I'd ask your vet. He'd be the best person to answer that question. Every cat is different. Every health issue is different. It COULD be the reason why they original owners gave them up. I had a hairless cat, MooShoo, who was a rescue. He lived to be 10 1/2 years old and died on my birthday of a blood clot. I was devastated. He was my soulmate. My vet told me that in cats such as orientals, Siamese, etc., can carry a clot around for years. Then one strong pump of the heart can dislodge it and it'll travel to either the brain or the legs. In MooShoo's case, it went to his legs. He couldn't be saved. By the time I got him to the vet at 2 a.m. he was gone.