, but can assist with locating help

Feline Outreach- http://www.felineoutreach.org/index.html
Closed for requests, but can assist with locating help

Feline Veterinary Emergency Assistance- http://www.fveap.org/resources_11.html

The Pet Fund- http://thepetfund.com/

Try posting in the pet discussions board on your local Craigslist. Someone might know of a vet or a program that will help.