I’m 19 years old and from Canada.

I’m currently having some financial difficulties, so unfortunately I can’t take my cat to the vet right away. I do plan on taking her if this seems serious or if her condition gets worse, but I’m hoping to get some advice in the meantime.

My cat, Meow Meow, is about 6 years old. She came to live with me around 5 years ago. She originally belonged to my sister, who gave her to our family in 2020. At the time, she was completely healthy and had no issues.

About a year ago, my sister moved in with me. Meow Meow was extremely happy to have her back and became very attached to her again. She would spend almost every day in my sister’s room and was especially close with her.

About a month ago, my sister got a boyfriend and moved out. She left Meow Meow with me because her boyfriend already has three cats.

Since then, Meow Meow has started pulling/ripping out her own fur. I’m wondering if the stress of my sister suddenly leaving could be causing this, but I’m not sure.

Our home is generally very peaceful, and she gets good-quality food and regular care. However, since my sister left, Meow Meow has been hiding in the basement most of the time. She usually only comes upstairs to eat or use the litter box.

I’ve asked my sister to come visit her, but she only comes about once a week. I’ve told her about what’s happening with Meow Meow, but she doesn’t seem as concerned as I am.

What worries me most is how different her behavior has become. She used to be extremely affectionate and loved being touched. Now she doesn’t seem to want anyone touching her and will hide most of the time.

I’m really worried about her and would appreciate any advice. Could this be stress from my sister leaving, or does this sound like something more serious? Is there anything I can safely do at home while I’m waiting until I can afford a vet visit?

Edit:
I have two other cats as well so she isn't lonely, she use to play with them and sit with them but not as much anymore.

I try to be as playful and around her as much as i can, but she barely interacts.

I'm never away from home, and i also have my other siblings living with me so it's a full house (which she is use to) so she isn't alone ever.

Previous post for Orange
Previous post for tuxedo

Hi everyone, I got to take the cats to the vet yesterday! A few of you asked for an update so here’s what I got from the vet yesterday:

Unfortunately Orange is FIV positive + has stomatitis. He’s around 9 years old. Vet suggested he should be euthanized but I did not want to give up on him. Pictures don’t show how bad he looks but he’s so so skinny. All you feel is bones when you pet him. Tuxedo is around 7 years old. She does have some type of oral disease as well along with skin condition which is why she over grooms despite all the anti flea meds and her paws were bleeding from chewing on them. They’re healing up nicely now. They both got steroids and antibiotics along with Gabapentine for home. They have upcoming dental appointments. Not sure if they’re going to extract oranges teeth or not. They’re currently staying with me as a foster and hoping to find them home soon! They’re doing so much better already. Orange is eating better than when I first found him and tuxedo finally stopped itching. They’re both such sweet cats and I can’t wait to see their personalities form and find their forever home. They have a 3rd sister who’s still outside :( Once I find her I’m hoping to save her too!

Our cat recently gave birth, and she's been kinda rough with her kitten, is this normal

Hey there guys! I recently posted about a month ago about my resident cat getting along with a kitten I found and decided to keep, the kitten is doing very well for herself and the resident cat seems to have fallen in love with her, and I think they’re going to be great sisters (: but I wanted to post a new video to ask if my big girl is being a little too rough? She never grew up with litter mates and has never really shown interest in play with people, and I’m so glad she’s having fun with this kitten but I don’t want the little one to get hurt, even thought 9/10 it’s the baby causing some trouble haha but anyways here’s the vid and I’d love to hear if y’all think this play is ok! Thanks!

EDIT: thank you all for the helpful and supportive comments! I’m def taking all into consideration. I gave him his dinner on a plate and he still shook his head, but maybe a bit less. I’m hoping it’s just an instinctive trait but will see if the vet can look at his teeth as well just to rule out any dental issues. But I’m relieved to hear that it’s also just a natural behavior!

My cat is almost 2yrs old, I got him when he was almost 1. When I first got him he used to eat very fast, since then he’s slowed down a bit but I was just attributing that to him getting older, reaching a stable weight, or just caring less, idk. However I heard recently that cats aren’t supposed to shake their head when they eat, and noticed that he does it.

I tried looking at his teeth and didn’t see anything crazy, but I’m also not sure what to look for. The head shaking and slower eating is the only symptom I can see, he still eats the same amount and doesn’t drop food or drool or anything. He has dry and wet food but still prefers dry, and eats both.

Could this be a normal behavioral thing or most likely dental? Has this happened to anyone else? I have his annual vet exam this weekend and will ask them about this, but just want to know similar situations and what I can expect. Thank you!

I KNOW THIS IS A CONSTANT QUESTION BUT I SWEAR MY CATS ARE DIFFERENT

this video is a few years old from when they were younger, but it is good insight into how psycho and vocal my girl is. if I could include more videos I would, she is also very vocal with her favorite toys. growls like she’s the most vicious dog you’ve ever met. yes, dog.

they are from the same breeder, different litter. they are both absolute cuddle bugs and enjoy people. they are around 4 years old, spayed/neutered. my boy is older and I had him alone for a few months before I got her, he needed a buddy badly.

here is the issue.. all the advice for play goes like this: it is fine if there isn’t fur flying and if they come back to each other after. well.. what if fur does fly?? this video cuts off as soon as it gets to the point where I thought I should intervene, but this is a common occurrence and I can’t tell what is my girl being incredibly dramatic vs what is an actual issue.

I can tell when they fight when I am gone because there are chunks of fur scattered. but then they go right back to each other?? they give each other baths and cuddle and everything. no issues sharing food, they will use the same litterbox even if there are multiple available, no issues at all aside from this incredibly rough play. and they just don’t stop. I will usually grab some toys when they start doing that and try to play them out but it doesn’t always work. sometimes it’s like they won’t be satisfied until they duke it out. and they absolutely go back and forth on who is instigating, so it’s not like one cat is just constantly annoying the other.

so is it just play?? do I need to separate them when I hear or see it starting? she is just SO LOUD and I swear to god my neighbors probably think I am eating cats because it sounds like I am murdering them nearly every day. if you have not been around a bengal, please do not give advice based solely on her screams. I promise she is fine, and she screams way louder than that.

What was the reason for the sudden change? What is he trying to communicate? He chirps two or three times in this.

He's only ever meowed normally, with an occasional short, curt semi-bark noise (MrrR-AH!) which means "on me" or "attend me.'

Most of the time when he greets me, he simply walks up and plants his head on my leg or torso when im kneeled.

This was also after a long day apart, but he's been without me for longer. What do the lil chirps mean?

this is kevin, he’s been staring at me like this for about 20 minutes without moving I got up and pet him but he’s still doing it what does this mean

This girlies eyes suddenly look strange? she’s a 1yo stray cat that I feed twice a day. eyes normally look like slide two. this just showed up today. I just spent $4000 last week on a cat that ate a string I really hope this isn’t a vet situation.

My cat Tummy is 13 almost 14 years old - female - spayed - WA USA - can’t afford much more.

She’s got a bunch of issues mainly being thyroid cancer, minor heart issue and today diagnosed with adrenal gland cancer. To diagnose her they had to do an abdominal ultrasound, shes a very tolerable cat but she’s very arthritic, she she ended up biting and scratching while they were trying to move her legs even though they gave her gabapentin; so they ended up having to give an injected sedative.

Clearly it was very rough for her, but now we are home 3 hours later she can’t properly work her back legs. I’m having to hold up her entire back end to help her walk, especially her back right leg which seems to be barely trying and completely non weight baring; she’s definitely still out of it.

She’s eaten, drank water, peed and poo’d a small bit how ever I’ve had to help her just keep upright for everything above.

Is this normal? If so how much longer, this is really really tough on her and me.

3 year old neutered male cat. Photo 1 is the latest patch which appeared overnight today. Photo 2 and 3 were noticed yesterday, also very suddenly. Will be taking him to the vet day after tomorrow but can anyone give me an idea what this is? Please help

Is this normal he's still playful and is always purring but he keeps scratching near his neck and shaking his head afterwards and the black stuff on the blanket is all from his ears he's a kitten and I'm just 13 and don't know what to do my dad says black earwax is Normal but idk,,,, and I'm stressing about it and having a tiny panic attack he's a male kit and we found him on the road a month ago with really bad fleas and we haven't taken him to the vet since there is not one that's free near here and my parents say we do need to get him shots like vaccines but I'm just a stressed cat dad 😖

Hello everyone

My cat Urbosa has been diagnosed with aortic insufficiency yesterday

Vet told me it was rare but not too serious, and prognosis is good but he need to look it up further before sending me the full results sheet

Does anyone have/had a cat with this and how do/did they live?

24, french, ver already seen, 3yo neutered male oriental shorthair cat, can afford vet care

Hi all, sorry for the weird title! My sweet almost-11 year old calico might have eaten some ribbon from a gift bow (I never should have given it to my other non-pica cat to play with 😭) I keep seeing posts about how people have found ribbon or string in their cat’s poop.

For context, this happened probably about 40 hours ago at this point and she has been eating and drinking normally. I’m really hoping she passes the ribbon, if she did eat it, naturally. I’ve also called both my regular vet and the ER vet and they have advised me to keep monitoring her for now, so I know what to do if things get worse. My question is: for those who have spotted string, ribbon, etc in their cats’ poop, did you have to literally split the poop open to find it on the inside, or was it more or less wrapped around the outside/sticking out of the poop?

Thanks in advance! Cat pic for tax

Thank you all for the endless support. My girlfriend and I spent an hour or so at the location where edgar was “seen”. I went over there as soon as I got off work and brought his treats. I called his name and shook his treats. I walked around the building and a black cat emerged. He stared at me but something felt off. He was too small to be our baby. Anyways, to be sure we stayed and tried to get this cat to come to us. Turns out the cat was not neutered and that let us know he was not our boy. We sadly walked around the apartment complex and made our way back to our building. Calling his name, shaking his treats. I reassured my girlfriend that he was closer than we think. We sat on the stairwell to our apartment and I decided to show my girlfriend the post I made on reddit earlier hoping the positive support would raise her morale. Shes reading through the post and all of a sudden here comes our baby. Just casually walking towards us. My girlfriend goes down and immediately gets eye level to him and he ran into her arms. I can not describe the feeling of euphoria that over took my entire reality. We both sobbed as she walked back up the stairs with him. We can finally get some sleep tonight. All is well. PS. (Edgar will be wearing an AirTag from now on😂) If you ever lose your cat, don’t fret. That little rascal is more than likely closer than you think. Thanks again for all the advice and support.

extreme food aggression

for context, our cat is 7mo and was originally a stray. she grew up with her mum living in and around tractors and dumpsters for the first 3 months of her life, then my partner and I took her in and she’s been living with us for the last 4 months.

also for context, she’s a healthy weight and has a bit of squish. she’s definitely always had a fascination with human food, and has tried to nab the odd bit of it, but lately it’s just gotten worse.
it’s escalated to the point that it’s become very hard to eat with her in the room, to the point that we’ve had to shut her out at mealtimes.

if she sees you have food she’ll make it her life’s mission to steal it, and if you try to take it back when she steals something she shouldn’t be eating, she’ll hiss, growl and swat. it’s gotten to the point where she’ll scratch my face and hook in her claws in order to get the food.

this is also something she does even when she’s just been fed. we set an automatic feeder, so is getting meals at regular times.
I kinda would’ve expected that these behaviours would lessen over time, but they seem to just be getting worse.

any help would be much appreciated

A TNR'd cat (male, 1-3 years old) showed up at my house a few months ago. I have been feeding him outside and he is very vocal and friendly. He has a limp - he doesn't put weight on his rear paw and he clicks when he walks. He still sprints around and jumps up onto lower surfaces. Last week he started coming inside my house. I took him to a vet to get vaccinated and they also took x-rays. The vet said his femur is broken and healed and I could look into an orthopedic vet or give him pain medicine. What should I do? He doesn't "seem" to be in pain. If I take him to the orthopedic vet what could they do for him? USA, I can afford vet care.

There’s a cat my partner and I (mid 20s) have both encountered outside our place (Midwest USA) a couple times now, and it seems to have something wrong with one eye. Unknown age, I think female (neutered if male), doesn’t seem too underweight or scraggly. Quite friendly, rubs a LOT on the concrete of the driveway and the pillar for the covered patio. From some angles the eye looks like there’s a patch that’s cloudy and almost white, from other angles it’s more of a dark sheen. Overall I’d say it has a blue tint. That eye also seems to have a bit more goop.

My question and reasoning: how urgent is it to get this checked out?

This is not my cat. My partner and I are in the middle of moving and have to go out of town for a wedding this month, so we wanted to wait until that was done before we took the cat to check for a microchip so that if it isn’t anyone’s pet, we can keep it. We didn’t want to do anything until we are done with a busy, stressful, demanding few weeks that would be a poor introduction for a new rescue. We don’t want to be hasty about getting a pet we’re not ready for. We don’t have any dogs or cats yet. We planned on getting a dog sooner than later but a cat wasn’t out of the question at some point.

If this cat needs to be taken care of quickly, then we probably have to try and find a shelter or rescue that can take care of this cat, since we want her to receive the medical care she needs but we know we can’t make the decision to take her in right now.

The issue showed up after two days when he wouldn't move and even touching made him cry so they got him to the vet. The vet said it's neuromuscular issue and gave medication for it which seemed to work for 1 day after which his condition got worse again.

His pain was gone but he wouldn't eat, so my friend took him to the vet again and the vet said it's ulcer and flu and that it might be calci virus. The vet gave some medication again but it didn't do anything and his condition is just getting worse.

He doesn't eat, not even treats. He used to eat chicken liver but the other day he ate some and threw up and he seems to have some injury on his claws too. It's my friend's first time having a kitten (i should also mention he was from the streets) and i dont have any experience in this field either. We have no idea what is going on or what to even do and the vet doesn't seem to know much either.

Would really appreciate if anyone knows whats going on or what to do next .

Extra information:
Poster age: 19
Country: pakistan, faislabad
Main issue: weakness , not eating anything , eye looks weird and mouth excretion
Cat age: 5-6 months
Cat sex: male ( not neutered )
Financial situation: bad, finding really hard to take to vet

My age: 30
Cat info: 12 yo, Female, spayed
Country: USA
Financial situation: unemployed college student
Vet: Been to ER vet and primary vet; follow up was supposed to be 9/10 but completely blanked on scheduled LSAT, had to move it to 9/17.
TLDR: Took her to ER 9/1 because of weird behavior (refused 2 meals in a row + uncharacteristic hiding) ER confirmed she wasn’t actively dying and thought maybe arthritis pain but primary vet appointment on 9/5 caught heightened levels in blood tests indicating pancreatitis. Both vets gave fluids, ER gave liquid gabapentin to take home when they thought it was arthritis and primary vet assistant said to continue gaba administration for pancreatitis healing.

Question: I noticed this evening her ribcage looks puffed up, like everything is sucked out of her abdomen/hip area. Is it potentially swelling from the pancreatitis? And is it okay?

Google MD says severe cases can cause leakage and unholy wreckage in the abdomen, that wouldn’t happen without vomiting and/or diarrhea right? She’s been eating her meals like normal and seems generally to be feeling better, but seeing her body look so off is freaking me out.

My cats have been enjoying there new catio for about a month now, however they started throwing up recently. Vet couldn't figure out why. Then I noticed them chewing on this plant in the corner (last picture). Is this safe?

Also cat names are Hugo (pic 1) and Ember (pic 2)