I once had a kitty that I loved more than anything else in the world. The problem was...she wasn't MY kitty. She was a gift to the person I was living with at the time, but even if she wasn't MY kitty, she's still always been mine. I lived with her for about 4 years before I had to move out...and leaving was very very hard. After I left the person who OWNED the kitty stopped caring for her. She didn't brush her fur at all (the cat is a persian) causing horrible mats to form all over her body until she started having skin problems due to the lack of oxygen. Another problem with the mats were the fleas. They got underneath and were impossible to get off. The kitty became very very ill every summer due to blood loss from the fleas.
The kitty also wasn't fed often. Her teeth started falling out from mal-nutrition. She now only has 4 teeth. Her bottom and top canines.
Also her litter box was rarely changed and the kitty had to start going outside the box, and eventually her environment was filled with her own filth.
Worst of all, she was kept in an 8x8 screened in porch 24x7. Never allowed to roam anywhere, no toys to play with, and no companionship at all.
3 years this went on, and I was helpless to do anything about it. When I would go to visit I would pick the frail little cat up into my arms and she would purr so loud that she was heard in the next room.
All this time I offered and offered and offered to take her...but I was refused...despite the fact that the person who had the cat had no desire to take care of her. Finally, last night, when I went to visit, the person who owned the cat was frustrated because she was sick again from the fleas and the mats and stuff. The person said to me, do you want her? YES! YES! I cried...and scooped her up into my arms and took her home with me.
On the hour drive home she sat in my lap and purred the whole way. When I got her home I put her in my bedroom and closed the door, giving her that room, and the bathroom to roam in. (I have 2 other cats to get adjusted to the new visitor)
I sat on the bed and kept an eye on her while I was reading a book and she wandered. When she was through she came and sat on the bed with me, cuddling up to me while I read. She purred the whole time. I left her in the room when my fiancee and I went to bed. She sat on the bed and purred, curled up on my side. She was still purring at midnight...and when I woke up at 2. I think she went to sleep at one point, but this morning she woke me up purring even more. Basically, she hasn't stopped since I've had her, so I THINK she might be happy to be with me again. I know *I* was so happy to bring her home with me, I actually cried.

Anyway...I DO have some problems now...

First, the new cat has no claws and very few teeth,she's sick, and has never been outside. She's about as tough as an old pillow.

My OTHER two cats though are fully clawed, toothed, are very well cared for, and they are inside/outside cats. They were adopeted strays, so they're not unused to fighting...the small one attacks dogs that are 50X bigger than she is for sport.

So....I need some advice introducing my poor weak kitty to these two other female cats who could chomp her into bits before I could even blink.

Also, about her health...

I don't know what to feed her. She's never had anything but hard food, but she had a REALLY hard time chewing it. I gave her soft food last night, but she didn't seen interested. Maybe because of the excitment of the move, I don't know.

She also has a problem with drooling because she has no teeth...is there anything I can do that might help this at all?

What can I do about her flea problem? The other two cats I use an over the counter form of advantage, but this isn't working as well with my new kitty. Could she have a different breed of fleas??

I know this is long...any advice would be helpful

Katanya2000, first I want to say, I am so sorry to hear about what has happened to this poor cat - the story brought tears to my eyes. Secondly, I think you’re a wonderful person to have rescued her and dedicated yourself to her proper care.

Her not eating could indeed be nerves from the move - if this is the case she will probably resume her normal eating pattern soon, as she adjusts to her new environment. However, as it could be something else, I would recommend taking her to your vet ASAP (if you haven’t already) to rule out a possible medical cause for her lack of appetite.

The soft canned food is probably the best idea (as long as it's nutritionally complete), but if she simply won’t eat it, you could try moistening the hard food with a little warm water - this may make it easier for her to eat.

Declawed cats are often at a disadvantage to cats who’ve retained their natural claws. Not always, though --- some declawed cats take to biting and hissing and not only can protect themselves against cats with claws, but are sometimes the aggressors!!
However, since your new kitty has few teeth, she may not even be to do this.

To err on the side of caution, if possible I would try to keep your ill kitty separated from your other cats for a while, at least until your kitty’s health improves and she is stronger. If you do allow them to be together, try to monitor their interaction closely.

As far as the fleas are concerned, Advantage® contains an insecticide called imidacloprid thats works by blocking the receptors for acetylcholine in the nervous synapse. Imidacloprid kills fleas, but not ticks. As a rule, Advantage® is one of the gentler pest control products.

However, since your kitty is not in the best of health, you still may want to consult your vet before using any product, just to be safe. If Advantage® doesn’t seem to work for your cat, you could try using Frontline®, or a different brand that’s recommended by your vet and see if you get better results.

About the mats - if they are too bad to be brushed out, you may have to trim the cat’s hair with clippers (or get a professional pet groomer to do so) to give her relief – really bad mats can actually begin to pull on the animal’s skin, causing them discomfort or even pain.

I wish I was able to be of more help. Hopefully, some of the other great cat people here will be able to offer you more suggestions. I wish you and your kitty the best.

I've used Frontline and Top Spot drops on my cat, who's allergic to fleas. Now I've switched to Revolution drops - it covers everything: fleas, ticks, worms, heartworms, and thensome. I really think it's helping him more. Good luck with your kitty!

I'm glad your friend finally let you take her. My only concern is the health issue. Even though the cat was kept in a screened porch, she still may have had contact with other outdoor cats through the screen. My guess is your friend did not keep up on her vaccinations. Please take her to the vet and have her tested for Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP), Feline Leukemia (FeLV), and Feline Immunodeficiency virus (FIV) before introducing her to your other cats. Pay attention to whether she is sneezing a lot because this can be a sign of upper respiratory illness which can lead to severe conjuntivitus of the eyes and is highly contagious to other cats. For fleas, as far as I know there is only one breed, but her infestation may be so bad that it will take longer to kill them all off. I would say try a dip, but it sounds like she is not strong enough yet for this. The vet should be able to help you more. I hope all goes well with her and please keep us updated.

Have you reported the person who had the cat to the proper authorities? This is animal abuse, isn't it? Make sure she can't do that again with another animal.

Having said that, I do have some advice for you. First, take your cat to the vet (as everyone else has suggested and I know you will). Get her teeth cleaned, I'd probably have her groomed professionally as well. Also, for the fleas: flea baths work. Your cat won't like it, but that's probably one of your only options. You can usually get that done the same place you get the grooming done. Flea collars only work if the cat doesn't already have fleas! About the drooling: try to see if she likes catnip at all, maybe she'll suck on a small plastic toy. Really, there's not a whole lot you can do about that other than get her something she can chew on. Do they have a Wal-Mart in your area? The reason I ask is they have small pouches of real soft food for cats. It's not the soft food in the can, it's more like something for a meal--like the dry food but much gentler. As for your other cats: the first person gave you some good advice about that. The only other thing I have to add is that the other cats will get used to her scent long before they'll get used to being around. Make sure you still pet and groom your other cats as much as you used to, or they'll become jealous and may turn on your new kitty. I've seen that happen firsthand. After they become used to her, they'll have a knowledge of just how well she is able to protect herself, and they won't likely attack the weaker cat unless provoked.

I hope this helps!

Clerky

I hate to hear stories like that, but at least the cat is safe now.

I had a cat that got hit by a car and we had to nurse him back to health. At the time we had two healthy indoor/outdoor cats. He had his jaw wired shut for awhile and afterwards his appetite was pretty weak. We had to force feed him high nutrition paste, kind of yucky but it worked. He regained his appetite and started to eat the soft food. We fed him separately and kept him in a separate room during the day when people and cats were going in and out. Then in the evening he could roam around on his own and at night he'd sleep with one of us. He was pretty sick, but he made it through for 14 years after that. He was always a special needs cat, but he did alright for himself.

I would take the cat to a professional cat groomer to take care of the fur and get some professional advice about the fleas. A good vet will make the difference in this situation.

Finally, I had a cat who had been declawed intermingled with cats who had their claws. This is going to sound really silly, but the cats don't know that the claws are missing... it's like it doesn't compute to them. Dogs to cats are the same way. My declawed cat raised his paw to my brothers dog and the dog ran away like a little mouse. If your new cat isn't healthy enough to defend herself then keep them separate until she regains her strength.

Good luck. Keep us posted.

First - I am SO HAPPY you were able to get this cat away from someone so horrible - I won't even get started on that one.....but good for you for not giving up. Obviously this cat knew you'd be ther for her.....

As far as introducing the cats - do not do this under any circumstances until you have had her tested for diseases that can easily be communicated to your other cats. I do also believe that the not eating is due to nerves so keep trying it - even if you take a piece of the food into your hand to feed her - she'll get the hang of it. In terms of the fleas - there is just one type of flea - the damn little buggers!! My suggestion would be (after you have her tested for various things at the vet) to have her professionally groomed - they will remove the mats and clean her up - and I would request that they use an all natural type shampoo for flea treatment so that there are no harmful chemicals. In her reduced health state, it is not a good idea to do a dip or anyhing like Advantage, Frontline, etc. Many cats have VERY bad reactions to these medications.

The teeth - or lack thereof.....well, while it's not a good situation, many a cat can get along just fine with no teeth. My Mom's cat (was a stray) now has 1 tooth after having many removed by the vet - apparently he'd been hit by a car or something in the past and had lost and broken a bunch of them. He still eats both wet and dry food (most cats do not chew their food - even the hard stuff). You can still give the cat dry food - - if they are unable to eat it, they won't eat it anyway...When you take the cat to the vet, they will let you know if things look ok with the remaining teeth and what they think of the situation.

One thing that I did not want to mention (and I doubt it is the case - but keep it in mind) - cats not only purr when they are happy (although I am sure this one is incredibly happy with you) - sometimes when they are ill, they purr as well. I don't remember why from what I read, but this is sometimes the case.

So - - long answer short.....a trip to the vet is in order, followed by a trip to the groomer prior to introducing your new babe to the others - for both health reasons as well as the flea infestation reason. I think that the eating will take care of itself - provided that everything else is addressed.

I think that it is absolutely awesome that you have decided to take on the new kiddo and wish you luck with her.......your story brought tears to my eyes at the beginning, but I was so happy with the ending....

I totally agree with Wolve. She will eat the food when she is hungry enough, my cats like the dry mixed in with the canned. You also need to get her to a vet as soon as you can to make sure she is okay. God that is so sad, how can someone do that to a poor animal. You should call animal protection they can and DO fine people for that kind of thing. I had a loser cousin that treated his dogs like that and someone called on him, he was fined 500 dollars and had the dogs taken away. I feel so sad reading this kind of thing, I think I will get off the computer and go play "chase the mousey" with my kitties. Good luck and please let us know how everything turns out.