baby stray not feelin good.. :(

frankthetank

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We rescued a kitten last week, found him in our chicken coop starving and flea covered.
We have bathed him numerous times, and are finding less fleas...but we have to bomb the house this weekend because our basement (its an old house with a disgusting basement that has broken concrete walls with dirt showing through and its just nasty but we rent so we can't really do much about it) has fleas. I am not sure how they infested our basement, but we have a couple vents that are not attached to the heating/cooling system and just are open from basement to 1st floor, so we are thinking the fleas get in through these vents, as we just noticed a flea problem before finding this baby. So we have given our cats a few baths, washed our stuff a lot, and plan to bomb this weekend. Last yr we did the same and it helped a lot. Our house has a door separating the upstairs from the down, so we can bomb pretty safely. (we want to bomb the basement but do not know where the pilot light is, and don't want to blow our house up...)
Anyways back to to the kitten...

He ate like it was goin out of style last week, and over the weekend. On Tuesday we noticed he was not eating as much, but when we pulled out the wet food, he still ate it. Yesterday, he would not touch ANY wetfood. I ran to the store, and got a different kind, still would not touch it. He went to the dry food a few times, and would eat for about 3-5 minutes, and drink water, but no wet food. He is getting thinner again (after doing so well losing weight!) and is sleeping a lot. We can get him to play and he likes to run arond with the other kittens a little, but will spend a majority of time sleeping.

We ended up taking him to the vet earlier this week, and they said aside from his old wounds, which we are treating, he was fine. He has some scarring on the tip of his tail, his ears, and belly and we think someone inflicted these wounds instead of animals as we originally thought.
We are getting concerned about the poor baby again....today I brought him some wet food, and he walked away from it and went to the dry bowl and ate for a few. I have tried locking him in bathroom with wet, and he sits at door crying. I have read a little about how fleas can affect a kitten this young, so I am hoping that after we do our major treatment on Saturday, he will feel a little better. We are getting some more food tonight to try and if he still is barely eating like this tomorrow, I plan to call the vet again...
Any advice/tips on anything a kitten might eat? He is about 8 weeks old. We were thinking trying some kitten milk but weren't sure.
(i understand responses will be to take him to the vet I am sure, and we definitely plan to tomorrow if nothing changes, but we are exhausting every effort before another vet visit, and he is still eating....if he stopped completely, I would have already taken him.)
Sorry for the long post!
 

strange_wings

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Was he ever dewormed? That can make them go downhill pretty quickly when they're tiny.

You mentioned that you found this kitten in a chicken coop? If he survives have the vet do a fungal serology test in the future (it'll cost around $80-ish). Kittens have very little immunity to the fungi that chickens carry and it can kill them.

It sounds like your yard is flea infested, too? I know that can get bad in some areas. You may have to find some sort of treatment for outside, or at least right up against the house. All pets that come in should be on a monthly flea treatment to make this a lot easier on you to deal with. Advantage tends to be the cheapest to go with due to some of their deals they or your vet may be doing.

What wet foods have you tried?
 
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frankthetank

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We don't let our cats outside, but I know we can end up tracking fleas in from just being in our yard. What kind of treatment can be done outside??
He has not been dewormed, tonight when we visit the pet store we plan to get some stuff for him.
 

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No! Do not self deworm a kitten! Nothing you get OTC will be safe for an already sick kitten, you'll risk poisoning him no matter how careful you are due to how the manufacturers that make this stuff make it (strength/concentration). Just talk to your vet. They may want to see him again or they fix a dropper with the proper amount of cc's for you to pick up (depends on the vet. Mine would do the latter if he'd just seen the cat a few days before).

I didn't know if you had a dog.
That tends to get people in a bind with fleas.
You can get barrier sprays, I do not know how well they would keep out fleas but they do work for other insects. Other options are actually spreading a pesticide on your yard... I hate to suggest that but if it gets bad that may be the only solution. Discuss it with someone more experienced with lawn care and with your vet if you have other outdoor animals.
I don't know if DE would have much effect over a larger area (with rain + wind).

Otherwise, keep grass around the house short. Clear all brush away. Have a clear walkway for people coming in and out of the doors, brush your legs off before you come in. No shoes in the house, etc. Keep the cats treated in the warmer months.
 

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He needs to be dewormed for both round and/or hookworms as well as tapeworms. If you've got fleas, you've got tapeworms. If you have other animals, they need to be treated as well. Also, ask your vet for some Revolution for all of them. It's expensive, but if your vet is willing to fax a prescription in, you can get it online cheaper.

My vet recommends to use a PERIMETER spray, NOT a bomb. With a perimeter spray, you can control where you spray and you don't have to clean everything after you've sprayed. When you bomb, it goes up and gets on everything (dishes, counters, furniture) as it's coming down. You can find perimeter sprays in most garden centers and even at places like Wal-Mart and Target int he same section they have bug sprays.

For outside, you can sprinkle dry garlic powder (like you cook with) and DE (diatomaceous earth). Depending on where you live, you can also apply beneficial nematodes to your yard. Check out the Arbico Organics or Gardens Alive websites for nematodes. You can also check at area feed stores or organic garden centers for nematodes.
 
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frankthetank

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Thanks all! This site is full of wonderful helpful people


We called the vet we took him to, and we scheduled an appointment tomorrow. Tonight though, he has been doing awesome! We have been giving him kitten milk via a dropper, as he would not touch it himself. We ended up using some wet food gravy and dropping it into his mouth. He kept licking at it but would not eat it without us putting it at his mouth. We bough some canned chunk chicken at the store, and pureed some, and used the dropper to feed him. He seemed to really like it, so I hand fed him some tiny pieces of it as my husband held him. After about 2 good sized chunks pulled apart and given to him, i started putting some small chunks in front of him, and he was eating them on his own!! I feel so awesome with him eating some things on his own, and finally actually getting some food. (we went the canned meat route, as we are vegetarians and don't keep meat in the house).
We are going to talk about deworming tomorrow at the vet, as it was not done at his first visit. The first visit we were more concerned with his injuries, as he seemed otherwise okay and we were going to concentrate on the fleas first. So good vibes please....!!! When we first took this baby in, we were certain we were going to find a different home for him, but we have become so attached to him, and he has gone through a lot in his little life, i am pretty sure we plan to keep him.
 

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Stage 2 baby food, meat only, NO garlic or onions works well, too. Also, Fancy Feast kitten food is good. If he's still young enough, you can add some KMR to the wet food and make an oatmeal/gruel consistency and feed him that. Also, check out the kitten care links in the kitten section for more homemade recipes for kitten goop.
 

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Originally Posted by frankthetank

Thanks all! This site is full of wonderful helpful people


We called the vet we took him to, and we scheduled an appointment tomorrow. Tonight though, he has been doing awesome! We have been giving him kitten milk via a dropper, as he would not touch it himself. We ended up using some wet food gravy and dropping it into his mouth. He kept licking at it but would not eat it without us putting it at his mouth. We bough some canned chunk chicken at the store, and pureed some, and used the dropper to feed him. He seemed to really like it, so I hand fed him some tiny pieces of it as my husband held him. After about 2 good sized chunks pulled apart and given to him, i started putting some small chunks in front of him, and he was eating them on his own!! I feel so awesome with him eating some things on his own, and finally actually getting some food. (we went the canned meat route, as we are vegetarians and don't keep meat in the house).
We are going to talk about deworming tomorrow at the vet, as it was not done at his first visit. The first visit we were more concerned with his injuries, as he seemed otherwise okay and we were going to concentrate on the fleas first. So good vibes please....!!! When we first took this baby in, we were certain we were going to find a different home for him, but we have become so attached to him, and he has gone through a lot in his little life, i am pretty sure we plan to keep him.
Congratulations and healthy, healing vibes all the way to the vet !!!

Eating well and has become quite the hyperactive guy !!!
As long as you caught whatever it was quickly it's probably fine...If the fleas are under control, I wasn't overly concerned with kitty worm symptoms either after you wrote he was gaining a lot of weight and having solid poops.
 

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The fleas hit the immune system pretty hard- probitocs help a great deal as does powdered vitamin C. If his gums are white and not pink and when pressed they don't pink up in a few seconds, he is anemic and he needs good nutritious food. Try him with liver- cook it down and then puree it up and see if he eats that. Best of luck and never deworm a kitten especially a sick one with anything over the counter- that goes for all the flea shampoos you see on the shelves as well. They are simply not safe and neither are the flea collars.
 
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frankthetank

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another update, because I am up late and so tired with nothing to do...

I just went to feed him again. We didn't want to overwhelm his little body earlier with too much food, so I have him maybe two small chunks of the can chicken. Earlier, I fed him the little pieces while my husband held him still and helped to open his mouth. (This stray is one i have posted about who growls while eating....he kept swatting at me as I was hand feeding him, and growling. too cute!! but it was hurting so it was a 2 person job)
This time, I am on my own as my husband works in about 4.5 hours, so he has been sleepin awhile. I broke apart a few lil pieces and laid them on the counter for the kitten and he refused to touch them, just sat there. I used the dropper and gave him some of the chicken water from the can...so he started licking my fingers. I started putting small pieces on my finger to let him eat it off my finger...and that spoiled baby would not eat anything unless it was on my fingers! I kept putting some down on the counter and he wouldn't touch it. But if it was on my finger first, and he licked it and it fell onto counter, he would eat it. He is a weirdo. But I feel better because he ate more and was being playful and sweet. Not as lethargic as yesterday, or even as earlier today.
 
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frankthetank

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We have been feeding the kitten soft mushy foods...I got some plain meat baby food, a dropper that is actually thick enough for it, unflavored pedialyte, and some cat milk.
I am not sure how much baby food to give him...I don't want to overload his little body with food. He has walked over to the dry food 3 times today and will eat for about 3-5 minutes...probably about 10-15 pieces of food. And he does drink water just not as much as we think he needs... However I have been watching when he uses the litter, and he is not peeing much at all. He is having solid poo, which I think is a good sign, but not much pee. He is definitely dehydrated...last night he threw up twice, and this morning he threw up bile and the little pieces of chicken we fed him. We were told he was throwing up bile because his belly was empty....so we got the baby food and started a 2 to 3 hour scheduled. We have been giving him about 2-4 tablespoons of baby food, 2 tablespoons pedialyte and 1 tbsp of cat milk. He does not eat on his own really...we try, and after feeding him a tbsp with the dropper he will start licking it out of the dropped, try to bite the dropper and seem to really want the food. We just are not sure how much food we should actually be giving him? We bought a couple wet food "pate" kinds, and plan to mix with a little cat milk to make it liquid enough to give him through dropper so he is eating cat food again instead of people food, but I am not sure overall how much he should be eating.
Overall, he seems to be feeling better, no liquid poops, is moving around more and playin more but we worry that he is still not actively feeding himself
 

stephanietx

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How old is this kitty? You might have to go to feedings every 2 hours. Someone in the kitty forum may be better able to help you, or in the caring for strays and feral forum.
 

elayman

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Originally Posted by frankthetank

Overall, he seems to be feeling better, no liquid poops, is moving around more and playin more but we worry that he is still not actively feeding himself
Did you ask the vet ? He had an appointment set up for deworming etc., right ?
 
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frankthetank

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Originally Posted by elayman

Did you ask the vet ? He had an appointment set up for deworming etc., right ?
He went Friday morning. The vet seemed to be okay with the kitten going to the food bowl the 3 to 5 times a day he does(even though he only eats a little bit) and us supplementing that with what we are. He said that the deworming should help him feel better and that if he isn't starting to eat more on his own after the weekend, to call again, but to give him a couple days, as he is getting regular nutrients from our feeding him.
We went to a new vet because they had a coupon for a free first visit, and they were kinda rushed, but the kitten has kept all his food down today and is playing/being more active, and just in the day his ribs are becoming less noticeable. We have been feeding every 2 to 3 hours, and giving droppers of food (which he actively licks now as we put it infront of him) until he turns his head to not have anymore. He had about 5 tsp earlier before not wanting more. He still sleeps a lot, and I am still worried but am giving it a couple days...
 

stephanietx

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It could be that he was so weak, it took all his energy to even attempt to eat. If he had a severe case of fleas, it's also possible he was slightly anemic, also contributing to the lack of energy. Eating just a bit was all he could manage. You could go to the feed store and get a syringe with a bigger opening, mix up the food and syringe feed him that way. You could also try adding some water to dry food to make a gruel type concoction and letting him try to eat that. Put it on a plate and let him lap it up. Could be he's just learning to eat solid foods. If you're really adventurous, you might want to mix up some of the kitten glop and feeding him that, too.

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=46295
 
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frankthetank

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Baby stray is eating on his own!!
Yesterday we made sure to feed him ever 2-3 hours, mixing plain meat babyfood with pedialyte in a syringe and feeding it to him. Last night before bed, we fed him againm and after two days of regular syringe feeding, for the first time he did not climb into our bed and fall asleep. He walked around the room smelling everything, jumping around and trying to play. He ended up spending the night playing with the other kittens. This morning, at our regular wet feeding time, he walked around the kitchen with our other kittens, crying like they do as they wait for us to open their food and serve it. When we put down the plates of food, he walked to one of them, and just started eating, doing the growling as he eats thing he did the first week.
A couple hours later, I put some babyfood down on a plate and he walked over to it and ate it all up, than ate a few soft treats. He is acting like a whole different cat then a couple days ago. I think the de-worming really helped him!
 

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I've been following this thread and am pleased to hear that he's doing better. You've really helped this little guy, and I'm not surprised to learn that you're thinking of making him a permanent resident.
 

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Wonderful of you to rescue this little baby. Have you had the kitten tested for FeLV/FIV? I would not be letting him mingle with the others until you have, if not.
 
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