CatLovers Community

I woke up this morning and my dad had let out my cat, Patrick (an indoor/outdoor Bombay). I was asleep until an hour ago but when went to feed him he was foaming at the mouth.

Now I've looked up what could be the cause (thank god not likely rabies-he's had his shots anyways) but ad the one thing I found very likely was bee-stings. My cat LOVES to chase bees and it wouldn't surprise me if he got stung.

So how do I check for bee stings? And are there any other causes for foaming?

He seems fine for now but I'm going to be watching him all day. I saw him jumping on my fence afterwards and playing with a leaf. But is there anything else I should look out for?


Thanks, guys!

So my adorable kitty Pepper has been chewing on my bamboo plant in my bathroom. How do I get her to stop? She only does it when I'm away (My door is weird and doesn't close from the outside at all btw.. meh)

bored
he always looks like he is up to something
fluffer
fluffer
fluffer
whiskey pouting because peri went home
p-city being weird

Hey everyone!

My cat, Lucky, about 8-9 years old, 16 pounds is showing signs of a urinary tract infection. He has had one before--with the exact same symptoms. I was wondering if I'd be able to buy the antibiotics we used before, as I would really like to avoid going to the vet(last time we were billed about $700 :|). I want to try out the antibiotics for a day or two, just to see if there's some improvement. Of course I would have no issue taking him to the vet again, but I'd like to know if it's avoidable.

On a sidenote, do you have any tips to help prevent a UTI from reoccurring? Any products/brands you recommend?

Thank you for all your help!

::EDIT:: Thank you to everyone for all of your comments and support! I'm taking down the donation button for the time-being until I can come up with another option for helping my friends out.
I will definitely check with the vet to see if they'll take donations directly, but I'm hoping we can have Shelby resolved fairly quickly (I am willing to personally go into debt in order to ensure she's not going to suffer any longer than she has already, but this is entirely dependent on my credit card company giving me the extension)

I've done a bit of research on the condition and learned that it isn't considered 'highly contagious', despite the vet telling us it was. I also learned that there are a few other conditions including liver disease and kidney inflammation (you should see the size of this girls kidneys) that can cause the fluid build up. And that it's often misdiagnosed.

I feel I should clarify my biggest reason for wanting a second opinion. The veterinary office they took her to is known for shoddy practices. Including (but not limited to) using the bare minimum dosage for euthanasia (a friends dog had to be dosed twice after the first dose only sent him into seizures instead of gently off to sleep), completely missing a kidney infection in my landladies dog until he was almost on deaths door. They ignored all the signs of an illness (I do not recall what it was) that had very distinctive symptoms (Something to do with the back legs, dammit, it is on the tip of my tongue!) and just general idiocy.

The vet I have been *trying* to get them to go to, a good 45 minute drive away, is the one I trust and who has a wonderful bedside manner with the animals, as well as an extremely knowledgeable staff! He's also known for giving extreme discounts on certain services (comping bloodwork and the office visit the last time my landlady had to have a cat put down because of cancer).

Perhaps what had me in the biggest scramble over this was the concern that there have been a total of 18 cats exposed to this virus (if it is what Shelby has) through direct contact with contaminated feces. And some earlier reading led me to the belief that there was a possibility she could have transmitted it to them before it reached the advanced stages.

No matter the cause, it will be at least two weeks before they have the money to have her put down. And all things considered, we aren't certain she'll live that long. Shelby was always a tiny cat, seeing how big she's gotten, I'm amazed she hasn't had an internal rupture already. She honestly looks like she's swallowed a football.

:Original post:
Yesterday, two of my closest friends in the world took their cat, Shelby, to the vet. For a few years, she's been homed with a mutual friend, while they were in a pet-free apartment.

Now that they've got a home where they *can* have cats, they've taken her, her brother Marshmallow, and her sister Gypsy back.

Sad to say, the conditions they were living in were... less than satisfactory, and worries about their health have just become more intense.

Over the past month or so, Shelby has been picking up weight. What we thought was just normal weight-gain for a half-starved kitty, turns out is a belly full of fluid (nasty yellowish stuff, too) and enlarged kidneys.

Sadly, the vet immediately claimed her to be suffering from FIP, and suggested putting her to sleep. But the $200 + bill for the x-ray and office visit was already emptying their wallets, and they aren't able to afford the extra $150+ for euthanasia.

What I want to know, is how did she come to this conclusion, despite not performing a blood test or biopsy, and knowing there are a number of other things that could cause this condition?

We really need a second opinion, especially considering they have two other cats right now who have been living with Shelby in the same conditions for years. They all three need their tests done, at the very least, even if it *does* prove to be FIP, we need to *know* and we need to make sure the other two haven't contracted it as well.

A blood test is not 100% accurate, but a very good indicator. The vet I take my own cats to will charge $100, plus $40 for the office visit. All three of them need the blood test done, and Shelby will likely need more. I wanted to do a donation drive for them to help, but I'm a little lost on where to start.

More so, I'm concerned that Shelby, one of the sweetest, most affectionate cats I've ever met, is going to suffer until they can pull together enough cash to have her put down or treated (with a proper diagnosis).

Any suggestions?

I recently ordered a Moby wrap baby carrier, and it arrived in the mail yesterday. However, the baby is not due until January, so I had to test it on a most unwilling victim...

I am trying to teach my new cat, Casper, to use the cat flap. So far when my husband and I half push him through it he is ok. But I am wondering how long it will take him to realise that he can just push it open. Also, I'm worried that when he does realise it, that he will run away. I've waited for a new cat for so long. Now I get Casper, and he is quite partial to everyone. Me included sometimes. But not much. So that annoys me, though he is getting better with that. But what do I do if he actually does start to realise that he's my cat and he runs away? The last cat I had that I was so very attached to (and she was attached to me) ran away. I don't know why though. But now that has me worrying that Casper will too.

I was told by a neighbor a while ago that using a squirt bottle on a cat is abusive, what do you cat lovers think?

I loved it.

This sweet darling is Ellie! She's one of my manx kitties although her tail isn't what we call a nub, she has a shortened tail. It was broken at birth or when she was a kitten and has settled crooked, so she's a crooked tailed manx kittie. her tail sorta looks like a capital L but maybe not quite as bent lol i'll try and get a better picture another time!




Lol this freak of nature is Pepper! i call him pepper really because he has white littel hairs all peppered through his coat ahaha. I prolly should have called him salt but pepper suits him better. He has a nub! cute kitties!

and thank you HotClaws for helping me post these! I'll try and post more of my kitties if anybody is interested!

Thanks ya'll!

I'm new this this community so just wanted to say hi! I love kitties and don't think they get the love and care as much as they deserve! I notice there's not as much products out there in the market for cats like there is for dogs! Blasphemy! lol

I'm going to post pics of my two rambunctious kitties! they're both Manx!

Well i'll post as soon as I figure out how I can do that!

Hi, all. Long-time lurker, first-time poster here, and I come to you with a question and a need for some advice. Meet Pixie...





My ex-roommate and I acquired Pixie nearly three years ago but she's been living with the roommate when she became ex- for the past two years, and it's been over a year since I've seen her. I've just taken her back as the ex-roommate is moving, and there's something I'm concerned about.

Her butt is... poopy. And I'm not talking 'dingleberries', I'm talking like a big poopy pancake and it's gross. The ex-roommate didn't seem to do anything about it, as she claims it doesn't leave marks (ew) but I'm worried it could be the sign of worms or a food allergy. Apparently she's been pooping solid and peeing regularly, so she's not dehydrated, but she hasn't been to the vet in nearly 3 years, since she was spayed (she's an indoor-only cat). She's nearly six years old, healthy as far a I'm aware - she's gained some weight recently so I'm planning on getting her on a diet food. Currently she's eating some IAMS hairball control dry food. The ex-roommate thinks that she's just not able to clean herself due to her weight gain.

If anyone has any advice I'd be really grateful, as I don't exactly want my kitty to be wandering around with a dirty bum all the time and if there's a chance she could be sick, I want to know.

Lilly and Ozzy

Back in May our neighbour (the one that Murphy visits so often) told us that her brother had two young cats that had both given birth on the same day. We weren’t looking to add to our brood, but we said we’d go and visit them as neither of us can resist playing with kittens for a few hours (she was looking after them as her brother was on holiday). We both took a liking to a pair but weren’t decided at that point so didn’t put our names down as a definite. The kittens were only 6 weeks old (barely) so we thought we had a while to think about it. However, the brother came home a few days later and promptly set about finding homes for them all – he wanted them gone as soon as he could. ‘Our’ two got snapped up pretty quickly so we went back for another look at the rest of them. I favoured Ozzy at first (the tabby) and OH favoured Lilly, but when we got them home things started to change, and they decided to swap humans – Lilly is now my little lap cat (finally I have a cat that will cuddle me!) and Ozzy loves my OH. They are now 16.5 weeks old.

Lilly



Ozzy

Hey all,

I’ve been a long-time lurker here ever since I got my first cat three years ago. I’ve posted occasionally when I’ve had questions but have never done an introduction, so without further ado…

Georgie

Georgie was found living rough in a car park beside my in-laws house. We’re not sure of her exact age, going by her size when we found her we thought maybe four months, but it turned out that she was over 6 months at least and just small for her age. She’s still a tiny little thing. She absolutely adores my OH and ignores me for the most part, unless I happen to have a bowl of tuna in my hand. She’s now about 3.5 years old.






Murphy

We got Murphy a year ago, when we decided that I needed a cat of my own. I was initially against getting a kitten but my OH sent me a picture of him (initially he was advertised as being a girl) and I fell in love completely. He was by far the most mental kitten either of us had come across but has turned into a very chilled out, loveable big lump. Everyone loves him, and he splits his time between our house and our neighbours (even their dog is crazy about him). The only person not crazy about him is Georgie – she actively hates him and her yelling at him is a frequent soundtrack in our house. Despite the fact that he was supposed to be ‘mine’ (or I was supposed to be his?) he seems to love us both equally, but isn’t a lap cat at all – maybe due to the fact that his size means he doesn’t fit on our laps! He was a year old in May this year.







This ended up being rather longer than I expected so I'll put the rest in another post.

Our cat Biscuit is going to be nine in November. He's our first cat, and I have no idea when a good time to start feeding him senior style food is. He's definitely less active than he used to be, and I know nine is still in the prime of his life these days when cat live 15+ years. I just would rather be safe than sorry. We live in the UK as well, so if anyone has any suggestions as to what to feed him when he does need senior food, that would be great. He eats both wet (once a day) and dry (free feeding... it's a long story, but he's definitely not overeating it, so I keep him on it). So it's not just text 

Hello,
I have an all black, neutered male cat. He is about a year old, and mostly an indoor cat. In the past month he has developed bald patches on the insides of his back legs and the back of his front legs. It's definitely not mange, and I have not noticed any fleas or mites.
Does anybody know what this could be?



Thank you

My husband and I decided it was time to add to our little family!!!





This is our new kitty Scottie! Louie, our other kitty, isn't thrilled, but he is starting to come around. Thanks for looking!

So, I know I just asked about litter boxes in my last post, but does anyone use the tidy cats litter system?? If so, is it more expensive to buy the pellets and pads or use litter?? I've read reviews on how great it is with the smell, but wasn't sure how long the pellets and pads actually last.

Nothing in particular to update or ask, just wanted to show off my pretty girl with one of my favorite pictures of her! :)

Lady ♥

New to LJ and the comm, and I just thought I'd introduce myself with a picture of my babe I took today as I was eating my breakfast. She was waiting on the table next to me hoping to get the dregs of milk from my bowl of course.



We got her in 2007 when she was a kitten and we couldn't think of a name for her so my mom just started calling her Kitty and it's stuck and all she'll respond to. She's a Maine Coon poly, with seven fingers on both front paws, and an extra toe on her back right paw while her back left paw is normal.

I feel like such a massively bad pet parent right now.  

Over the past several months, my poor Miyagi has developed the world's most giant mat on his back.  It started the last time I gave him a bath and he ran away before I could finish drying him off properly just before the base of his tail.  Since he is super sensitive about letting anyone near him with a brush, comb or (God forbid!) scissors, the thing has just sat there, slowly growing and taking over more and more of his back. 

I should mention that Mig is a very very large, very strong animal who is frankly a little scary when you piss him off (a very rare occurrence from an otherwise very sweet cat that is really only caused by trying to groom him).  Last time we took him to the vet, she tried to take care of the mat with clippers and what bore a strong resemblance to falcon gloves.  He STILL scared the crap out of her.  She told me the only way she was going to try that again is after he'd been sedated.  She strongly recommended making another appointment.  However, since I'm currently unemployed and about to get married, that's a $70 haircut that really isn't in the budget.  

Time passes, the mat growing, until my sister's boyfriend met Miyagi for the first time last week.  He pet him a little, then asked what the hell was on his back, because it felt like a tumor or something.

At that point, I decided this had gotten massively our of control.  I have resolved to stop being scared of my own pet and to deal with the damn thing already.  

So I've been bribing him with treats every so often to snip off another section or two. I'm now completely out of treats and my poor cat looks like he has mange. But it's finally getting done!!  

The thing I feel worst about is that he seemed a lot more comfortable before I started messing with it.  Now that I've started snipping, I'm finding little clumps from where HE has been pulling pieces out himself.  I feel terrible for him, but I'm not sure what else to do about it except try to get it done as fast as I can.
And just so this isn't a text-only post, here's a pre-mat picture of the dude in question.  

Hi, I'm new to this community
 This is Bentley, he is a 1.5 year old cat, I'm not sure what type, they weren't able to tell me. I adopted this guy from Animal Love in London ON. At first he was a bit of a terror with my dog, but they have learned to get along and play most of the day. He loves to cuddle and hang out in weird places.
 - he found his way into my cupboard. and earlier today he was lying in the bathtub. 


      
  

Bee turns 11 years old next month. I've already told her that she's not allowed to get old, so she'd better live forever. She's been my adorable baby since she was around 10 weeks old. And she's an absolute DOLL of a cat...uber-affectionate, entertaining, playful, etc, but still incredibly chilled-out. Although she is incredibly vocal, she never meows! She squeaks, she squawks, and she does the Bill the Cat-style "acks," but you'll never hear a proper meow from her.







With her pit bull buddy Ava:





With Ava again:



Ava is flaunting this toy, thinking that Bee will be impressed by it. Bee is clearly not impressed :)