Well, we found another feral kitten.....

[miss_thenorth]

I guess it is that time of year, last year we acquired two kittens, just sitting in our barn one morning. We still have them.

yesterday hubby, dd and I caught another little kitten--tiny--about 6 weeks old. No sign of momma cat. Looks just like the two cats we got last year, but last years kitties were perfectly healthy. the only thing we have had done to those two kitties is to have them neutered.

This one had dirty ears, and eyes, and fleas. I suspect parasites also. She (ughh, as it will cost more money to 'fix' her ) has a good appetite, but she sleeps most of the time, and when she's awake, she doesn't play. so of course I suspect anemia. (also her gums and eyelids and pale)

We will keep this kitty, but i refuse to spend money on it, since it WILL be a barn cat.

I have ivermectin. 08% sheep drench, and flea spot on treatment. Would you recommend using it right now, since she is so young, but also in need of treatment? I have a chart that has suggested rates for varying animals --: http://www.noahcompendium.co.uk/PHARMAQ_Limited/documents/S5329.html


editing now, --this is the second time it has happened to me where i hit the "enter" key instead of the "shift" key, and my post gets submitted when i am not even done writing. anyhoo..... I realize this list doe not show kittens or cats, but considering the size, I would go with two drops unless someone strongly suggests with valid reasons that I do not treat this way.

(Please do not think this is cruel. This is the only chance she gets. Either i treat her as best I can without money being spent, or she continues life as a feral cat, where it would be my guess that she would die. If it means spending money (that I do not have--to spend on a barn cat), she will continue to be feral.)

 

[savingdogs]

I hope someone here has the correct ivermectic dose. I think you are making a good choice here, at least you are helping where you could do nothing.

Dirty ears sounds like ear mites, which suck blood so could be contributing to anemia. You can use a little bit of mineral oil if you don't have animal ear cleaner, but cleaning out the kitten's ears would be a good idea, the "dirt" is usually ear mites. Really get in there with a gauze and wipe out all the little crevices, those are little bugs, not dirt. The ivermectic should help with any and all parasites, but you might also try flea combing if you have a flea comb or bathing in something like dawn dish detergent if you do not have flea soap. Those things all do not cost money and would be helpful in reducing the parasite load.

You might see if your local veterinarian knows of a group that helps people with the cost of spay-neuter and vaccines, esp rabies. A good wormer would probably be in order as well, but those are expensive. Perhaps if you get some help on the spay-neuter you can spring for the wormer.
I hope that helps! Everyone has to economize these days.

 

[sammileah]

our vet does a donation based clinic for stray/barn cats. i would call area vets or pound to see if they have something similar.
not sure on the wormer, but flea treatment can be a simple (haha) dish soap bath.

 

[miss_thenorth]

Wow, i posted that back in July. I'm happy to say that I did worm her, i weighed her first (2lbs), and I gave her a treatment equivalent to a small rabbit on that link I posted. She is still alive and kicking! Actually, we could see a marked improvement the next day. We are still battling fleas, but theyare not bad--the only problem is wehen you have two dogs and four cats--they all need treatment, and since they are not that bad, we'll deal with it for now. As for the ear mites--we did do the mineral oil treatment for a few weeks, and they appear to be all cleared up. She's a healthy and happy kitty.

We have a spay/neuter clinic that does it at discount prices, unfortunately, it's an hour and a half away, but the savings are worth the drive, so when we go to that city, we will make a list of other errands we need to run and make a day out of it, when the time comes.

 

[tortoise]

Topical ivermectin is approved for ear mites on cats. I don't know if it can be given interally.

Male kittens can be castrated with zip-ties. Just make SURE the testicle IS in the scrotum!! Put it on tight to cut off blood supply. Check it every few days - it should fall off on its own. I did this with rabbits, and I had to cut one off with scissors. No pain - no bleeding. It just needed some help coming off.

Check with your local shelter. Often there are free spay/neuter for feral cats, or vouchers to go towards the cost.

And thanks for taking care of them. No judgment on doing as best you can without spending much money on them.

 

[tortoise]

Sorry - I didn't realize it was an old post! :bun

 

[miss_thenorth]

Zip-ties is a great idea! We did one cat a while back witha goat bander. It did the job, but they didn't fall off for like ever. We decided to not do that again, and we found the cheap clinic afterwards. I think the goat bander was not tight enough around the scrotum.

 

[FarmerDenise]

cool job on saving the kitty.
I am a foster for our humane society, we usually get bottle babies. We had to take this year off, since we got our baby goats and had our hands full. Next year I hope to contribute goat's milk to the humane society for their bottle babies. Formula makes many of them sick, but it is the best that is available to them.

 

[savingdogs]

I'm sorry, I didn't note how old this thread was when I revived it. But we are all glad to get the "happy ending" so quickly!

 

[abifae]

do your local shelters pay for neutering on feral cats for you? I fostered kitties and I never had to pay more than 20 through the local programs for it.