My little guy is sick...vet didn't help!

mybudozzy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jul 12, 2011
Messages
4
Purraise
0
I'm a new cat owner. My wife and I have a 10 week old kitten that we got last month. Today, while I was getting ready for work, I heard and then noticed Ozzy vomiting on the floor. I assumed it was a hairball and went to clean up the mess when he was done. However, he did it again...and again....and again! All in all the poor guy must have threw up about 8 times in about four hours.

I stayed home from work to look after him and texted my wife updates about his condition. When it looked like he wasn't getting better, she made an appointment for him with our vet for 3:30 this afternoon. I had been reading different sites throughout the day saying that if the cat was lethargic and not eating or drinking and vomiting continuously to take him to the vet. We did and told him what was happening

He felt around, checked him out and then after a while proclaimed that he wasn't sure what was wrong with him!! Seriously?! We don't know what's wrong with him either, that's why we took him to the vet in the first place. He gave Ozzy a shot of fluid that would hopefully hydrate him and also an injection to fight his nausea. Well, $125 later we came home and the first thing Ozzy does...throw up two more times! Great. I'm not sure what to do. We feel like we wasted a vet visit that didn't actually solve anything and we're still right back where we started at, only $125 lighter in the bank.

Does anybody have any advice or similar stories that they can share? We're both really worried about the little guy but have no idea what to do to help him. He's not eating or drinking or playing...basically not his normal self at all. He's slept practically all day and this kitty is always full of energy and loves to play. To see him moping around so lethargic and sad is heartbreaking.
 

fleshflowers

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Jul 9, 2011
Messages
324
Purraise
200
Location
Iowa City, Iowa
I'm sorry I can't be much help, perhaps you could take him to a different vet?
Sending vibes your way for you and your little one
 

calvin&i

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Dec 8, 2010
Messages
677
Purraise
1
Oh no - poor baby. Lots of vibes for him. Calvin had an episode of vomitting pretty soon after we got him and the vet could not find anything wrong. He was given a shot for nausea and that worked for him. He did eat after he got home from the vet. You may want to give the vet a call if this continues with the kitten. Dehydration is a major problem in cases like this and glad that the vet gave him some fluids. Try to see if you can get ozzy to drink water. Also are you feeding him wet food? They are high in moisture and if not, may be you can offer a bit and see if he's enticed.
Is there any way he could have gotten into anything toxic? There are many things, including houseplants that can make a kitty sick.
 

carolina

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Nov 17, 2008
Messages
14,759
Purraise
215
Location
Corinth, TX
Is he throwing up immediately after he eats, projectile vomit? Everything he eats? He might be blocked... Has he pooped today?
If he gets worse, I would consider an ER vet or another vet first thing in the morning - get an x-ray done too.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #5

mybudozzy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jul 12, 2011
Messages
4
Purraise
0
Thank you everybody for the vibes. We've tried to offer him water but he won't take it. He didn't even have the energy to lick water off my finger when I dipped it into his bowl and offered it to him. We eventually decided to try and "force feed" him a bit of water with an eye dropper just so he had something in his stomach but he didn't take much.

He usually eats dry kitten food and we give him wet food as a treat. He hasn't even approached his food today but we might try to offer him a bit of wet food before we got off to bed to see if he eats.

He's stopped vomiting for the time being. Hasn't dry heaved or anything in a few hours so the medicine might be working now. He's still pretty lethargic though but he's somewhat responsive at least and will look at you when you talk to him. He went to his litter box and had a bit of diarrhea and if memory serves me correct that was the only time I can remember him going poo.

We've searched the house to see if there's anything he might have gotten into but have no idea what it could be. We don't feed him scraps and try to always put away our used plates so he's not tempted to clean them for us. All of the plants we have our on the balcony where we won't let him go and the only indoor plant we've got is too high for him to reach. We asked the vet if any of the cleaning products we use might upset his tummy but he told us that carpet cleaners and air-fresheners apparently don't harm kittens in trace amounts. We think that he may have eaten a bug that got into our house but can't know for sure, just speculating.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #6

mybudozzy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jul 12, 2011
Messages
4
Purraise
0
Quick update. We were going to try and give him a bit of wet food but first wanted to give him a bit more water since he seemed to hold it down fine. Well, not this time. Poor guy just threw up again. I've lost count how many times it's been today. 20 maybe?
 

levi68

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Jul 1, 2011
Messages
569
Purraise
30
Location
Ontario
Kittens fade fast! If you don't want to lose your little guy, take him to another vet now.
He could have an obstruction which is causing him to vomit. Please take him soon.
Let us know how he's doing.
 

carolina

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Nov 17, 2008
Messages
14,759
Purraise
215
Location
Corinth, TX
I would hurry him to the ER vet at this point (tonight, I would not wait for the morning), this does not look good - looks like he is blocked.

P.S.: to find the nearest E.R. clinic: call your vet or the nearest vet clinic and listen to the recording - the address and phone # is going to be there
 

calvin&i

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Dec 8, 2010
Messages
677
Purraise
1
How is the little one doing today? I did not check your later posts from last night and it seems that things were not going too well for little Ozzy. Hope you were able to take him to an emergency vet and they've been able to help.
 

frankthetank

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 20, 2006
Messages
400
Purraise
12
Location
Ohio
I hope your kitty is okay!! I would definitely either take the kitty back to the vet, or an emergency vet. Has the kitty been dewormed or had any shots?
Last time I had a kitty vomiting like that and not eating, it was my 1yr old cat Joey, but the vet tested his kidneys the first day we took him in and that was the problem. IDK if that is something that could affect a small kitten, but if he could have gotten into anything, it could be causing a kidney issue? We have NO clue what caused our cats, but when it was caught he was in kidney failure w/ almost no function....no blockages and he needed a weekend of constant IV fluids before it was flushed out but he is fine now. We have no indoor plants, and he doesn't eat table food so IDK that we will ever know what caused it, but if might be worth it to go to another vet (or the same one) and get some tests done?
 

stephanietx

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Dec 1, 2005
Messages
14,813
Purraise
3,545
Location
Texas
I'm with everyone else. Hope you took your guy to either the ER vet or a different vet. Hope he's doing okay.
 

minniegem

TCS Member
Kitten
Joined
Jul 5, 2011
Messages
7
Purraise
0
Location
Ontario
i hope your little one is doing better, a friend of mine had a kitten just like your ozzy and she ended up giving him back to the people she got him off of as her kitten at 8 weeks old was so sick with vomitting, diareha her bum hole was inflamed so badly she took it to the vet spent 200 and the kitten was worse after the vets the kitten had a blockage and the vet put this hose like thing up the poor kitties bum and was put on medication, neither one of them worked and she simply could not afford to keep taking it back to the vets so she told the previous owner that was getting rid of the kittens the situation and they took the kitty back, i have not heard how the kitty is now but the kitty she got from them in return was a very a healthy kitty and shes still going strong, did you change the food possibly after receiving the kitten to the brand you want your kitten on or left the kitten on the food from what it was on as a newbie? where did you get your kitten from by chance, hope ozzy is better today
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #13

mybudozzy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jul 12, 2011
Messages
4
Purraise
0
Ozzy update. He seems to be doing a lot better. My wife got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and went to check on him, he came to her when she said his name and was up and running around like a happy kitty. She brought him into the bedroom and he was happy, climbing up the bed and bouncing around. She gave him a tiny bit of wet food but it didn't agree with him and he wasn't able to keep it down. But, he's drinking water fine and is a lot more active today and generally seems like his old self. We'll keep an eye on him today and see (hope) it continues and hopefully he'll take to his food at some point. But, at least he's drinking which we're happy about.
 

flutterby68199

TCS Member
Kitten
Joined
Jun 30, 2011
Messages
6
Purraise
0
I am having a similar issue with my kitten who is about 3 months old. I ended up taking her to the emergency vet. Do you know if your vet asked for a fecal sample? If not you might want to call them back and ask them to test it to see if there are any bacteria in it. I learned at the vet last night that there are a few nasty intestinal bugs that don't effect older cats but with kittens it can be a little more dangerous since their immune systems aren't fully developed.

I hope you little guys continues to improve...
 

calvin&i

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Dec 8, 2010
Messages
677
Purraise
1
Originally Posted by MyBudOzzy

Ozzy update. He seems to be doing a lot better. My wife got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and went to check on him, he came to her when she said his name and was up and running around like a happy kitty. She brought him into the bedroom and he was happy, climbing up the bed and bouncing around. She gave him a tiny bit of wet food but it didn't agree with him and he wasn't able to keep it down. But, he's drinking water fine and is a lot more active today and generally seems like his old self. We'll keep an eye on him today and see (hope) it continues and hopefully he'll take to his food at some point. But, at least he's drinking which we're happy about.
glad that ozzy has perked up today. However, it seems that he's had no nutrition in him for 24 hours at least. That's not good for a kitten. His not being able to tolerate food does seem like an obstruction. Cats do not fare well if they do not eat and kittens more so: their organs start shutting down. Please seek advice from a vet since his not eating is not a good sign.
 

yosemite

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Apr 26, 2001
Messages
23,313
Purraise
81
Location
Ingersoll, ON
Cats can go into liver failure if they do not eat for 48 hours and I'm assuming kittens would be even more vulnerable. I would recommend either going back to the vet or finding another one.
 

stephanietx

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Dec 1, 2005
Messages
14,813
Purraise
3,545
Location
Texas
Try feeding him some plain meat baby food (no onions or garlic) with some baby rice cereal mixed in. It certainly sounds as if something is going on. Has he been tested for worms?
 
Top