Help for a kitten I found

LivingDeadGirl

Hello everyone, first time posting in this forum.


My mom found a kitten on the green in our estate today(Carrigaline area, Co. Cork). It's in pretty bad condition, its tail is extremely badly damaged and seems to have been that way for quite some time. I definitely think it'll need to be removed completely as it seems to be beyond any kind of repair, it resembles a shrivelled rope I think it must have been attacked by a dog or something. The kitten is also extremely underweight and you can feel all its bones when you lift it. I think it has been wandering for quite a while and somehow found its way in to our estate. It's definitely not feral as it didn't hiss and wasn't afraid when she picked it up. I think it was dumped by someone I don't think it had been out in the open long as it was quite dry. I'd take a guess that it's about 6 weeks old, only a baby really. My mom brought it in and we gave it milk and a little cat food, it was absolutely starving and had no trouble eating the wet cat food, although it did later get the runs, probably because it hadn't eaten in quite a while. We put it in a large cage as we have 3 other animals(2 dogs and a cat, all adults) in the house, they aren't aggressive but just as a safety measure. It seems to be alright bar the tail and emaciated state, bright eyed and eager to get out of the cage etc. It's also affectionate and purrs loudly when stroked. It really is a beautiful little thing and it breaks my heart every time I look at it thinking about the pain it must be in and the suffering its been through!
Here's the real problem, my parents won't let us keep it. They are planning on keeping it for a few days and then taking it to the Dogs' Home in Cork City. I wanted to take it to the vet the minute I saw its' tail but they said it'd be expensive. :rolleyes:(we're not exactly poverty stricken by the way) I would bring it myself but I'm an unemplyed student with very little money and I don't think my parents would even let me, they'd think it was a waste or something stupid like that. I don't even know how much an operation like that would cost, but it'd be worth it. It was licking its tail earlier and I could see it was bloody underneath...
What I really need right now is some good advice and in an ideal world someone to take this poor little thing home! I don't know what to do and feel really helpless, I'm pretty much in tears typing this. Is there anyone here that can help?


Thanks to everyone in advance.


Mods feel free to move if I've posted this in thw wrong place, I'm not too familiar with this forum.

star-pants

Awh goodness the poor thing! Bless ye for taking it in.
It needs to be seen by a vet by the sounds of it, so it couldn't be rehomed until it got sorted. And the shelter will see to the cat, but if you want me to advertise in the rehoming thread I can do that.

Amberjack

Poor little mite - (probably has the runs from drinking milk as its stomach wouldn't be used to it) Maybe make some enquiries about cat rescue places in your area as they generally can get discounts with vets.
Hope this story has a happy ending.

LivingDeadGirl

Thanks for the speedy replies. I just looked up the Dogs Home and I can't find anything on it about taking in cats, only dogs. It doesn't say much about veterinary care either, just that they have an animal ambulance.

http://www.cspca.ie/

The Sweeper

No milk - goes right through. Keep on with the cat food, but try getting it to the shelter asap, it needs to see a vet. Maybe offer to do a pile of work around the house in return for the vet consult for it?

star-pants

Hmm - well they do say it's 'mostly dogs' they take in, but they're an SPCA so one assumes they'd take in all animals. Perhaps you could call them in the morning and find out more?

LivingDeadGirl

I'll try first thing! Looking up some other organisations now too, the Animal Care Society are looking promising, they seem to do a lot of resue jobs.

LivingDeadGirl

Minesajackdaniels wrote: »

No milk - goes right through. Keep on with the cat food, but try getting it to the shelter asap, it needs to see a vet. Maybe offer to do a pile of work around the house in return for the vet consult for it?

Sorry just spotted this, will do! That's a good idea actually, I'll see what they say about it.

trishawisha

Hiya the estate wouldnt be Herons Woods by any chance? My boyfriend heard and saw a kitten mewing in the street last week, we tried to catch it but a car scared her off. This kitten was black. The next day he overheard some kids/teenagers talking about how they caught a kiten last night. Could be the same one. There are now 5 cats in my house, so I cannot help you. I hope you got on well with the animal care society. Poor kitten.

guinneybella

I too have found a kitten over the weekend in the Blackrock, Cork area and have been ringing around vets to help try and find out if anyone lost a kitten. The kitten is a chocolate brown colour, with white little paws and at a guess I would put it at 2-3 months old. Extremely affectionate.Anyway, to help with your plight - They advised me to ring the Cat Action Trust 021 4357995 as an organisation that could help rehome the kittenBest of luck

Call me Socket

OP, I'm a small scale rescue- Homeward Bound, I'll be in Charleville on Saturday afternoon, if you can meet me there I'll take the kitten in. My vet won't be able to see him til Monday morning though- do you think he'll manage til then?

Call me Socket

OP, I'm presuming you've found a solution as I've not heard back from you.... I'll be on the road to Charlville by 11am at the latest tomorow, if you still need someone to take the kitten please post or PM me before I leave in the morning:)

Caoltan

tl;dr

Call me Socket

Eh?

star-pants

Caoltan wrote: »

tl;dr

If you've nothing helpful to add, then don't

Call me Socket wrote: »

Eh?

tl;dr = too long, don't read

Call me Socket

Tsk....charming :rolleyes:

Caoltan

star-pants wrote: »

If you've nothing helpful to add, then don't

tl;dr = too long, don't read

LivingDeadGirl

Sorry I haven't gotten back in so long, last time I checked there hadn't been any replies. Thanks for all the help from everyone but my dad took it to the Dogs Home on Tuesday evening because he got sick of it meowing. He brought it in in a box and they didn't even look at it, just said they'd assess the cat and see what they were going to do with it....

MoonDancer256

For the future, there's also the Animal Care Society (animalcaresociety.ie) cat shelter in Dromahane, nr Mallow. I do volunteer work for them and fostering of kittens, and they're "no kill" if the animal isn't diseased. They've also been known to pay some pretty hefty vet bills to get cats healthy if its needed.

Twee.

Similar situation, but our back yard kitty is in better health. We heard him mewowing VERY loudly for about two days until we saw him..or her..! We've been feeding him small portions a few times a day, along with watered down milk. As said above, milk goes right through them, but he won't touch the water by itself! He's pretty much stopped leaving the garden and sleeps in a plant pot or among the trees, lots of shelter. He's stopped the loud meowing completely and looks a lot better, not as thin.
He's becoming less of a scaredy cat now and will come up to us, let's us pet him, and plays with some string. Can we continue to keep him as a garden pet, providing we sort out a proper bed, and willing to get him/her neutered? There are other strays in the area, but haven't taken any interest in this kitty, but we couldn't deal with more kittens!

LivingDeadGirl

MoonDancer256 wrote: »

For the future, there's also the Animal Care Society (animalcaresociety.ie) cat shelter in Dromahane, nr Mallow. I do volunteer work for them and fostering of kittens, and they're "no kill" if the animal isn't diseased. They've also been known to pay some pretty hefty vet bills to get cats healthy if its needed.

I phoned, they were completely full up and also had a virus going around in the cattery so even if they weren't they couldn't take it. But that's not really relevant now....

The Sweeper

Hey LivingDeadGirl

Sorry it didn't work out with the kitten. Either way, it's still had a better chance than it did before you caught it. Even the if dog's home assess it and put it to sleep, it will be humanely euthanised. At least it spent its last few days warm and fed as opposed to dying in a ditch. Then again, if it's particularly cute, they may well rehome it - shelter workers often become attached to animals themselves and make an effort with them, so it may well not be all doom and gloom for the kitten.

Take some comfort from that, and reassure yourself that once you're more independent, you can make your own choices in regard to any animal you find.

annefitzy

LivingDeadGirl wrote: »

I phoned, they were completely full up and also had a virus going around in the cattery so even if they weren't they couldn't take it. But that's not really relevant now....

I was the lady you spoke to on the phone when you called the ACS we are full to bursting, I had suggested that you try and get it to a vet and I would try and get a fosterer

So sorry that you had to bring it into the cspca lets hope it get treatment as it looked a pretty healthy kitty. For future reference all young kitty cry it is becacuse they are lonely a hotwater bottle covered in towels and a ticking clock are great tools to have.

Cheers
Anne:)