(Sorry for the length...)
I have a very frustrating situation. I work at a pet store that has adoptable kittens and cats in cages. There are two cages that are cages meant for cats (two stories, a little taller than me, I'm 5'1). Usually we have two adult cats in one cage and kittens in the other. We get them from a local rescue. The problem is, because we get them adopted out so quickly, she jams 5-6 kittens in one cage. The cage isn't that small, but for 5-6 kittens, I feel like it's not enough space. My manager felt the same and bought a nice sized playpen for them to go and run around in. Do you think it's okay for kittens to temporarily stay in these cages?
I only work weekends and one day during the week because I go to school on the other days. Whenever I'm working, I basically spend most of the time caring for the kittens and cat. Because I'm not there every day and because some of my coworkers don't like cats, I am the one who is cleaning their boxes, completely disinfecting their cages, feeding them, playing with them, etc. Every time I work, I leave them in the playpen with a bunch of toys. Then twice during my shift I mush up wet food (usually it's Friskies pate, because it has to be donated) with some warm water, sprinkle with a probiotic, and put the food on several big paper plates for the kittens and adult cats to eat. They also have access to dry food all day because no one feeds them canned except for me.
My problem is with the rescue. They always bring in either one sick kitten that infects all the other kittens, or a bunch of sick kittens. By sick, I mean the "eye cold" or upper respiratory infection. I've tried talking to them. I tried getting my manager, who doesn't like confrontation (ugh), to talk to the lady who runs the rescue, but she keeps bringing in sick kittens. She says she gives them "antibiotic shots" which I guess is Convenia. She gave us a tube of erythromycin and terramycin eye gels, but I'm the only one who cleans their eyes and puts the gel in. With some kittens, she leaves worming medication with us to give to them every day (but no one does it except for me, so it's not being correctly administered). This constant round of sick kittens doesn't look good on us, the store, or them. How can I get it through to my manager and to her that it's not a good idea to bring in sick kittens? Are eye colds really a big deal? Can customers who touch the kittens bring home the cold to their own cats at home?
I also have a question: because I'm dealing with the kittens every time I work, is it possible to bring some disease/illness home with me on my clothes? I asked the lady of the rescue if the kittens get shots before coming into the store, and she said yes but only the age-appropriate ones. Usually the kittens are around 14 weeks old. I have three cats of my own who are 6 and 7 years old. I don't want them to catch anything from my clothing when I come home from work. I do wash my hands thoroughly before leaving though.
I have a very frustrating situation. I work at a pet store that has adoptable kittens and cats in cages. There are two cages that are cages meant for cats (two stories, a little taller than me, I'm 5'1). Usually we have two adult cats in one cage and kittens in the other. We get them from a local rescue. The problem is, because we get them adopted out so quickly, she jams 5-6 kittens in one cage. The cage isn't that small, but for 5-6 kittens, I feel like it's not enough space. My manager felt the same and bought a nice sized playpen for them to go and run around in. Do you think it's okay for kittens to temporarily stay in these cages?
I only work weekends and one day during the week because I go to school on the other days. Whenever I'm working, I basically spend most of the time caring for the kittens and cat. Because I'm not there every day and because some of my coworkers don't like cats, I am the one who is cleaning their boxes, completely disinfecting their cages, feeding them, playing with them, etc. Every time I work, I leave them in the playpen with a bunch of toys. Then twice during my shift I mush up wet food (usually it's Friskies pate, because it has to be donated) with some warm water, sprinkle with a probiotic, and put the food on several big paper plates for the kittens and adult cats to eat. They also have access to dry food all day because no one feeds them canned except for me.
My problem is with the rescue. They always bring in either one sick kitten that infects all the other kittens, or a bunch of sick kittens. By sick, I mean the "eye cold" or upper respiratory infection. I've tried talking to them. I tried getting my manager, who doesn't like confrontation (ugh), to talk to the lady who runs the rescue, but she keeps bringing in sick kittens. She says she gives them "antibiotic shots" which I guess is Convenia. She gave us a tube of erythromycin and terramycin eye gels, but I'm the only one who cleans their eyes and puts the gel in. With some kittens, she leaves worming medication with us to give to them every day (but no one does it except for me, so it's not being correctly administered). This constant round of sick kittens doesn't look good on us, the store, or them. How can I get it through to my manager and to her that it's not a good idea to bring in sick kittens? Are eye colds really a big deal? Can customers who touch the kittens bring home the cold to their own cats at home?
I also have a question: because I'm dealing with the kittens every time I work, is it possible to bring some disease/illness home with me on my clothes? I asked the lady of the rescue if the kittens get shots before coming into the store, and she said yes but only the age-appropriate ones. Usually the kittens are around 14 weeks old. I have three cats of my own who are 6 and 7 years old. I don't want them to catch anything from my clothing when I come home from work. I do wash my hands thoroughly before leaving though.
