Stray Boy Rescued from Plumstead in Poor Condition

Plumstead has always been an area with a high stray cat population, and this has never been more evident than in the past week when we have received email after email about strays in the area, many of them injured and unwell unneutered Toms.

Zen is perhaps the saddest example of this. Seemingly living as a stray for years, he was fed regularly by a friend of the charity but was too timid for her to capture. To her dismay, he then vanished for months and returned in very poor condition and with a head tilt, a symptom usually indicative of neurological damage. Extremely concerned for his well being, the charity friend stepped up attempts to capture Zen and contacted CatCuddles for help.

As soon as the poor boy was caught, he was rushed to our collaborating vet where it was discovered that he had a fever. He was put on a course of antibiotics and after several days of this treatment, and of warmth and good food, he is looking far brighter. He is a very sweet, placid-natured cat, hence the name.

The cause of Zen's head tilt is still unclear and will warrant further investigation, though we believe it is the result of being hit by a car previously and receiving no vet treatment. Zen was also unneutered and is very battle-scarred from his time spent on the streets. In his weakened state he was ever more vulnerable to attacks from rival Tom cats and his ability to care for himself as a stray for much longer was doubtful.

We will be investigating the possibility that Zen has an owner but if none is found, we will find him a loving new home. It's possible that his head tilt may be permanent, so his adopters will need to accept that Zen is a little different.

Though it is lovely that we are able to give Zen the life he has always deserved, free of the hunger, cold, and suffering he has experienced in the past, there are many more cats out there like him, in Plumstead alone, who will go without help.

We urge local cat owners to exercise responsible ownership and neuter and microchip their cats, taking advantage of the numerous low-cost and free services offered by charities. Do it for your own cats and for cats like Zen.

Info on local low cost neutering can be found here; https://goo.gl/Gy8f3s