Please Help in Philadelphia

I badly need advice. A stray cat showed up on my door step. I
advertised to find the owner but if none shows up Im thinking of
keeping. him. In the meanwhile, the cat is in and out. So if I keep
him what do I need to do.He has a bit of a crippled back leg but there
is no sore or scab on it. He is kind of dirty. Where can I get him a
bath? What shots does he need? And then there is the problem of his
maleness. What do I need to do about that? He isnt beat up. His ears
are whole with only a few scars. I dont know what I have to do in
order to keep him. He probably has fleas. Can he be trained to use a
liter box?

"cardarch" wrote in message
ups.com...
I badly need advice. A stray cat showed up on my door step. I
advertised to find the owner but if none shows up Im thinking of
keeping. him. In the meanwhile, the cat is in and out. So if I keep
him what do I need to do.He has a bit of a crippled back leg but there
is no sore or scab on it. He is kind of dirty. Where can I get him a
bath? What shots does he need? And then there is the problem of his
maleness. What do I need to do about that? He isnt beat up. His ears
are whole with only a few scars. I dont know what I have to do in
order to keep him. He probably has fleas. Can he be trained to use a
liter box?


Bless you for helping him. I grew up in
Baltimore, and outside cats generally do not live long there. To
keep him safe, and avoid having to treat him for fleas and injuries
from fights, not to mention malicious people who hurt animals,
I hope you will keep him inside. He might complain at first, but
he will get used to it after a while and never even try to get out.

He will use the litter box! 90% of cats do with no problem at
all, it is instinctual. You just fill it up and put him in it and he
will know what to do.

First thing to do is see a vet. It will not be expensive to have him
checked over, have a blood test for Feline leukemia, heartworms,
and other diseases. The vet will then know just what to do.

Just to give you an idea--the Queen Village Veterinary Hospital
there in Philadelphia charges $45 for a checkup, including blood
tests. Their information is below, but there are so many there, I
imagine you could find one close to home. You really need to know
what is going on with him before you make any decisions about him.

Queen Village Animal Hospital
323 Bainbridge St
Philadelphia, PA 19147-1542
2159255753


Later you will want to get him neutered, or you may decide to do that
right away. It will keep him from spraying/marking behavior and make
him a happier indoor cat, as well as keeping him from fathering hundreds
of unwanted strays.

Keep us posted! And post pictures!

cardarch wrote:
I badly need advice. A stray cat showed up on my door step. I
advertised to find the owner but if none shows up Im thinking of
keeping. him.

Bless you for wanting to keep him, I always remember the nice lady who
threw some ham at a starving cat and then started feeding her and got
her reward when the cat had kittens in the garden shed! And she didn't
know how to deal with homing the kittens so they nearly ended up in a
pet shop!

One of those kittens just walked past me and the other one was here a
minute ago!

Please keep him or her and give them a forever home I swear you won't
regret it

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

On 21 Nov 2006 14:29:09 -0800, "cardarch" wrote:

I badly need advice. A stray cat showed up on my door step. I
advertised to find the owner but if none shows up Im thinking of
keeping. him. In the meanwhile, the cat is in and out. So if I keep
him what do I need to do.He has a bit of a crippled back leg but there
is no sore or scab on it. He is kind of dirty. Where can I get him a
bath? What shots does he need? And then there is the problem of his
maleness. What do I need to do about that? He isnt beat up. His ears
are whole with only a few scars. I dont know what I have to do in
order to keep him. He probably has fleas. Can he be trained to use a
liter box?


Bless you for helping out a kitty in need. I adopted my little Katie
from Camden, NJ about 14 years ago. She too found me and is the
sweetest thing I've ever seen. A trip to the vet is a must. You'll
get an assessment of the kitty's health and a lot of answers to the
questions you have. Best of luck and please keep us informed.

Rob

cardarch wrote:

I badly need advice. A stray cat showed up on my door step. I
advertised to find the owner but if none shows up Im thinking of
keeping. him. In the meanwhile, the cat is in and out. So if I keep
him what do I need to do.He has a bit of a crippled back leg but there
is no sore or scab on it. He is kind of dirty. Where can I get him a
bath? What shots does he need? And then there is the problem of his
maleness. What do I need to do about that? He isnt beat up. His ears
are whole with only a few scars. I dont know what I have to do in
order to keep him. He probably has fleas.

One trip to the vet ought to fix all these problems.

Can he be trained to use a
liter box?

Cats naturally take to litter boxes. Locate the box in a private
place, then just show him where it is. He'll want to use it.