# unusual female cat



## Cat'sHouse (Apr 5, 2012)

before I go looking thru the web, I thought I would ask here first. Wish I had a picture but I don't yet. Next time I go there I will.

My son and girlfriend took in a stray and are trying to find the owner if it is lost.

It is a very short haired cat, maybe almost no hair with mottled skin, large ears and eyes on a pointed face. She is about 1-2 yrs old and is probably pregnant. Her feet are large with tuffs of fur on them. I would guess her weight at about 5lbs or less as she is thin boned.

If she were micro chipped, where would they put the chip? Would they be able to feel it?


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## Leazie (Apr 14, 2007)

You can take her to most vets, or a local shelter, and they will use a wand which will scan for a chip, as well as the information that is on it. You maybe be able to fell the chip under the skin, but you can not get the information that you need without the magic decoder :-|

If she is so little and you thiink that she is pregnant please encourage your kids to take her to the vet. He/she will be able to determine if they think she is physically able to handle a birth.


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## spirite (Jul 31, 2012)

I think my girls both have chips in their ears.


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## spotty cats (Sep 23, 2011)

Microchips are placed on the back of the neck, in the scruff. Generally you can't feel them and as already said they need to be scanned anyway.

They can migrate, so they'll always scan over the entire cat when checking for a 'chip.


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

I've never heard of microchips in cats' ears. I don't even think that's possible, since they're so thin. A notch in the ear indicates the cat was fixed, usually done for feral cats.


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## LakotaWolf (Aug 10, 2012)

If she does not look like one of the hairless/nearly hairless/flat-coated breeds I'm going to list below, she could have mange or some other skin condition that is causing her to lose her fur. Since she has fur on her paws, it makes a skin condition sound more likely.

Sphynx:
http://kittysites.com/deluxe/destyny.jpg
(Sphynxes are usually entirely hairless, but some may have a light peachfuzz covering them)
http://img.ehowcdn.com/article-new/ehow/images/a08/bg/48/origin-hairless-cats-800x800.jpg

Devon Rex:
http://www.web-dvm.net/devon.jpg

Cornish Rex:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...e_Cornish_Rex.jpg/220px-White_Cornish_Rex.jpg

Rex cats have curly fur, but it can also be very thin - some Rex cats look nearly hairless. Most Sphynx cats are entirely hairless, or have very fine peachfuzz.

As for microchips - my cat was microchipped at the base of her neck, right between the shoulder blades. I can feel it if I rub that area - it's tiny, about the size of a grain of rice. But, she was microchipped 14 years ago, so the process/location of implantation may be a little different now.

As others have said, a vet will have a device that will detect and read a microchip immediately, even if it has migrated from the implantation site. Most vets won't ask questions or charge you, and will simply scan the kitty if you bring it in and say you found it as a stray.

Your son should also put up "Found Cat" posters in the area where he lives, and think about posting on Craigslist or other online sites (like the online Classified section of the local newspaper) if he's serious about trying to find out if the kitty has an owner. Always omit a special detail about the cat when doing something like this, so you can actually get serious inquiries. For example, if the kitty has an unusual marking on one paw or somewhere, ask any callers to describe the markings to ensure it's their cat.

When I found a stray cat hanging around my home, I went to my local wireless phone store and picked up a cheap "burner" cellphone to use as a contact when I posted on Craigslist and made Found Cat posters. This way, I did not endanger my personal cellphone number.

Keep us updated! :}


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## minikin44 (Aug 25, 2012)

My first thought was Sphynx, but they usually have no hair at all, including on their feet... a picture would definitely help. My cats microchip is between his shoulder blades as well.


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## spirite (Jul 31, 2012)

marie73 said:


> I've never heard of microchips in cats' ears. I don't even think that's possible, since they're so thin. A notch in the ear indicates the cat was fixed, usually done for feral cats.


For some reason, ear stuck with me, but you're right, obviously it's not a logical place for a chip. But I feel like they're not between the shoulder blades. Well, I guess I could have them scanned just for kicks.


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## Cat'sHouse (Apr 5, 2012)

thanks all...after posting I checked out sphynx pictures on the web and that is what this cat is....don't know if it is no hair or just barely hair but she does look like most of the pics.

My formerly feral female, Marble, had a chip put in but I have never tried to feel it. Perhaps on the cat my son has one could or he can try the vet's office if no one responds to their posters. This cat just showed up at their door on Friday all cold and hungry and our weather was going to get a lot colder soon. Also, they are near two busy streets. They have checked their neighborhood for posters and were going to check the newspaper and online. They and I would like to get the cat returned to the owner if possible as we have indoor cats and other pets that we would surely miss if they got out and lost.

Again, thanks for the info....I had thought Marble had a chip between the shoulder blades but wasn't sure.


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## Jacq (May 17, 2012)

When they chipped Io the handout said it's possible sometimes to feel the chip for a day or two after insertion, but DON'T EVER poke at it or terrible things will happen, fire and brimstone, etc.



spirite said:


> For some reason, ear stuck with me, but you're right, obviously it's not a logical place for a chip.


Io's tattoo is in her ear, maybe that's why it was in your head? I don't know if tattooing is still used very often as ID, though.


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## LakotaWolf (Aug 10, 2012)

It seems to me that a Sphynx on the loose would almost certainly be someone's escaped pet... they literally cannot survive in a feral situation for long. :/

If she's not chipped or tattooed, and if she IS unspayed, definitely tell your son to be careful when talking to people who respond and claim they're the owner - kitten mills/unscrupulous breeders might be on the lookout for pedigree-looking female cats to breed and make money off of.

As an aside - remember the stray I mentioned in my previous post, the one who I found several weeks ago? He WAS microchipped, and my vet and I both tried to contact the listed owner for several days. The microchip company tried to contact them several times as well, to no avail. Finally, I called the listed number from my "burner" cellphone, and someone picked up. I asked if they'd lost their cat, and she said no - I said "really? I found a black and white cat, and your number was listed on his microchip info", and the lady gasped and said she HAD lost the cat - TWO years ago! So, I was able to reunite the owner with the kitty she'd lost two years prior.

The moral is, if the kitty IS microchipped, and the company/vet isn't at first successful in contacting the owner, have them keep at it. I don't think a Sphynx/hairless cat could survive for two years on its own, so this cat's situation probably isn't the same as my stray's, but it's worth considering - maybe someone stole the cat from her owners a while ago, and she's only just escaped recently.


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## kty78 (Mar 18, 2012)

Sounds like an escapee. Suggest that they take her and have her scanned for a chip. My cat got out a few weeks ago, late at night and we didn't know until the next morning. She's not chipped but might be soon. I put up flyers, ad in the paper, craigslist, only a couple responses, not the right cat, then she showed up on our front porch one week after she went missing, half starved. She's fine now, thankfully. I always worried that she was too thin, now I need to cut back on the food. I thought she would get full eventually. Guess not.


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## Carmel (Nov 23, 2010)

This cat must belong to someone. You don't just find Sphynx wandering the streets. I hope you're able to find their owner, I bet they're worried sick.



Jacq said:


> I don't know if tattooing is still used very often as ID, though.


I hope it isn't... it's a real joke. Every area, sometimes every vet, has different numbering schemes from what I've been told. Plus, when cats get older the ink runs and everything is utterly illegible. 

Blaze's tattoo is unreadable, I don't know when it got like that, but he's 16 now. 

Blacky's ear tattoo _never _was readable - maybe the ink quality was poor? - and she's been with us for 10 years now. I can't imagine she was much more than 5 when we started feeding her. Neither of their tattoos would do any good if they got lost. 

Blacky's in particular would've been helpful to read, she was a semi-feral cat that was tattooed and spayed when we started feeding her on the street... it would've been nice to find out where it was traced to, but when I talked to some shelters realised even if it was legible, it's next to impossible to track. Different organizations don't keep records for other places tattoo methods... most places don't even keep records from more than 10 years prior.


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## kty78 (Mar 18, 2012)

Any updates? Have they been able to find the cat's owner?


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## Cat'sHouse (Apr 5, 2012)

yes, sorry for not getting back on this forum....someone saw the poster and told my son. They had the person describe the cat and they were sure they were the owner....it did get out and got 'lost'. Person lived a few blocks away. I guess all is well and since temps are now a lot colder, I hope they don't let it happen again.


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## builder (Sep 2, 2012)

LakotaWolf said:


> If she's not chipped or tattooed, and if she IS unspayed, definitely tell your son to be careful when talking to people who respond and claim they're the owner - kitten mills/unscrupulous breeders might be on the lookout for pedigree-looking female cats to breed and make money off of..


I know that this happens a lot and have heard many stories. My neighbor is always picking up stray animals and she goes to the vet regularly to check for micro chip. 
She once brought home a beautiful German Sheppard that appeared to be worth a lot of money. I would have taken the dog in a heartbeat, but I knew the owners would be looking for it. When my neighbor took it to the vet to be scanned, the vet said there wasn’t a chip and he wanted the dog himself. He talked her into giving him the dog, but I always thought it was very suspicious. In this case it was a dog, but it very well could have been a valuable cat.


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## minikin44 (Aug 25, 2012)

I'm glad you found the kitty's home and yes, hopefully it won't be making any more forays into the wild outdoors, seeing as winter is coming and it has no fur...


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