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[babyjane]

poor little soul, he's had a bad start.  thank you for taking him in and being his mother substitute.  He needs to learn how to be a cat, his mother would have taught him that, he will be confused.

[Menomale]

Unfortunately, there are many poor souls around here, babyjane 

I'm trying to find someone to adopt him, he deserves a house with nature surroundings, not this tiny apartment where I live.

My father feeds 3 cats in his house and one is female, but she didn't take care of her own kittens before she was neutered. He wants me to take him there after the vaccine shots but my sister who also lives there hates the cats, so I'm afraid that won't be a good idea.

Cubagirl,

I had dogs all my life until my female yellow Lab died horribly and I had commited myself to never have another tail, but I just couldn't leave him in a busy street under a car and heavy rain 

[Mbrown001]

Maybe he came to you for a reason.
I've read some of your posts and know things can be hard for you. Maybe you both need each other.
I'm a great believer in things happening for a reason.
There is no need for him to be an outdoor cat. Most are perfectly happy inside with toys for stimulation.

Just a thought.

Maybe this has been mentioned before re restless legs. I haven't read the whole topic but I found magnesium spray helpful. Yes it does sting a bit but that soon passes. Also salts in the bath can help too.

Mrs Brown

[Menomale]

I have the same opinion Mrs Brown and sparkle, but now it's really a tough time to have a pet! I have no support here, no family, no friends, not even acquaintances. I take care of my 89 year old erratic father, have a schizophrenic sister who causes a lot of trouble, I live in a rented apartment and the owner is not keen on the idea of an animal living here 

I love animals and have taken care of 10 during my lifetime, but this meno hell has turned me into a very old woman  I have no energy at all and the kitten needs attention, playing, vets (worst part ever), and money (which I don't have).

Anyway, if I can't find someone to adopt him (I am very selective) I have no other option than keep him! Que sera, sera...


Magnesium spray: I want to try it!

[CLKD]

He will need a mix of wet meat and if necessary dry food to keep any teeth healthy as well as continual access to water, not milk - many cats are allergic to milk; my little cat weight 6lb at 12 months and stayed more or less that weight for the next 18 years :-).  Maybe weigh him/her weekly.  Lots of toys to keep his mind occupied.  As he ages he should be able to catch his own locally and will appreciate substitute from you, once a day is OK: our farm cats survived with a saucer of milk - I know    - straight from the cows ........ and occasionally table scraps.  No tinned pet foods then. Lots of vermin in the stack yards though.

Keep him free of fleas and worms - they have a symbiotic relationship.  That will encourage his immune system to keep him healthy.  He certainly looks like he's got his restless legs calmed down 

[Menomale]

Thank you, CLKD, I'll have to print your post to remember everything 

[CLKD]

a) flea and worming together every 8-12 months unless worms are seen
b) feed little and often  - good quality wet meat and dry with water
c) lots of cuddles to keep those restless legs still 

[Taz2]

Just want to say that flea treatment is needed every month not every eight to twelve months.

Taz x

[CLKD]

Why cover an animal with chemicals when they are probably not required?  Of course the Companies and Vets. will suggest more often because they are selling the products, call me cynical if you like ......... if there's a huge feral population locally it could be necessary but then Cats Protection should come out, collect and treat the feral community.

I would pick the fleas out of their coats  ........ and a good wormer should be given at the same time as flea treatment because intestinal worms are part of the flea cycle [hope you aren't eating lunch  ].  I used anti-tick spray when we took the dog to the Lakes as there were deer and sheep in long bracken, I got so that I recognised the arachnids racing through her coat and could pick them off B4 they began feeding, otherwise 

How's the rest less legs 

[cubagirl]

I'm itching!

[CLKD]

It was easy enough here.

One of the cats was white; easy-peesy.  Dog had a pale coat; easy-peesy even after she had been after rabbits.  Fleas might bite but will only live on the particular host they are able to thrive on, i.e. rabbit fleas on rabbits, cat fleas on cats ......

I put a few live ones down the sink, as soon as something warm went by they jumped up the plug hole onto the white porcelain  . As fast as I washed them down they jumped back.   If I put them into a glass of cold water, the surface tension meant that they could lay gently on the surface  .  I did have one bite me, it had probably been in the carpet for ages and got me on the back of the calf  .  Garlic in the pets' food will help as the fleas don't like the taste/smell on the skin.  Apparently  .  There is a kind of satisfaction, getting them between the nails and giving them a hard squeeze.

I bought a special comb, it has a battery in which zaps the critters as the coat is combed.  Job Done.  >hands over back scratcher<

[Menomale]

Thanks ladies, your discussion is very helpful. He is doing well, but restless legs are getting worse  he's hunting everything that moves, including my hands and feet  not pleasant as I bleed very easily.

When I rescued him he had some fleas. I was advised not to use any chemicals before 8 weeks, so I bathed him in very warm water and a neutral glycerine soap, washed and dried him thoroughly, brushed his coat gently with a comb over a white towel. That made it easier to catch the fleas and put them in alcohol. Then, I hoovered the apartment, his clothes, bed, everything I could really, and will do it every week to ensure that no flea eggs will remain to hatch. I washed and dried all clothes that were in contact with him (mine included) in high temperature. I'm keeping an eye on him to see if there are any fleas popping up, he's so tiny that this is an easy task, at least for now, he's growing fast, he was loving to hide under the furniture but now he's having a rough time to get in there 

I wish I could post a video, he's is so funny!

P.S. Tell me more about this comb, CLKD, that's interesting!

[Taz2]

It sounds as if you are doing well Menomale!

Although it is possible to pick off fleas one at a time by the time you actually see a flea on the cat hundreds of eggs will have rolled off and ended up in the carpet, sofa, between the skirting boards etc. The product is meant to last for one month. After that it is no longer effective enough to stop the fleas breeding and laying eggs. It's not some sort of ploy by the companies to sell more stuff it is a scientific fact. Frontline is no longer as effective as it was but Advocat is still working in most areas.

I have a Chinchilla Persian (not my choice but left behind by neighbours) and it is impossible to groom him. The flea stuff runs out on Wednesday if you go on the monthly date but I have today counted four fleas at the base of his tail. I've had loads of practice catching the fleas in my fingers but I defy anyone to get them out of a Chinchilla Persian coat 

One of my other cats has a severe flea allergy so just one bite and he is sent into itching hell. This then costs upwards of £200 in steroid injections etc. to get him back on track. If I'm a week out on his treatment he is plunged back into itching and fur loss.

There is information from icat care (previously FAB) here https://icatcare.org/advice/flea-control-cats

Taz x

[CLKD]

Sadly - how did we get onto fleas  - we treated one of my cats for flea allergy for several years: and it wasn't.  It was an allergy to the food which mimicked all the signs of flea saliva allergy.  5 weeks B4 she died we changed her food as a free offer popped through the door and she was the 1 to get the 'treat', within 24 hours she had stopped constantly cleaning her coat: I will NEVER get over the guilt  . She had years of discomfort due to my not thinking out of the box. 

She was kept indoors all the while but because I had a dog which brought back rabbit fleas we thought, with her symptoms .......... 

Never had fleas in the skirting boards.  I think because the animals were pale coated it was easier to see any runners ;-).  How is a product guaranteed to work 'only' for 4 weeks  .  It won't stop fleas laying eggs - products stop the next stage somehow.  You may have seen lurchers with bandanas, they are soaked in garlic which supposedly stops fleas at the neck region. 

[Elizabethrose]

I'm itching!

So am I!! seriously allergic to cats and their fleas make a beeline for me like the pesky mosquitoes. Cat flea bites give me an asthma attack!