My cat is acting very weird too. I left her on her own for 5 days when I went to help my stepmom in the hospital. I left her plenty of food and water, left a window open that she likes to sit in.
When I got back she seemed to have plenty of food and water still - but then the next few days - I realized she wasn't eating that food. It's more expensive food and she's eaten it before - but she seems to like the cheaper brand from the grocery store, which I replaced with the better brand (she's very particular and won't eat lots of brands - even wet). So I changed her food back out to what she likes. Then she was meowing a lot late at night - very unlike her. I thought she was mad at me for being gone for so long. The meowing is still going on at odd times of the day and night.
I also noticed she's scratching quite a bit since I got back - so I gave her some flea stuff (liquid on her shoulder). She still seemed to be scratching so I bought her a flea collar too. She is an indoor/outdoor cat.

She's constantly grooming herself and/or scratching a lot still. She's gotten very persistent about being around me (on my coffee table while I'm trying to eat, etc) and seems to be finding all these new hiding/sitting places. She's acting very annoying and has become a nuisance quite honestly. It's like she's still pissed at me and is going to make my life miserable if she can. She is a Torbie I believe and they say they have "Tortitude" which has always been true - but now it's really become annoying.

The collar smells bad, but I keep thinking it will dissipate. I'm concerned there's something wrong with her, She just doesn't look well. - but I don't have the $$ to take her to the vet right now.

She is not current with her vacinations/rabies either. One reason is because I don't believe/trust vacinations and two - I haven't had the $$ to get it done. She is spayed.
Also - she's losing a lot of her winter coat so she looks scrawnier now - especially her tail, but some of that I witnessed last year. She's about 3 years old. Also - it seems she isn't unrinating as much (not as much caked litter), although still plenty of stools in the cat box.
Any thoughts?
Thanks,
J

Please take off the flea collar!! I can smell it over here! Phew! It may be what's making her sick.

Do you keep her water bowl full of fresh water? By the way, five days is a long time to leave a cat alone.

Keep her indoors if she doesn't have her shots.

If she doesn't have visible fleas, she may have an allergy from that "new" food or from something else. Call an animal shelter to find out who a good low-cost vet is in your area, and take her to the vet. Work out a payment plan. If you are planning to get rid of her, please take her to the shelter and don't just turn her loose outdoors to fend for herself.

It sounds like your cat might be stressed out which can cause the immune system to be compromised and susceptible to infection for one. She might have become very anxious when left for so long and a thin coat might be an indication of her pulling it out. Bacteria can grow in water if the water dish has not been cleaned regularly so like Wondergirl suggested make sure she has fresh water daily in a clean bowl. Also, if you are under stress your cat can react to it as well so be sure you are taking care of you as well. :-)

Yes, definitely get rid of the flea collar, and what liquid flea treatment did you use on her?
Not eating can cause health problems for cats, so is she eating now?
Something else that concerns me is that she is not up to date on vaccines and she is indoor/outdoor. Cats can be notorious for fighting and this is one way that disease is spread in the cat world.
You may not have seen other cats, but that doesn't mean they aren't hanging around.
Could be that she is stressed by something, but it sounds as if a good check up may be needed.
Call around and ask if there are rescue groups or low cost clinics in your area that can help you out.

Thank you everyone! Appreciate your feedback.

Yes - I know 5 days was way too long. Between some severe weather issues and some complications with my stepmom that arose - I couldn't leave as soon as I had planned. I should have made arrangements for someone to come by and check on her. Guilty!

I just just took the collar off! I have not been seeing fleas - so the allergy issue may be very relevant. I don't remember the name of the liquid drops bought at the grocery store and I threw the package away (it was in an individual use tube that you cut the top off) - leftover from a package of 3 I used last summer on her - again thinking she had fleas because of the time of year - although I think I did see a few last time.

I did try to check for vet resources last night on the internet. Not seeing anything immediately, as most had waiting lists, etc, but I will keep checking. She was a pound kitty so I can definitely call the pound and see what they recommend. I know there are some services in my area that offer assistance. Just got to find them.
I may contact her vet and see if they can work out something with me if I can't find anything else.

I left her several bowls of water - just in case they got knocked over, drank up, etc. But yes I understand they all could have gotten bacteria over that time. I tried to use one of those automatic watering systems before - but she wouldn't use it, so the water did become stale and stagnet in that dish since it never got activated.

I am aware that my stress level can be affecting her and that my leaving her for so long may have created some trauma for her - which I feel bad about. I'm working on my stress and will continue to assist her the best way I can. I don't have any plans to get rid of her - just need to figure out best ways I can help her now. The possibility of her pulling the hair out or over-grooming due to stress or allergy was an eye opener. I felt it was more seasonal (shedding the winter coat), and yes the hair balls in my house increase at this time of year a lot - which led me to think it's was seasonal - which could also be seasonal allergies too I guess?


And just so you all know - I'm in the process of attempting several different things to try and generate more funds to pay for vet care and other urgent matters I'm facing. Had a rough last few months. Appreciate all your help.
Sincerely,
J

Just a note about the flea treatments, I never recommend that people use the cheaper brands of flea treatments. Frontline, Advantage and only vet recommended products, there are many out there, they are a little more expensive, but they are safe.
Cats have sensitive systems and can react badly to the grocery, retail store products.
Just be careful what you put on her.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by LadySam

Just a note about the flea treatments, I never recommend that people use the cheaper brands of flea treatments. Frontline, Advantage and only vet recommended products, there are many out there, they are a little more expensive, but they are safe.
Cats have sensitive systems and can react badly to the grocery, retail store products.
Just be careful what you put on her.

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Thank you. Guess I'm finding that out. So I ended up taking her to the Vet. I called to ask about payment programs etc, because there wasn't any other resources I could find. They said they would work with me - and it ended up being less expensive for the visit then I feared it would be and Iwas able to put it on a credit card that still had a little credit left. On one card I used. She was infested with fleas (so hopefully that's the extent of all the issues)? They gave her a pill that kills all fleas in 30 minutes or something like that. Then when I picked her up - I bought the Frontline from them (which is not cheap) but the other store bought kind obviously didn't work.

I will need to treat the house too with something? I guess once she's not "good" anymore to bite on - they will start coming after me! Weird cause I never see them. Maybe that will change soon.

Again thanks for everyone's help and input. Much appreciated.
J

When our four cats had fleas, we had to wash everything that was washable (where the cats slept) and vacuumed the life out of the carpet and furniture after sprinkling on flea powder. We combed dead (and alive) fleas out of their fur and dropped them (the fleas, not the cats) into a bowl of water to drown them. We got this all done and became flealess during one long weekend. The fleas didn't bother or attach themselves to us humans.

I applaud you for going to the vet! Now I can sleep tonight. Please keep her indoors now so she doesn't pick up a new flea family.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Wondergirl

When our four cats had fleas, we had to wash everything that was washable (where the cats slept) and vacuumed the life out of the carpet and furniture after sprinkling on flea powder. We combed dead (and alive) fleas out of their fur and dropped them (the fleas, not the cats) into a bowl of water to drown them. We got this all done and became flealess during one long weekend. The fleas didn't bother or attach themselves to us humans.

I applaud you for going to the vet! Now I can sleep tonight. Please keep her indoors now so she doesn't pick up a new flea family.

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Thanks Wondergirl. Yes she seems to be feeling much better, is calmer and sleeping soundly on the hutch. I feel bad she was getting eaten up. The Dr. told me about the vacuuming and the combing (which I still need to get). I don't have carpets which I hope is better? She pretty much sleeps on top of hutches, desks, in the bathtub, in the sink and on top of the toilet (with the seat down) and occasionally on top of the refrigerator. Most of those should be easy to clean.

I'm going to keep her in for a few days, until she gets the stuff in her system better and find something to put out on the ground/drive and yard to help kill the fleas there - but I can't promise I won't let her out. She is a very social cat and loves to visit with all the college students walking by, getting petted and her photo taken (often by groups of students). Or when I'm home she likes to sit on top of my Blazer and survey the courtyard area - whch is her domain.

I know it's not as safe - but life is not always safe - and part of that is what keeps it interesting and worth living. I've never seen her in the street and she stays within a pretty proximity. I think most of the tenants in this complex know her by name and everyone loves her.

Anyway - I will update if there is something new to add that might help others.
J

Buy a flea comb at Walmart or the pet store. It has very close-together teeth and should be fairly inexpensive. Check her at least once a week for fleas by brushing and flea combing her.

She sounds like a popular young lady, so please keep an eye on her. Please also post a photo of her for us and give her an AskMeHelpDesk scratch behind her ears. And report back to let us know how she's doing.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Wondergirl

Buy a flea comb at Walmart or the pet store. It has very close-together teeth and should be fairly inexpensive. Check her at least once a week for fleas by brushing and flea combing her.

She sounds like a popular young lady, so please keep an eye on her. Please also post a photo of her for us and give her an AskMeHelpDesk scratch behind her ears. And report back to let us know how she's doing.

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Thanks - She is quite amazing and she is feeling and acting so much better now. So I think I figured out this photo upload, and have submitted a few. Checking through the curtains on the door to see if that nasty neighbor cat is out there lurking, chillin in the sink and surveying her domain from atop the fridge!

Hope they show up clear enough.
J

She's a beauty!

She is gorgeous, I especially like the one where she's sleeping in the sink.

Enjoyed her pictures... adorable. Thanks for sharing~