Feral Cat

[cruella]

I was wondering if anyone could give me some advise.
I have been feeding a feral cat at work for nearly 18 years now. I named her Shadow and sheis a beautiful cat. She has winter bed and summer bed and is well taken care of.
She is tone deaf now with being old and has started to drink a lot of water too which I know is a bad sign. The thing is, All those years she never made a sound, not even a meow.
Recently over the past few eeks she has been making strange noises. More like the sound of a Seagull. She did this twice today and she will not allow anyone near her. She has never been handled in her life. Do different cat calls mean different things. Any help would be appreciated.

[bensmum]

They do and I can tell what my cats are meaning but I'm not sure that I could say the same about another cat without hearing it. Unfortunately given her age it sounds as if she has some health problems. The Cats Protection League will trap feral cats and may do this for Shadow to see what the problem is. It might be worth a call to them.

[ellierules]

If I was you I wouldn't worry about your cat making strange noises my cat makes the strangest of noises all the time. I think the reason that she's avoiding you is because sh's getting to an age where she wants to be alone most days. I think soon she'll come back to her normal self. But if she doesn't and you're worried you can take her to the vet. She might not be feeling well.

[Doc Spock]

The only time my cat makes a funny noise (seagul like) is just prior to being sick.

I think the vet or rspca would be a good idea. keep us posted.

[cruella]

Thank you all so much for answering my post.
I am so worried about her but the problem is, she has never been handled in her entire life.
She comes into the place I work then trots out again when she gets fed but is terrified of humans.
I am afraid if anyone tried to catch her now, she would die of fright.
You have all confirmed what I thought today. She is ill.
I also noticed that when she makes those sounds, she appears to sqeeze her sides.
Thank you all so much. I appreciate it.

[cruella]

HI All again.
Taken your advice and I will call the RSPCA tomorrow or the Cats Protection League.
No idea how she will react to being caught but it has to be better than have her suffer. And that is what I am not sure of. If she is in pain!
Thanks again!

[lankeela]

Personally I'd try Cats Protection first, as they are usually willing to return feral cats to people who are willing to feed them for instance after they have been neutered, but not so sure whether the RSPCA would do this. If you offer to pay the vets bill I am sure the Cat's Protection would help.

[garner]

I woulkd stick with the CPL and not the rspca they will only put her to sleep at that age and will not spend the money on her,its a different matter with the CPL they will give her medical treatment if required,have to agree with everything lankeela.

[B00]

Wow, i'm impressed that a feral cat has lived to be 18! Got to be down to your care for her cruella.

I hope that whatever it is that's ailing her is fixable, providing she can be caught.

[mich_590]

as shes so lod id just do what you can for her catching her would only do harm & stress,sounds like shes on her last legs but its nice to no she has some1 watching out for her cats camn mak lots of diffrent noses maybe look up on internet or in a book maybe,al cats sound so diffrent that mit just be her if yu havent herd her before

[mich_590]

as shes so lod id just do what you can for her catching her would only do harm & stress,sounds like shes on her last legs but its nice to no she has some1 watching out for her cats camn mak lots of diffrent noises maybe look up on internet or in a book maybe,al cats sound so diffrent that mit just be her if yu havent herd her before

[Kleiber]

Aw, cruella, that's so nice that you've been looking after her for such a long time. Unfortunately, it sounds like she's got kidney problems (usually associated with elderly cats drinking a lot), but that's not to say she can't be helped.. My old girl strted having problems the same as yours when she was 15 & she lasted another 3 years after that! Good luck (& luv to Shadow!!) K xx

[cruella]

I kept a close eye on her today. She ate well as usual but I feel she is not right.
I spoke with a colleague from the Envornmental Health Dept today and he thought by the sound of it, she may be in pain.
She made the same loud howling sound around lunchtime again.
Ran to see what she was up to and she appeared to be having problems going to the toilet when she made the noise.
I think it may be her kidneys too.
The chap I spoke with advised me like the other abers to contact the Cat Protection league.
I was very busy at work today, so I am going to call them tomorrow morning for advise.
This will break my heart if I am the one to have her taken away but I could not bear it if she was in pain and I did nothing about it.
I will keep everyone posted tomorrow evening.
Many thanks everyone for replying.

[Kleiber]

Group Hug!! ( XX)

[cruella]

Thank you all xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[Heidihi1301]

whats the latest on your cat?

[cruella]

Hi everyone.
Not really an update. Went into towk this morning and she was nowhere to be seen.
After about half an hour she appeared looking to be fed.
I had intended calling the CPL today but tried to keep a close eye on her.
She seemed fine today, eating well and slept all day under a tree.
She had three small bowls of food, so being the coward that I am, I have put it off again until tomorrow. I have rpomised myself that the next time she howls as she did, then I will call the CPL. It seems like she knew what I was about to do and watched every move that I made when I was around her.
I had hoped when she was gone this morning she may have slept away during the night so that I was not the one to make that call.
I cannot talk about her without crying.
We shall see how she is tomorrow.
Thanks again for the suppost everyone has shown on here.
Will keep you updated tomorrow xxxxxxxxx

[Kleiber]

Any news? Been thinking about Shadow today & wondered how she is? K xx

[tiggerwoo]

You are a wonderful caring person but perhaps it really would be best to make that call because if there is something wrong it will get worse as each day goes by and she may then be beyond help..at least if you do it now you are giving her a fighting chance and if she can't be helped at least they can give her a peaceful and dignifed death- not be left to die alone and frightened.You have been her faithful friend for all these years and she obviously is depending on you to help her..perhaps those cries are her way of asking you to help her. Good luck and keep us updated.

[cruella]

Hi All,
NO change in the situation of Shadow.
She was waiting for me to feed her when I arrived at work yesterday.
She ate her food then lay on the grass all day.
I know I really have to do something but she has not made that wailing noise again since Monday.
With the sun shining I felt she was quite happy lying there yesterday.
If she calls out again, then I will do something but at the moment I cannot justify doing anything.
I am so impressed with everyone's postings, it confirms that there are so many kind people around.!
I will of course update you on her, one way or another.
Thank you all. xxx