Something is wrong with Garfunkel :(

I'm getting very frightened that something is wrong with Garfunkel.  He is very lethargic, doesn't really want to get up from where he's sitting, walking slowly if he does get up.  I can entice him to play if he doesn't have to move around to do it but he won't get up to chase something which he would normally go nuts for.  (Last night when I really started realizing he was not normal, I resorted to his favorite toy - my necklace.  I know I shouldn't be reinforcing his desire to play with it but I wanted to see if he would come after it.  He would bat it if I put it over his head but didn't want to chase it if I held it away from him to come get - whereas normally if I'm bending down and it's swinging, he will run from clear across the house to get it.  Keep in mind he's a 10-month old kitten with a reputation for being wild and crazy.)

He barely ate his wet meal last night, he stopped about a third of the way through.  He's always been my slowest eater, so that wasn't too weird at first, but he didn't finish the meal at all, which has never happened.  He ate a little more once I added some kibble on top, but Joni finished the rest for him, about half.  I gave them a dry snack around 1am this morning but didn't watch them eat it so I'm not sure if he ate much.  (I'm getting ready to feed them now and I will watch him.)   He kept trying to cover the plate, lol.  It could have been he just didn't care for the flavor, Duck and Chicken, but I fed that a few nights ago and he ate it fine.

The other thing is that while I was cleaning the litterbox last night, he went into the closet where I keep it and pooped on the floor!!!!!!!!   He knows it's only a few minutes for me to clean the litterbox but he wouldn't or couldn't wait and he pooped!  It was normal, formed and all that, but I couldn't believe he did that!

I may be overreacting but I'm so worried.  My mischief man who wreaks havoc on anything he can touch, not chasing his favorite toy from a few feet away?  Plus the not eating and the pooping combined... I'm supposed to move them to the new house in a few hours, and now I'm worried that I shouldn't!!!!  They have a check-up appointment at the vet tomorrow, at 3pm... should I wait that long?  Should I go today?  Do you think I shouldn't move them yet and wait until after he's seen the vet?  Sorry for being a little dramatic but they've had such a drama-free kittenhood, I've felt so lucky that no one has had any issues, and now that we might have one I'm not prepared and I'm freaking out!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Draco 

If you are worried, I'd call the vet and ask them if you can get an appointment today. explain your concerns

I called, they wouldn't see him as they are booked up.  I hate their vet but I'm stuck there on a wellness plan until May.  I have care credit so I could go to an e-vet I guess but I'm not sure it's serious enough.  He ate about 2/3 of his dry meal just now but left the rest... it's just really unlike him, he is so food-obsessed normally.  I'm probably overreacting.  I wish he could talk so I could figure out (a) if something's wrong and (b) how serious it is or how badly he feels, if there is something wrong.

Quote:

Originally Posted by aeevr 

Is he stressed about this moving thing? 

He could be, but I doubt it.  He's never really been stressed about anything.  

I decided to just calm down, since he's eating and going to the bathroom, and move them today, and go to the vet tomorrow as planned. 

Thanks everyone... everything went fine today.  We're in the new house and he's hiding under the bed, but so is everyone else   They'll go to the vet tomorrow at 3pm and I'll ask them to check him out thoroughly to make sure everything is okay.

we're at the vet and my poor baby has a fever of 105. hard to type on my iPhone so will update more later. please send vibes for my sweetheart. 

All right, we are home... I am really hoping I'm making the right choices, this is my first time caring for a sick cat.  Please let me know if you think I should do something differently.

So, the vet said that the fever reading was probably higher and not exactly accurate for a number of reasons - one, the excitement of the vet; two, the stress of moving; and three, a cat with a very high fever will likely not eat, and Garfunkel ate fine yesterday & today, including some kibble the vet gave him earlier.  So I am not quite as worried as I was, but when you hear your cat's temperature is 105, and then the vet says, "Well at 106 it can cause brain damage" - you get a little bit frightened!  She's not sure what's going on, but she said it is likely a respiratory infection or, less likely, the beginnings of a UTI caused by the stress of moving.  

She wanted to give him Clavamox but since she didn't have a diagnosis and he seems better from two days ago, I wanted to wait it out and give him a chance to settle in from moving (they've been here less than 24 hours), relax, get some rest, and then see.  So I'm taking him back Sunday.  I asked her why she would prescribe antibiotics if she thought it was a virus, and she said there is often a secondary bacterial infection behind the virus.  I want to do whatever I need to to keep Garfunkel healthy, but I really couldn't see putting him on an antibiotic without a clear reason, especially since he's already improved, appetite-wise, from the first signs of his illness two days ago.  I hope this was a wise choice.  I'm so unsure.  I don't see any reason to suspect a UTI, I was actually in the bathroom at the same time as him this morning and heard him urinate, and it sounded fine, a nice strong stream LOL, and he was in and out of the box in about a minute as usual.  But she said they can develop very quickly, within 12 hours or so, so I'm staying in tonight on pee duty to make sure he doesn't start to go in and out several times, or strain or cry in the box.  She said that would be an emergency, so I'm thankful for the care credit.

Appetite-wise he seems fine, just to be on double-guard against a possible UTI I'm putting him on all wet for a few days (hoping they'll all be on all wet within a month or so anyway), I got some Wellness that I am going to give just to him.  I free-fed him some when we got home, with some warm water mixed in, and he ate about a third a 5.5oz can, maybe a little more.  That is about meal-sized so I took that as good news.  

Hopefully I am making the right choices in taking care of him.  I'm sure 10 years, a few more cats, and hopefully a bunch of foster cats from now I'll look back and laugh at how unsure I was, but I guess your first time taking care of a sick cat is always scary.  I'm thankful to have you guys, your advice, and your comforting words!  

Oh, everything else about their visit was happy news: their fecals were fine, they got dewormed, nobody has fleas or mites, and they both scored 3 ("ideal") on the body condition test, so I feel like a dummy  for being concerned about their weight, WHICH, is 11 pounds 13 ounces for Garfunkel, and 12 pounds on the nose for Simon -  my big boys!!!  They're only 10 months and the vet said they won't get any taller because their long bones are set at around 9 months, but that they could continue to fill out until 24 months, woah!  Hoping to get my Funk back to normal, and then we'll be a happy healthy family again!

The patient is up!  He's been pretty perky since about 8pm or so.  After he ate his Wellness turkey earlier he slept for about three hours, but came to investigate what I was eating when I had dinner at about 8pm.  Since he got up then, he's been up and walking around the new rooms (there are only three! ).  He ate another meal, almost a third of a 5.5 oz can - it was only about 4 hours since his last full meal so the fact that he left some didn't bother me.  Then he slept a bit more, but was grooming himself before he went to sleep, a good sign.  He's up now and hanging with Simon.  He's been in the litterbox and everything seemed kosher, so I don't think it's a UTI and on top of that I think his fever is down.  I don't have an ear thermometer nor can I afford one at the moment so I can't take his temp but I will continue to watch his condition tomorrow.  He'll go back either way on Sunday at 11:40am just to make sure everything's okay.

Just wanted to pop in & say that Garfunkel is totally back to normal and never developed a UTI, thank goodness!  I spent a fun 24 hours glued to the bed listening for the scratches (Garfunkel likes to try and "cover" the lid, the walls, the floor, everywhere, lol, even before he jumps into the box to go!), at which point I'd run into the bathroom to see whether he was straining or going in & out or crying.  I'm glad now that I decided to wait and observe him so that I didn't have to start down the antibiotic roller coaster just yet!  He took another day after my last update to lounge around a bit, but would be up walking around and observing, but after that, he's been back to playing normally and crying for food as usual!
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by stephanietx 

I mentioned the ear thermometer so you can pick one up at some time in the future.  It's a whole lot easier than taking their temp the "normal" way!

Great idea  I'll definitely invest in one - I guess I need one, too, lol!  But especially for them, so that I can know right at the start of symptoms whether a fever is present.

Quote:

Originally Posted by LDG 

That's GREAT!
So - you all settled in?

Thank you Laurie!  Yes, I am in fact!  Had my family & some friends over for a housewarming tonight - the kittens haven't been around that many people before, so they were a bit on edge, but loved the attention!   And they are loving the new space and their special shelves.  And, I'm sleeping fine even with them in the room, so all is well!

Quote:

Originally Posted by NutroMike 

I hope this is nothing serious.  He is eating and going to the bathroom so I'd stick with the regular vet if it were me.  The ER vets are sometimes not as experienced IMO and it does not sound like an emergency so I would reserve my resources.   Call the regular vet as soon as you can, if you haven't already. I'm sending vibes

Thank you Mike!  I actually updated a week-old thread, so thank you for your retrospective vibes!  Garfunkel turned out fine, we just had a scare with such a high fever.  My first time dealing with a sick kitty.  But all's well that ends well - thank you!