Our Cats ears are missing??!! we added a picture?

Question

we recently found a cat in our neighborhood and brought him into our home..it looks like he'S been abused beacuse his ears are missing(cut off), and he also has scatches to his nose and eyes. is this some kind of thing people do to make a fighter cat?...im not really sure why this was done to him..He seems normal like any other cat..sleeps on ur lap, on furniture, eats, purrs, meow, likes catnip...but is this safe for the cat?...the area where his ears should be is all healed up. has anyone else had or seen a cat like this?... it seems like he could get infections easily, but not really sure...its very sad. we hate to see abused animals.


http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/wigg/DSC01726.jpg

Answer 1

They looked like they were frostbitten at one point. This doesn't sound like abuse so much as it sounds like neglect. He was probably left to roam the streets and got into a few cat fights which would cause the scars you see on him. He was also more than likely left to freeze in the cold which is why his ears were frozen off.

Answer 2

Well I am not sure about people fighting cats, I know they fight dogs and chickens but never heard of fighting cats. My cat had his ear bit off by another cat during a fight, this could be what happened to your cat. My cats ear did look similar to the picture you showed. Or it could be some sick twisted SOB who likes to abuse animals, there is really no way of telling. But its a great thing that you are doing by taking this cat in!

I worked at a vets office and I cant really think of any reason why this cat wouldn't be healthy without his ears. As long as everything healed up nicely and his ears are cleaned regularly, I don't think it would be a problem. You may want to take him to a vet and get him tested for feline leukemia and other diseases since he has obviously had a rough life.

Good luck and congratulations on your new addition!

Answer 3

He's a white cat, I see. I don't think he's the victim of abuse or cruelty. I suspect that his ears were amputated by a vet because of skin cancer caused by sunburn. That would also account for the lesions on his nose and around his eyes. White cats with thin fur are susceptible to skin cancer of the thinly-covered areas of their bodies, which include the ear-tips, nose, and around their eyes, if they live in areas with intense sunlight such as the Southwestern US.

Rather than being an abused cat, I think this one probably got good care, including the expensive ear amputations with reconstruction. Someone spent money on him and must have loved him very much, as his friendly behavior also shows.

I suggest you take him to a vet or an animal shelter and have him checked for a microchip. I'd also report him as a found cat everywhere I could think of, such as in the newspaper (many papers run free "Found Pet" ads), on www.petfinders.com, at the shelters, and so on. Someone is probably looking for him.

In the meantime, keep him indoors and out of the sun (off windowsills etc) to protect him from further sun injury.

Answer 4

His ears may have been removed by a vet for health reasons. It's true that white cats are more prone to skin cancer. Feral cats involved in fights sometimes suffer ear damage that results in them having to be removed.

As this cat sounds friendly and sociable, I don't think he was abused or was feral. If he had suffered trauma of any kind, he would be very nervous or defensively aggressive. He could be someone's missing pet, or he may have been abandoned by his owner. How recently did you find him?

I would take him to a vet for a check up just to be sure that his ears are healing well, and that there are no other health problems that need attention.

It may be worth calling vets or animal welfare centres locally, as I'm sure they would remember if a white cat with no ears was ever in their care. It may help you discover more about him and his background.

I hope he has many happy years ahead of him as a cherished member of your family.

Answer 5

It looks like it got into a pretty bad fight fight or something. I agree with another answer I read that if it had been abused by people, then the cat wouldn't be as sociable as you make him sound. I'd just take him to the vet. Once the ears are healed, if they aren't already, I would think the chance of infection in that area would be low.

Answer 6

Oh, bless you for taking in this beautiful kitty.

If you can have a vet check him out, that would be good because at a minimum, he probably has worms or parasites. He may also need his ears cleaned out and he won't be able to hear as well.

If you can't keep him or care for him, a rescue group in your area will take him. He is such a love.

I do rescue, myself, and am just so glad for people like you on the planet. If you lived in the Denver area, I would hook you up with my vet for a free checkup and maybe get you a great bag of cat food to help the kitty boost up its immunity.

Bless you!

Answer 7

Poor guy - he looks really rough. Have you taken him to your vet? I'd want to be sure he is otherwise healthy and if there are precautions to take b/c of missing ears. Catnip is not, as far as I know, dangerous to cats, although I have had a few that become aggressive. Not a good thing in a multi-cat household. Don't have a clue why people abuse animals (or kids) but thanks for taking care of this one.

Answer 8

if this cat has been stray over the winter it may have lost it's ears do to frostbite.
the foundation i work with got a kitten left on the managers front step in the middle of winter. by the time she got up in the morning and headed for work the kitten had gotten severely frostbitten. she lost one and a half ears, two toes and almost her whole tail. once the frostbite gets past a certain point there's not anything you can do to save the affected area.
either way this happened to your cat I'm glad you took him in.
you will probably have to watch for ear infections but other than that he should be fine.
good luck.

Answer 9

Take him to the vet for a checkup and registration, then keep him. Sadly, nobody else will want him (humans mostly judge on appearance, not personality).

This could have been an accident but both ears being gone is suspicious. That's a sad picture.

Edit: Don't pay attention to a thing I said before. As others have said, they were probably removed because of illness or frostbite. Try to find his/her owner and if you can't then keep the little fellow.

Answer 10

Several of the other people who answered are right. This cat had it's ears surgically removed due to skin cancer.

I used to have a solid white cat named Clancy. He lived to be 21 years old and insisted on being an outside cat even though he never left the yard.

All those years of basking in the sun took their toll and he developed cancerous lesions on his face head and ears. His ears were removed along with several lesions on his face and head.

He lived a few more years until the cancer spread to his brain and we sent him to the Rainbow Bridge.

Someone cared enough about this kitty to pay for his surgery and they may be looking for him.