So I just rescued a cat

[GrumbleGrump]

She's a cute little thing, probably not older than 5 months old. Fed her, gave her some water and brought her home. I have some concerns though:

- She's got a cold going on. She sneezes and coughs sometimes.
- She's cleaning herself very often.
- Somewhat related to the above, she has some bald spots in her ears and joints, but it doesn't look like it's infected. It looks like it fell off or scratched it off over time.

Any advice? Is she okay?

Spoiler: Here she is.

 

[Mezahmay]

Adorable cat! She looks exactly like one of my cousins' cats. As someone who has also taken in shelter cats, I hope the place you got the cat from provided medicine for the cold if she had it when you got her. That was the case with my first rescue cat who had a respiratory infection and wheezed for a couple weeks until he got better. He's doing fine years later. However, the bald spots at joints and ears could be related to the excessive cleaning. One of my cats had what we think was a mild food allergy to what we were initially giving him and he cleaned a few bald spots in his fur, which has also recovered over time. Getting your cat to a vet for a skin examination of some kind couldn't hurt to make sure nothing's going on. If the cat did not get medicine from the rescue shelter or whatever, take the cat to the vet anyway to get some medicine.

 

[senordesol]

Aww... Dotable! Get her to the vet, have her checked out so she can live a long, healthy life.

I know vets can be expensive though, so maybe apply for 'care credit' if you can get it.

 

[Jux]

Only way to know for sure is a vet check up. Make sure you get her flea medication. Cats aren't typical carriers for heartworms, but you might want to get her screened for that too. What did you name her?

 

[CymbaIine]

I rescued a feral kitten a couple of years ago. I couldn't find room at a shelter and couldn't afford the vets. She was sneezing and her eyes were very gunky. I cleaned her eyes regularly with boiled water and just kept her fed and warm. She recovered from whatever illness she had.

 

[GrumbleGrump]

Thanks for your responses, everyone!

Okay, update. The vet came today and said that she doesn't have anything wrong with her skin, which is a relief. The bald spots on her ears are probably genetic, since they're pretty symmetrical. She got her some inmunostimulants, recommended baby cat food (we had a bag left over from our previous cat, called Gato, which is spanish for "Cat") and the vet's gonna come by next wednesday to check up on her.

EDIT: Oh, yeah, I forgot! We named her Leeloo.

 

[Frission]

I love cats as a whole. How old is she?

 

[GrumbleGrump]

I love cats as a whole. How old is she?

She's around 5 months. Still teething, the little thing <3.

 

[Lilani]

Sounds like normal things for a stray cat to have. As far as the bald spots and grooming, you may inspect her fur just to make sure she doesn't have fleas or nits. You'll want to take her to the vet whenever you can, they'll be able to bathe her properly if that's the case, and if not they'll probably give you vitamins for her immune system and skin/fur. And once she's in better shape you'll of course want to make sure she gets her shots and is fixed.