Please help! Michigan cat lovers, got a warm barn and a big heart? A heated garage, maybe?ed. (LONG)

This is an active thread in h+b, can anyone help this old boy?

"kraut" wrote in message
...


This is a little on long side but want to give a little background.

There is a neighbor that has several cats that roam the neighborhood
of which one of them is (He says) about 11 years old and this is the
one I am asking about.

Earlier this summer they started hanging around because I was feeding
strays (Which I found homes for all or took to shelters). Thing is
this old guy had fleas so bad that when I combed him I could go no
more then 1/2 an inch with out hitting a flea/tick bump. Over the
summer I got him cleared up plus treated his over issues.

When it started getting cold I got the owner to take him indoors
because he started getting colds and acted like he was getting aches
and pains from the cold and I felt sorry for him laying out in the
yard 24/7 even though I got him a dog house to use. I even got the
owner a couple cases of canned food that I had been feeding them
because he just fed him dry and I did not want him to go cold turkey
of the canned. I also got on his case about the cats condition and he
said he is moving in spring and wanted to get rid of some of cats
(which I am working on) but did not want to let the old guy go. That
was about a month ago.


Thing is the old guy got out and came down again and he is now covered
in fleas/ticks worse then before. I am thinking about taking him to
county shelter which is not non kill. The only other shelter only
takes younger animals that they can easily find homes for. I can not
take him because I already have 4 and with Michigan winter coming it
is too cold for him and if he goes back home I am afraid he will
suffer and slowly die from the fleas/ticks.

These people can not afford these cats. They are on food stamps and
WIC coupons (I seen them in the grocery store). They took the
aluminum siding off their house to sell and are over $300 in arrears
on their water bill (Found on city web site) which give you a little
info on them.


The only choices I can take is to send the old guy back to his LEGAL
owner to probably die a slow death :-( or let him spend the
winter in the cold or take to shelter (I tryed to find home for him
but could not).

The way I see it is the only humane thing for THIS cat is to take him
to the shelter and hope for the best.

Opinions??