Homeless Cats with Cat Flu, needing advice?

Question

Hi, I am currently living in very small village in central France where i moved a few months ago. Bascially there are about 8 cats that live in this village but no one owns them, and various houses just throw food outside for them to eat (pasta?) , but they do stay mainly outside one house.
I have had cats all my life so know what cat flu is like, and these cats are suffering badly. Eyes look sore, noses look like phlem is oozing out, very bad breathing, coughing, wheezing. As i doubt any are neutered or anyone bring them to the vets the infections keep spreading. Also i notice a lot have problems with hair loss, not sure why.
Is there anything i can do, without infringing on the village life as i dont speak to any of them as they keep to themselves. Anyone know of simple medicines i can give the cats, as i want to help them but also not to have the cats then living around our house because i helped them.
Any help apprecaited!

Answer 1

If you know of a place where there are cats outdoors write to JARDINS FELINS for help with finding the people who feed them and getting them sterilised.
See Action of JARDINS FELINS, Volunteers and Freedom-reality.
Address : JARDINS FELINS, c/o Michelle Compton, 16 rue Victor Delberge, 47210 VILLEREAL, France



The thing is is that Cat Flu spreads like our flu! once the cat has has cat flu it must stay away from a cat that hasn't! as it can still pass it on even if it is not suffering at that point in time.

you need to find out if there is a local organisation such as a french RSPCA or CAT PROTECTION CHARITY or go to a local vets and see what they recommend. it mite be to hard for you to treat them on your own and may be costly.

Answer 2

Personally I would not care about the 'village way of life' - this is NO excuse to let animals suffer like this. The people of the village probably just don't know any better.

I don't know what animal care facilities there are in France, but if I were you I'd get the cats to them anyway I could. I've heard about how stray cats suffer in European countries and it really upsets me, I want to pioneer cat shelters out there one day!

There aren't really any meds you can give to treat cat flu - the virus itself is not curable, only preventable. At a vets, they can be treated symptomatically to make them more comfortable, but I have to admit that unless you're going to pay for this treatment yourself the cats are going to be put to sleep. If they're as bad as you say though, this would definitely be a mercy - they're going to end up dying from cat flu, and this is a very unpleasant way to go.

Seriously, if I was you I'd help the cats anyway that I could. If the villagers don't like it, tell them about what a horrible death these cats are going to suffer with no help, and do they think that's an acceptable thing for a living creature to go through? Or if they don't care, just telling them they're attracting rats by chucking food outside.

Chalice

Answer 3

The problem with hair loss may be due to lack of or poor nutrition. The pasta is probably causing it since cats are carnivores and get no nutrients from them. The cold is contagious to other cats so if you have cats of your own, keep them inside the house at all times. These cats need urgent medical attention but since they’re homeless I’m sure no one is going to take them to the veterinarian. Does the village have a website? They may have some information in there on what to do about homeless animals. Try calling the police too. They may have some information that can help. There has to be some kind of agency in your country that helps homeless animals. Here Animal Care and Control would pick them up but they usually euthenize the animals, especially if they are feral and sick. Try researching the town on the Internet and find out what the laws are in your town regarding homeless cats.

Don’t worry about the neighbors. They are not really helping the cats by throwing them leftovers. If anything they are making things worse because now the cats are used to humans feeding them and they will not go hunt on their own. They will stay near people’s homes and will demand to be fed.

If no one can help, you may have to take matters into your own hands, trap the cats yourself and take them to a local vet to have them euthenized. You can probably rent a cat trap someplace that you can use to trap them. This may be the most humane thing to do as the cats will get sicker out on the streets and die a painful death anyway. Have you considered adopting one for your home?

Anyway, I wish you the best of luck. I know it is difficult to see animals suffer and not be able to help them. It's frustrating to say the least.

Answer 4

Hi,
you cannot give any medication to those cats ,you might do them more harm, ask the person whose house they stay by if there is a vet near by, or look on the Internet for a charity/vet for the area you live in, the french people have cats & dogs so there must be a vet close by, If all that fails ask the R.S.P.C.A they might be abled to help you, they may have a list, I know S.P.A.N.A help cats in North Africa they might be abled to help you their office is in London SW1 they may have lists for other countries, or you could go to the English Embassy in France for help with finding a vet, The hair loss could be mange or they could have fought over food, do you feed them, they need more then pasta poor things,I wish I could help you more,
I hope you get help for these poor cats, let us know whats turns up and what help you get,
I have 6 cats
Lots of luck

Answer 5

Can you catch them? If yes, you could take them to the vet. If not, you could give them medication, but there are 2 problems:
1. you have to make sure that the sick ones eat the right dosage of the medication, because if you just put food out with medication for 3 cats, it is possible that one will eat all the medication and the others who will come by later will not get any, and the first one will get an overdose. So it is best if you can sort of feed them separately.
2. If a cat has other problems that you don't know about, like kidney or liver failure, some medications may kill them. It's happened to me, I tried to save a feral cat from flu with Synulox and I killed her instead, because she had chronic renal failure. You could give them Baytril, one pill of 15mg (make sure you buy the 15mg pills, not bigger) per day should be enough for an average cat, for a week. This is OK for cats with renal problems, but not so good for cats with liver problems.
Good luck.

Answer 6

no. you do not have to worry about catching the cat flu because the immune system and genetics and all that other stuff in a cat are differnt from a human's. i would take it home and care for it very gentlly. but even though you cant catch the cat flu, doent mean that the cat doesnt have a little more germs than ussaul. remember take you vitimins and soap is your freind. hope this helps

Answer 7

This is difficult, because in some European countries cats are not considered entirely as a domestic animal and are left to live wild without too much human interference and knowing the local laws is a definite advantage in avoiding hostility from local people. You don't want to come across as calling the village people 'cruel' when by their own standards they may be simply letting the cats live life as nature intended.

There is a French animal welfare group, called Fondation-Droits-Animal. Their web page is mainly in French, but they do have an email address at :

[e-mail]

Hopefully they will be able to assist you in finding a practical solution.

Good luck in your efforts!

Answer 8

What would you do if you found 8 French tramps living on the edge of life? Apply the same principles. If you wouldnt go near them, then don't go near the cats. I would suggest you get a local farmer to shoot them and live with your conscience. You wouldn't try to help a wounded wasp that had just stung you would you? Gods creatures remember.

Answer 9

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Answer 10

Do not give any people meds to the cat, it could be fatal. Short of scooping him up and going to the vet, there is not much you can do for the poor guy.