I’m trying to catch and tame a stray cat, and I need some advice

Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties: I have been feeding a stray cat for about four months now, so am guessing that she is about 7 months old. I have an open appointment at my local vet to take her in for spaying, shots, etc., but I haven’t been able to grab/catch her. I have read about an oral contraceptive for cats. Is this available as a short-term measure that would give me some breathing space as I try to tame her? One more question about cross-infection with other cats: I also have three other cats; one is 18 years old and the others are an 8-year-old brother and sister pair I adopted at age…

My cat was injured and has some paralysis. Will he recover?

Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties: Three weeks ago my kitty Felix had some kind of accident that broke his pelvis in a few places as well as his left femur. At first my vet told me he would need reconstructive surgery on his pelvis and leg, and even after that he would probably have problems “getting rid of his waste” for the rest of his life. The amount he said it would cost was more than I could afford so I was considering euthanasia. He stayed at the vet for three days so they could keep him on pain medication while I made my decision, and when I went back to the vet to…

Why has my elderly cat stopped cleaning her tail?

Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties: I have a 19-year-old cat and for some odd reason she has stopped cleaning her tail. Her tail has become greasy and knotted. Why has she done this, and how can I help her? ~Deb

My cat’s acting brain-damaged. Could it be insecticide poisoning?

Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties: Please help. My 7-year-old cat has been to the emergency clinic twice and her vet three times in one week. She’s been acting listless and not herself. She has lost her eyesight in her left eye and walks around aimlessly. She does respond to my voice and will come to me when I call her. She acts as if she has had a stroke, as she has forgotten how to jump up onto the couch, use her litterbox, climb stairs, and more importantly, she has forgotten how to eat. She will lick food, but does not know how to bite it. Today I noticed her paw pads have turned…

Dahlia can haz Twitter!

For you Twitterheads out there, Dahlia has her own Twitter. If you want to follow her, you can find her daily meeps here: http://www.twitter.com/dahliapkitten.

My cat has feline leukemia and is a high-risk spay; she’s driving me crazy with her heat! Help!

Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties: My daughter and I are writing to beg for help with a female kitty that we adopted. Here’s our story: It started when we rescued her brother, Smokie, when he was almost 5 months old. Their mother has since passed from feline leukemia and all five kittens were born with feline leukemia. We were aware that the kittens probably wouldn’t have long lives, but we wanted to give them a nice home and love. Our little Smokie received wonderful hospice care until his last day on September 22, 2007. We acquired Ashie, Smokie’s sister, from one of the original adopters about three months ago. We have been told since…