CPL home check tomorrow

[MrsMoggy]

Hi all,

This subject has probably been done lots of times so apologies in advance. Got a home check tomorrow for an indoor cat who we haven't actually met yet. What should I expect to be looked at and what questions may I be asked?

So far I have answers to where the cat would eat and use litter tray, where it could have privacy in first few weeks, what vets I may sign up to, feeding schedule, what I'm going to buy etc. can anybody think of anything else?

Thank you

Mine are indoor/outdoor cats & once they're established I've only flead them when they were going to kennels, & wormed them at annual vet visit (because I'm hopeless at getting pills into them & the little sods can always detect them when 'hidden' in food)

historically that only applied to my 3 ladylike cats though, now I have a rambunctious boy who kills things I might need to be more thorough, but I reckon Nora shouldn't need doing regularly.

Had she been done at the shelter? Maybe worth doing it once more to be sure.

Boosters more than £40 at my vet - can't remember but will look for a bill later.

I've heard recently that they don't actually need annual vaccs either but I don't know how true that is

Yes she had everything done while in foster etc. The fosterer said to me just get her done once a year for worms but wasn't sure how accurate that was. She didn't mention frequency of fleas.

Another daft question but do I register with a vet now even though I don't want an appointment, or wait til something needs doing? I haven't really got the money spare for an unnecessary check

She's gorgeous, and clearly a much better fit for your family than Callie, I just wish you'd been able to have this experience the first time around! Glad it didn't put you off though.
We have a one-eyed cat, she had a similar birth defect but ended up with her bad eye being removed. It doesn't affect her in the slightest, she goes outdoors, she climbs, she chases mice etc.
We registered with the vet and they ask you to bring them in for a (free) once-over just to make sure all is ok, and get them on the system so they can send reminders for vaccinations.

Finest
"I've heard recently that they don't actually need annual vaccs either but I don't know how true that is"
If you have pet insurance they will only pay out if your pet has annual check ups and vaccination boosters.
I have insurance but wouldn't want to take the risk anyway. Vaccinations are a lot cheaper than treatment if they do get anything!

I'm fairly risk averse too, Emma

I think what I saw implied that maybe they can be overdosed with vaccine? Can't find it now but not just about the cost.

Mine all get the boosters anyway & it hasn't been a problem for them, but you do have to weigh up pros & cons, esp with a 100% indoor cat.

Just a quick note to say we are popping to the vets tomorrow evening to get her eye checked out. Finding we have to wipe it 2 or 3 times a day whereas the fosterer only had to every other day. The rspca is funding the appointment just to make sure all ok. She doesn't seem in discomfort or anything but worth looking at as seems excessive

If the eye doesn't work very well anyway she might be better off having it removed? I've seen plenty of one-eyed cats advertised at shelters & they seem to function perfectly well (especially with not going outside)

Good luck anyway, Mrs M - hope you get a definite answer one way or the other

I don't think they'd resort to removing it just yet. Either way it will be good to find out more and just see for ourselves that all is well with her. I'm not overly concerned just precautionary on the advice of the fosterer and better to get it looked at while she's still associated with rspca

Glad you're taking her. It's good that the RSPCA are paying as well. Let us know how it goes.

Hope all goes well, as I said we have a one-eyed cat who was born with similar problems and she is absolutely and totally fine with one eye. So even if it is removed it shouldn't cause her any issues. Ours is managing to hunt a mouse a day at the moment so it's not slowing her down at all!

Close up of her eye. Last wiped it this morning and it's now 6.30pm

If they did recommend removing it we'd be a bit stuck as the insurance won't cover it. Certainly couldn't afford it ourselves outright.

Thing is she's seen a vet within the last few weeks and obviously nobodies recommended taking it out or surely it would have been done before they tried to rehome her so I'm just stumped really.

Will take this vets advice of course just in two minds about it as her actual eye looks healthy it's just the skin around it.

Will report back tomorrow night as appointment isn't until 6pm

But yes she is very sweet and will look gorgeous however many eyes

Yeah she's been snoozing in sunny spots the past few days and enjoying her new toy. Never got her to go back in her proper litter tray after the freshener incident so she's using a different blimin tiny one I had spare from Callie.

She slept next to me in bed the other night. She has a bit of a crusty red nose too so will be asking about that tomorrow too. Hopefully not cat flu again as she's had all her jabs and isn't in anywhere near the state of Callie.

She's so good with my son she will go to him for a stroke and let him play with her and sit next to her. She's such a love

oh she is such a sweetheart, how lovely that she'll go to your son & sit by him

I was vaguely wondering if the extra oozing might just be to do with adjusting to a different atmosphere; but if it turns out that there is a chronic more serious problem, surely the RSPCA would help with costs?

If you want to get a bigger tray I can recommend \link{http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/cat_litter_litter_boxes/hooded_litter_box/litter_boxes_filter/284528?rrec=true\this one}, my cats really like it. It's nice & tall, the extra depth at the far end lets them rummage about a bit & it's unbelievably cheap! (I got the grey one though, the green is a bit much)

I've also used \link{http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/cat_litter_litter_boxes/hooded_litter_box/litter_boxes_filter/146680?rrec=true\this one} which is easier to get into for scooping but the tray is textured, so harder to clean, & it's all one depth, & more expensive

I have to hope that the rspca would help finest , presumably any treatment required tomorrow whether it be simple as drops or further investigation, I would hope they would pay for as the appointment is on their account. Yet again we have to go to one of their affiliated vets so a half hour journey on our hands. One of these days we will make it to a vet in our own town!

When I wipe the eye it's a sort of reddish colour on the wipe, no pus or anything. It's like sleep and tears, but it's just the redness that is an issue. Thing is with her original op involving her eyelid she's going to have more sleep etc in her eye than the average cat as she doesn't blink or close the eye the same.

Also have to remember I suppose that she's only young and the wound is still healing really, I'm hoping that as she gets older it might heal up better and not be so wet. The skin is still that new pink colour like scar tissue

Also thank you for the litter tray recommendations I'm still holding out hope of her going back to the original one as she had no issues with it before I scented so just trying to think how to entice her back in!

She's had antibiotics and some eye drops as she may have conjunctivitis. He didn't really know why her eye is how it is. We don't have a record of the initial operation so nobody knows the circumstances of her eye being widened.

He said it could be related to any kind of virus in the womb or as a kitten. Basically we are to keep wiping and seek vet advice if she goes off her food or messes with it, otherwise it's just wiping for rest of her life.

He wants to do a follow up appt next week so got to see if rspca will fund that as well. I wasn't that keen on him to be honest he was very abrupt and presumptuous and didn't seem to have a clue

oh that's disappointing

vets do seem to be a bit random in their capabilities IME . Are there other vets at the practice? maybe you could ask to see a different one next time or does it need to be him as he saw what she was like today?

Of course it could easily be an infection on top of the normal oozing, that would account for the increased moisture. if it subsides with the antib's & eyedrops & reverts to wiping every other day, that would be a good result!

Her eyelid was pink and inflamed so classic sign of conjunctivitis he said. He was more concerned with the sort of shadow she has on her eye but as I kept trying to explain that was her blindspot from the eyelid issue . Rspca have authorised for us to get that looked at next week again so will ring tomorrow and try and get an appt next Friday.

Just to add that there wasn't any suggestion of the eye being removed. He tested her reactions in it and said it functioned ok

It was tiny practice only two rooms and two vets. Seemed more dog orientated in my opinion