I have a 4 year old domestic shorthair. He has had a problem with fleas since we got him from the shelter and we have tried everything including a trip to the vet. Nothing is working. Now he has lost almost all of his fur, he seems to have a hard time breathing and he has lost a lot of weight. He still eats, drinks, and uses the litter box though. He spends the majority of his time in our kitchen window. His head and neck are covered with scabs from his scratching and he has bled quite a bit under his chin.

We can't afford a vet anymore or the treatments that may be necessary. I think we need to put him out of his misery. Does anyone know of any program that will help pay to have our baby put to sleep? We live in SC and I don't know of any programs except the spay/neuter program.

Thanks... :(

Have you treated him for tapeworm?
It only takes a single flea to pass on tapeworm...

Is he an outside kitty cat?

This does not sound like the symptoms of tapeworm. A lot of times there aren't any noticeable symptoms, although weight loss can happen if it gets bad enough.

Sounds like a possible flea allergy. Something like Frontline works pretty good to get rid of fleas. Did your vet give you this? It can work in one month if there's no exposure to more fleas or eggs. However, if there's eggs in your home or you're letting the cat out, he's just going to get them again. Not letting him out helps the one problem. As for anything in your house, using something like Frontline for two or three months may get rid of them. (They'll get on him and Frontline gets rid of the fleas and the eggs.) You also may need to treat the house in some manner and the vet might know a good way to do that. This is all going to depend on how bad the problem is. A good vacuuming of not just carpets, but all furniture or other areas where he hangs out can help.

The sooner you take care of fleas, the easier (and less costly) it is to do it.

You can get Frontline for a lot cheaper than putting a cat to sleep.

And if you don't care to go that route, could you not try to find someone who is willing to take him? If it's just a flea allergy, taking care of the fleas should take care of it. (If it's something else, it would have course depend on what the something else is.)

If it turns out to be something more serious, there are organizations that will help with costs. They won't help with PTS. They'll help with costs to treat the cat.

Yes he is an indoor cat except for the rare times he gets out. Thing is we have two dogs now but he started doing this before we got them. We did try Frontline, and just about anything else from strong flea shampoo to flea collars. Nothing has worked.

I live in a coastal area where the fleas are real bad. I use live lavendar and cedar around the house. Also got some lavendar oil that did not have any additives that I mixed with water and spray my animals with a light mist. The fleas hate lavendar for some reason. I like the smell and it has the added benefit of helping with my headaches. Also I spray my house at least once a month or more depending on the time of year and I have very little problem with fleas. Had no fleas until this year, our winter was real mild and can say that my animals have less fleas than my neighbors. Oh in order to help the poor cats skin I have used oatmeal water on my cats, they don't like it but it seemed to help with the scratching.

I couldn't give you good rep AuntSwee but some very good natural remedies there, thanks!

I don't use man made stuff if I can help it. So much of it is bad for our planet.

Thank you so much for the advice all of you have given. AuntSwee, a friend of mine once told me she makes a carpet freshener made up of lavendar and some other stuff. I can't seem to get ahold of her to find out what it is and how to make it. I am going to ask my husband about planting a lot of lavender and cedar in our yard! Thank you so much! With 2 dogs and 4 cats we need all the help we can get with these darn fleas!

I am so sorry about your cat, I am a cat mother all my life and I know it is horrible when you can't help them.
I would call that spay/neuter program or the shelter and ask if they can help, do you have an SPCA in your area, normally the SPCA has doctors there and tell them the symptoms, they will help, a regular Vet will not answer that on the phone, they just want to make a lot of money, which I think is disgusting.

I have had cats that had kittens that had fleas and there was no getting rid of them at all.
I would bath them to get rid of them and the water turned red from the fleas blood.
They get to a point where there is no turning back. The fleas literally suck the life out of them.
By the sounds of it your cat has all the symptoms of being to the point that there is nothing you can do.
Taking it to another vet asap may be your only hope.

UPDATE We did take him to a vet. He and another cat. Both got steroid shots that helped almost immediately. I have been using Frontline spray and that has actually helped too. Now, they are both acting much more kittenish (they are 9 and 4) but the one I originally posted about has started stalking our two dogs now and he attacks them whenever he can. He may be finding a new home soon.

UPDATE We did take him to a vet. He and another cat. Both got steroid shots that helped almost immediately. I have been using Frontline spray and that has actually helped too. Now, they are both acting much more kittenish (they are 9 and 4) but the one I originally posted about has started stalking our two dogs now and he attacks them whenever he can. He may be finding a new home soon.

UPDATE We did take him to a vet. He and another cat. Both got steroid shots that helped almost immediately. I have been using Frontline spray and that has actually helped too. Now, they are both acting much more kittenish (they are 9 and 4) but the one I originally posted about has started stalking our two dogs now and he attacks them whenever he can. He may be finding a new home soon.

UPDATE We did take him to a vet. He and another cat. Both got steroid shots that helped almost immediately. I have been using Frontline spray and that has actually helped too. Now, they are both acting much more kittenish (they are 9 and 4) but the one I originally posted about has started stalking our two dogs now and he attacks them whenever he can. He may be finding a new home soon.

Good You must have caught it in time.
I hope they live a LONG healthy happy life.