I found a stray kitty and I wanna keep it!?

Question

Ok, so this beautiful gray cat has been hanging around for about a week, I gave in! It's such a pretty cat and it's sooo cold outside! I live in michigan and don't have the heart to leave this kitty in the cold. It's almost identical to one I had 7 years ago that ran away. Anyway this cat is really skinny and it's hard to get it to eat. I'm gonna take it to the vet very soon! The only thing it will eat is lunch meat, like turkey and ham. I bought some canned shredded cat food and it won't touch it. I tried giving it dry dog food and it won't eat that either. I have a 10 week old Akita puppy that wants to tackle the kitty and play with it, I think they'll get along fine cuz the puppy is so young, and it will be good company besides the 2 crazy kids. This cat will only take powdered milk and water and this lunch meat, any suggestions to put meat on it's bones quick?! Thanks for taking the time to read all of this!!

Ok, I shoulda specified. This is a full grown cat, declawed and probably fixed. Very loving animal! I swear it's the same one I had 7 yrs ago and it finally came back home. But mine wasn't declawed and that was forever ago, so who knows..

Answer 1

Best bet is to check with the vet. Any food that it is eating is good. Just keep plodding along with what you are doing until you see the vet. Call the vet or animal shelter for advice even. I would say cream would fatten the kitty up but I don't know what kind. My kitten would have very messy poos whenever I fed her normal cows milk but would lap up the special kitty formula that I got from the supermarket without problems. The special kitty milk has all the goodness that growing kittys needs. It was made by Whiskers and comes in a carton that looks like long life milk. It is in the pet food aisle. Dunno if US has Whiskers but surely there would be something similar that you could use. Powdered milk might be okay for now but I wouldn't let it be a long time habit same as the lunch meat.

Good luck and ciao meow

Answer 2

Many higher end pet stores will give you sample packets of cat foods you can try on your pet.

Put two bowls side by side and fill them each with a different food. Keep trying until one attracts the cat. Shred some of the lunch meat on top and give the bowl a shake. It might help kitty realize that the cat food is something for eating.

Careful with milk though.. I'm not sure about the lactose count in powdered milk, but all cats are mildly Lactose Intolerant. Powdered Cream could be better if its a last resort. Just make sure there arn't any addivities. Kitties arn't the same as people, they can't tolerate a lot of the junk we eat.

And please please please put an add in the paper anyway... And at local businesses. The cat may be lost and it is best to be safe and try to find an owner. There may be a very worried owner out there with a missing kitty. Just make sure that you require proof of ownership if someone does come forward.

Answer 3

Since this cat has been outside and may be an abandoned cat, you need to make sure it does not have fleas or worms or your puppy and in fact your home could get infested. If it is an adult cat, you can get commercial flea treatment at the store.

As for the food, it has probably been eating garbage and cats have difficulty changing their diets. Try to introduce the new food slowly, maybe mixed with the lunch meat. If a cats diet is changed suddenly, they will end up with diarrhea. I would then boil a couple pieces of chicken for it (no salt, no fat) then chop it up and try to give it a tablespoon at first to start it off. See how it takes to it. You might try to put some fish oil in with it to help give this kitty some strength. If you have cod or salmon capsules, just prick one with a pin and drip it onto the food. It just needs to get into the habit of eating properly.

It's wonderful that you have taken this poor thing in. I wish you luck. I always think a cat finds you but lets you think you found the cat.

Answer 4

To the person who said this cat is "owned" shame on them! Whoever owned it doesn't deserve it anymore! They declawed their cat, then they let it outside with no defenses! On top of that, it's obviously starving and freezing. Bless your heart for rescuing it!

Anyway, as for the feeding, you definitely don't want to give it lunch meat or dog food. Lunch meat has so much sodium, preservatives and nitrates that are not good for it. Dog food lacks the essential fats and taurine a healthy cat diet requires. If your are offering powdered milk, make sure it's "cat milk". In other words, a kitten milk replacement product like KMR. Most cats are lactose intolerant. Go to your local grocery store and get some canned 9Lives, and/or Friskies or Whiskas in the pouch. And don't get a fancy flavor. Get plain old Turkey or Chicken. This may be a finicky cat but she's bound to like one of those 3 because they are highly palatable. I probably own the most finicky Siamese on earth and he goes bonkers for the Whiskas "Choice Cuts" in a pouch. He won't touch the "Pate" or the "Tender Bites". Just the "Choice Cuts". Go figure! Good luck! I wish you a wonderful life together!

Answer 5

Please take it to the vet really soon. Your new cat must eat CAT food and not lunch meat or she will get very ill from lack of essential nutrients. Taruine is essential for a cat and has to be in her food. Any cooked human food has had the taurine destroyed and she can not make it in her body as dogs and people can. The lunch meat is also shot full of sodium which is not good for her. Don't worry about her weight right now - get her on appropriate cat food. A quick weight gain should not be your objective. It is better that she be properly nourished on a good cat food. Natural Balance is a great line of high quality food. Give her the canned - she will eat when she is hungry. Wellness is a good canned meat to as is Lick Your Chops.

Answer 6

How about putting in normal cat canned food in abowl for him then top it with pieaces of lunch meat. That might tempt kitty to start eating and once he gets a taste of the actual cat food, maybe he'll get to like it. When introducing a new food to a cat, some people mix the new food into the old food in this proportion: 1/4 new and 3/4 old. For a week. Following week, it will be 1/3 new food and 2/3 old food. For a week. Then the following week, half and half. And so on until the cat is eating the new food on its own.

Oh... I think you're a fine person for taking in this poor cold kitty. May you have many years of joy with her/him.

Answer 7

I work in an animal shelter, thus I work with stray animals every day & a lot of cats that won't eat. What you need to do is take it to the closest animal shelter, type thing. If it's neutered & declawed, IT"S OWNED! You need to have it scanned for a microchip. You cant just keep it without trying to find the owner, that is not fair. On a daily basis I have to deal with people comming to my work crying because they've lost their cat, it is not fair to pick up a stray cat and keep it for yourself.

As far as the eating is concerned, you need to try junk cat food like Whiskas. Try both dry and wet. A lot of people feed their cats nothing but junk, so unfortunetly thats all that they will eat.
Cats will stop eating if theyre stressed/depressed. DO NOT try to force feed it unless you know how to. It could stress the cat out even more. Whiskas is a good choice as of right now for putting meat on the bones. It's like us eating McDonals for breakfast, lunch & dinner. All fat.

Answer 8

I would try chicken baby food and NO milk, the milk can make it sicker. If the cat has been outside for a long time it might not be feeling too well. It may also have worms and certain types of worms, like tapeworms, can be transferred to your puppy. Try to get it to the vet as soon as soon as possible. Also, please keep checking the lost pet ads. If it's declawed, there may be someone out there missing him.

Answer 9

I would try again with the wet cat food. Did you try to experiment with the different types of cat food? Hopefully the vet can give it a shot or meds that will help with the appetite thing. I wish you the very best...our family cat was abandoned by our neighbor...we have had her now for nearly 3 years...such a spoiled little brat!!! But we love her just the same. Good luck!!!

Answer 10

Try hamburger and rice. Also I notice my cats really love TV dinners with meat and potatoes. Good Luck and bless your heart. I cant imagine why someone would take the time and money to get a cat declawed and then just turn it loose. I know it happens, I also took one in, that is declawed.