Newborn with Pneumonia

I work for a vet and today we had someone turn over a 1 week old kitten (still had umbilical cord attached) to us because they couldn't afford treatment.  It had pneumonia pretty bad, had distressed breathing and the poor little thing was underweight.  We did all we could for it, gave it some dextrose, and some antibiotics but it did end up passing, it had blood coming out of its mouth.  For the future is there anything that can be done to help such a young kitten with pneumonia, other than what we did?  I was so dissappointed it's been a few years since I have bottle fed and was really looking forward to it.  We did warm it up to as it was sub temperature (wouldn't even register).  Poor thing. 

You did what could be done. Actively warming up, dextrose on the gum, or in injections at the vet.. I suppose you gave fluid injections too.

A home rescuer would forcefeed with a syringe or a dropper.

YOU could tube feeding it.  Which is a important key. It seems many vets dont know how to tube feed.   If your place has ambitions of helping weak small kittens, knowing how to tube feed is  very useful.

Vets and rescers who know they will rescue frequently.

Although its too difficult for a newbe,  difficult and dangerous, you must be shown and instructed by someone knowleable.

Im mentioning this as this is an important part.

THIS kitten sounds like too far gone.   It honors you and your place you DID these efforts to save its life.

Im sure many wouldnt, and spare themselves the efforts and the costs - as the kitten was apparently very long gone and also neglected.

Lets say what for example @catwoman707 says.

Tx a lot!

 Good luck!

I am so sorry you had such a sad day. It sounds like that poor little baby was just too far gone to help. I agree with StefanZ, the actions of you and your coworkers speak very highly of your clinic. Most wouldn't have spared the effort, especially considering how low the body temp was

Knowing how caring and knowledgable you are from reading your posts, I am sure there was nothing more that could have been done. Considering how sick it was and how very young, it probably would have had a shortened lifespan full of medical conditions and overall poor health. Maybe passing was a mercy. It still sucks, though.

Continuing.  Part of my pessimistic analysis here is of course, it had pneumonia above everything else.

Saving  underweigh, neglected, chilled down weak kittens is after all a part of what rescuers DO sooner or later.  Surprisingly often the kittens do make it and grows up into healthy adults and loved pets,  If enough of effort and love is put down.    So this wasnt the main difficulty.

Pneumonia is what most often kills healthy, full borne kittens.   Sometimes it takes just hours. Healthy in the evening, already cold in the morning.   A rush to vet and antibiotica saves them sometimes, but it is always tough.

Here this kittens had also these other complications... So this is why I sounded so pessimistic.

the death cause here was pneumonia.

My hypothesis here it was the other way around.  the kitten was neglected / somewhat premature, weak and cold.

It got pneumonia as the last stage before it died.

To come too late for help is not unusual with people.   Many hospitals get in the sick too late, they come firstly when its time to die.

You got this kitten too late you too.

......................

Ah, one more practical tip.  If you inject fluids (or forcefeed fluids with syringe / dropper), make sure the fluids are tempered, do at least warm them in your hand before the injection.

ps..  I see Shunras  response, and it may be right.  The kitten maybe wasnt  neglected, really. They  surely tried, but probably just didnt knew  enough to  tend to it  correctly .  

Actively warming up, and feeding in the proper position, etc.

More like 5 days than a week I think - the cord has always dropped off kittens I've fostered by 7 days.  Sadly I think there is very little that can be done for such tiny kittens when in such a poor condition.  Do we try to save them for ourselves or for their good?

For this kitten it probably didn't receive good care at home to be so cold, and I have a feeling they tried to feed it themselves but in the wrong position hence the pneumonia.

I wonder what happened to the mother?  One of the best things your vets can do is spay her so she can't have any more kittens.

It made me so mad that they waited so long to bring it in, it wasn't nursing and was breathing heavy for 24 hours before they called because they didn't have money. They did nothing for it except leave it with the mother.  They didn't try to bottle feed it or warm it or anything.  What business do they have allowing their cat to have kittens if they can't financially take care of problems that surface?  GRRRRRRR  We did everything possible for the wee little mite.  I have a HUGE heart for baby kittens, I have had as many as 11 bottle fed babies at the same time before.  Had a little who had issues with hypoglycemia, we later learned when they were about 8 or 9 months old that they had FIP.  But that litter was a major struggle.  I have tube fedd, kittens and puppies although it has been quite a few years since I have done that.  I love the vet and the girls that I work we, we are very compassionate and very understanding.  At one point, they had over 40 kittens for adoption that they had rescued.  We did encourage them to spay the mother when the kittens were old enough, we even offered our 'feral spay' price which is considerably lower than a normal spay.  I hope they take us up on the offer.  We also told them they needed to get antibiotics for the rest of the kittens and possibly the mother, but we haven't heard from them as of yet so I fear the other kittens will have the same fate as this little guy did.

I found a kitten who developed pneumonia and when she stopped sleeping and her breathing was heavy we rang the vet. He looked at her, she wasn't nearly as bad as the poor bub you described. But he said that she should be put down. I begged him to help her and he did reluctantly but today she's fine. I'm so glad that you didn't give up on the little bub. She passed knowing someone was trying to help. Some vets wouldn't bother.

Please don't be too harsh on yourself.