Rabies

[jessizzo]

There is a cat in our neighborhood that we think belongs to one of our neighbors but is basically a stray because they leave it outside all the time. So I started feeding him and taking him in. Anyways we brought him in tonight and at first I didn't notice anything was wrong. But later he came over to me and started meowing very quietly and sad. I didn't know what was wrong with him and I tried to get him to move so I could identify the problem. So he finally got up and limped over to another spot.

His back right leg is hurt and also the area behind his ear/neck is hurt. I think he may have been bitten by something (rat because its a small area), but I can't tell. The area is wet and has a bad stench almost like feces. I couldn't get him to let me examine the area but I'm afraid he may contract rabies if he was bitten.

What should I do with him? Is it possible if the disease is dectected early that it can be cured?? I don't want to contract anything myself so I closed him in another room just to be safe. But rabies takes a long time to develop, right? Should I take him to the vet? I don't know if I will be able to pick him up like this and also he might possibly be a lazy neighbor's pet. Please help me in better diagnosing his conditions or any other advice!

[jessizzo]

It wouldn't let me delete my post, but my cat is alright. We took him to the vet today and they said he wasn't bitten and there was no open areas on his leg that we should worry about.