YAY! Glad you got him and were able to get him the help he needs. And 23 lbs!!! Yikes! He must be huge. 
Yay!
If he is anything like my Cheeto, he will forgive you completely & be trappable when needed 
Mr C just had to visit the vet Sunday - straining outside the box & a wee bit of dribbling (on my couch 
)
Looks like I caught a UTI very early on.
I just scruffed him & squished him into my carrier.
Vet techs loved him & he forgave me within minutes of getting home.
Hoping for Same for you & your Chonk 
He is already going into the trap to eat. He won’t go all the way in, but halfway is a good start given that it was just yesterday that I trapped him. He is now asleep and snoring.
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OK… today is trap day #2. He’s in the trap eating right now, but I can’t take him to the vet until 2 so decided not to set the trap yet. I’m a little worried he won’t go back in.
I just want him to be comfortable, even if it means he’s nearly toothless.
(He just came out of the trap, and went to the litterbox. Another odd thing about this cat: he never uses the Sam-size litterbox, only the small one that he doesn’t quite fit into. He sticks his front half in, digs a hole, twists himself into a pretzel to get his back half in, does his business with his front half outside the box, then comes out and turns around to cover his mess.)
Good luck! Hope he will go back into the trap at the right time.
I had a cat that only had 1 tooth. When she showed up at my place, she had more teeth but she had a big rodent ulcer in her mouth and almost all of her teeth fell out. She did fine and ate fine with just 1 tooth.
I’ve also had a nearly toothless cat. Myrtle came to me already elderly, with hyperthyroidism and really bad teeth. Got the former treated, then the latter and the majority of her teeth were extracted. A year or two later she got bone cancer in a front leg, and the leg was amputated. She did well as a “tripod” kitty, even when her kidneys started to go and she needed subQ fluids every other day. Unlike Sam, she was a peach to handle – very sweet and friendly and would just settle down on my lap for a nap while her fluids were run in. Ultimately the cancer came back, and her heart was failing, and I had her euthanized. The vet was sure she was well over 20 when she died and I miss her – she was the best cat I’ve ever had and well worth the vet bills.
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He went into the trap around 3 p.m. just as I was starting a work meeting. He made a racket so I kept having to mute, and of course it was a meeting in which I was an active participant, not just taking notes. We dropped him off at the vet around 4:30 and he is one stressed out cat.
His little friend is out of the dog crate, spent some time looking for him, and is now being a pest.
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Vet just called; Sam is having 5 teeth extracted, which is not as bad as we thought it could be. I should be able to pick him up this evening (and hopefully they’ll put him back in the trap, so I can just take him home and then return it to them.)
I really hope that his disposition is improved once he’s not in pain all the time.
If I had to do this all over again, I would have trapped him every year for a vet visit. I let this go on way too long.
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Do not be so hard on yourself. The general thought with feral cats is that you get one trapping and then they are not going to fall for it again. Instead feel lucky that you were able to trap him twice to get this done now.
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Hope Sam feels better and realizes you aren’t trying to kill him, just make his life better.
He is back. He is still groggy, but he’s MAD about being in the crate, and we are devising ways to get food and water in there without opening the door. I might be able to swap out the (disposable) litter box in a few days if I am really lucky. He only needs to be in there for 5 days but ouch. I am hoping for an uncomplicated recovery, as I am not sure I could trap him again right now.
I’m glad he’s back home and hopefully will feel better in a day or two.
Why does he need to stay in the crate for five days? Did he have another procedure too?
He’s in the crate mostly to keep his little buddy from eating his food with gabapentin added; she’s medically fragile (and 20 years old), so that’s important. If he gets out of the crate, I’ll have to put her in it, and I’d rather not.
Wow, 20 years old?!?!
That’s impressive!
I hope he stays nice and calm for you.
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Jingles for a smooth recovery for him.
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Sam would not eat while in the crate so we let him out last night, made “mush” food for both cats, and planned to put Naku in the crate this morning so I could give Sam his medicated food. She freaked out, yowled and cried and finally I let her out; she went straight to his medicated food! She has had a little, and it’s not something that will hurt her (gabapentin), but still… BUT Sam ate some too; he’s much happier and more comfortable, and now back in one of his favorite spots, snoozing away.
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What a great photo and so glad to read the update.
Curious, how big is the crate? Could you make a larger set-up that might not cause whichever cat is in it to be upset while they are contained?
It’s a size XXL crate for a very large dog. Rough measurements 30 by 48 inches floor space and 32 inches tall. It has a “cave” made from a cat carrier, and room for a small litter box and food and water. Naku has been confined there twice in the past couple of weeks, and I guess she’s just done.
Sam is willing to sniff my fingers, and will let me rub his head a little, so I think he’s on his way to forgiving me.
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That does sound like it should work just fine.
You are probably right - Naku is saying ‘sorry, not thank you’ to the whole confinement thing.
Could you keep one of the cats in a room with the door shut? Even if you had to use a small room (like a bathroom) it’s only for a few days.
