Kitten with a broken front leg

Hello, I am here to ask a few questions.  About a month ago, I adopted a stray kitten that is roughly 2 months old.  I found him while I was at my work and he was full of fleas and was injured from being attacked by a crow.  I took him home and took him to the vet.  He was rid of his fleas and cabbies and mended up quickly.  This is the first cat I owned and always had dogs but my wife is a cat lover and has had many cats before.

I live in Japan so the animal practices may be a bit different than compared to the states.  Anyways, I came home from work today and I was in a huge hurry as I had just a few minutes to get something when I tripped.  I had stepped on this poor kitties leg.  He started to scream and turn around.  I was just in shock as he was.  It was limp.  I tried to pick him up but he ferociously bit and scratched me to the point it drew blood.  I called off my work and, using a towel, I managed to get him to the vet but he was making a huge storm of noise.  I crushed my heart knowing this was my fault.

The vet, who I have gone before and know people who do as well, took a look at him and put him into a slumber so he can xray him.  He had broken his front right leg close to the shoulder.  I don't know what that is in cat terminology but the bicep in human anatomy.  I was devastated and thought they would have to amputate or put him to sleep but the vet assured me he would be fine in a few weeks.  I was skeptical.

I found it strange that he didn't prescribe any pain medication because the vet felt he was too young (coming up to 3 months old).  I asked and he said that he is too young.  He is also too young for a cast or a brace.  I tried to ask further questions but he just gave me the same answers.  He recommended that I put the cat in a narrow box or cage (which he is in now), give him a toilet pad, a towel, and a food dish.

He is asleep but when he moves, he cries out.  I try to soothe him but he just bites or hisses at me.  It breaks my heart and I fear he wlll hate me for the rest of my life. 

Even though the doctor didn't give a cast or pain meds, what way can I make him more comfortable?  He hisses and bites at me...is this natural?  Does he hate me know?  Should I trust the doctors advice?  I am a bit skeptical that it will take 2-3 weeks to heal and that he doesn't need pain meds or a cast.  I would take him to another vet but the vet trip was a tad bit pricey (nothing compared to the States though) so I a bit hesitant.  He is asleep now but I worry about when he wakes up.  Will he be crying a lot?  Will he not allow us to soothe him or to feed him?  The doctor suggested us holding him a few days from now to comfort him but he hardly let me near him. 

I feel so sick right now, worried, and torn with guilt.

I am sorry for double posting but at times, he tries to get up but he screams so loudly.  I am worried my neighbors will get angry.  He messed up his blanket and toilet pad in his cage so I tried to pick him up very, very gently but he screamed so loud at me I thought I was killing him.  I managed to get him back to hopefully being comfortable.  I feel like the worst pet owner in the world

I would find another vet cause if this kitten is in so much pain, doesn't matter the age, they should give it some pain relief otherwise they shouldn't be in vet medicine since it's their job to treat animals in distress. The break could heal by itself depending on how bad the break is but the kitten should no doubt be on pain meds to help ease her suffering. And I'd get a 2nd opinion on the cast too

I think so as well.  I don't want to put the cat into too much distress as he is already probably pretty stressed out.  He turns and just screams.  I try to get him comfortable but he just ends up screaming and hissing.  I feel really bad.  The vet said because he is a kitten, he might make a lot of noise but it is because he is scared and young.  Plus, he doesn't know to just sit down as an adult cat might.  He also said that giving pain medication to a cat at that young of an age is dangerous.  Plus, the break happened just a few hours ago so the pain is still fresh.  He said by a few days, the pain should subside.

I don't want to take the vat to an other vet today as he had a trying time already so I want him to rest.  Sadly, I am unable to take the day off tomorrow nor is my wife but I am going to do my best to get him to the other vet tomorrow for a second opinion.

Is there an edit button so I don't have to make double posts?

Also, would you guys recommend me only picking him up when I absolutely have to?  When I pick him up, he seems in so much pain and screams very loudly.  I saw him laying on his right arm (the broken one) so I gently tried to turn him over but he resisted, screamed, bit, and slashed at me.  I feel like a horrible person

I am going to stop picking him up less and just let him relax in his cage...if he can.  It hurts me cause I heard him cry out in pain and I want to make him feel comfortable but I am afraid to pick him up as it might hurt him further.

There are several different kinds of pain meds out there so there has to be one for kittens cause kittens can get spayed or neutered at that age and are put on a liquid pain reliever for a day or two, so a broken leg has to get pain relievers too and I've seen young kittens with casts before so your kitten deserves at least something to help so I 2nd opinion can't hurt. You could try calling different vets before taking her in so you know beforehand if they'll help her out.

I called a couple of veterinarians about pain medications for kittens.  They all said they do not have pain medications for 2 month old kittens or casts but they can get a better feel for the situation if I bring the cat in :/  It must be a Japan thing.  I fractured my leg two years ago and they gave me minimal pain medication for only 3 days :/

The vet said cats are strong and have a high pain tolerance but....the way this cat reacts to the pain is heart wrenching.  Anyways. I might have to call off work tomorrow to go to another vet.

Just to clarify, the cat doesn't have any bone protrusion and we are trying to keep it that way.  The break was close up to the upper part of his, closer to his shoulder so the vet said that it could of been more worse.  I am still looking for some type of pain medication for young kittens.  Any type of human pain medication is complete and utter NO from what I have read on the internet.  Though I considering trying to make some type of splint when he is hopefully feeling a bit better.  Even petting him gets him kind of angry.  He is a very vocal cat with a very strong meow so this could just be his personality.  When I first met him I heard him first.  He was behind a some bushes; hiding from crows.  I also tried to get some ice on his arm but he just knocked it off.  He is moving around a lot strangely.  Like trying to stand up.  Anyways, thank you for listening to me worry. 

LostBloom said:

Just to clarify, the cat doesn't have any bone protrusion and we are trying to keep it that way.  The break was close up to the upper part of his, closer to his shoulder so the vet said that it could of been more worse.  I am still looking for some type of pain medication for young kittens.  Any type of human pain medication is complete and utter NO from what I have read on the internet.  Though I considering trying to make some type of splint when he is hopefully feeling a bit better.  Even petting him gets him kind of angry.  He is a very vocal cat with a very strong meow so this could just be his personality.  When I first met him I heard him first.  He was behind a some bushes; hiding from crows.  I also tried to get some ice on his arm but he just knocked it off.  He is moving around a lot strangely.  Like trying to stand up.  Anyways, thank you for listening to me worry. 

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I'm so sorry you're going through this. Accidents happen so you are not a bad parent because of an accident. I don't know much about a broken shoulder on a kitty but when I broke mine, and severely, they couldn't cast it. I guess because of the location. It was extremely painful that morphine didn't even put a bite in the pain. Apparently they do things different in Japan because kittens can get pain meds. What helped me was being motionless. I'm praying for your baby!!!

Thank you.  I just few very bad.  I consider myself a good pet keeper (my wife and I have a rabbit, a chipmunk, and two hammies and I have tropical fish).  I should of paid more attention.  The cat is sleeping right now with sporadic hissing/screaming when he changes his position.  At least, a cast would be great as I worry about if his leg can grow back normally - especially given he tries to get up or he moves around a lot.  His traveler is fairly small so he doesn't have that much room to move around in.  I suppose it's natural given the break but it breaks my heart to here in suffer like that.  I've tried calling several vets and they all said to bring in the cat.  While I want to say "damn the expenses"!....the trip to the vet today was expensive and another trip to the vet at the same price will hurt a bit...especially if they say the same exact thing the other vet said and charge me.

He's eating now and laying on a pillow. He cried out a few times but he quiet down. He managed to not only use his his toilet but walked to it (it was very close by). He's definitely putting up a fight. He tried to climb out of his carrier when we opened it. He also started to paw at a nearby toy but we didn't want him to get worked up so we sadly took it away. I'm sorry for all of these posts. I'm fairly new to taking care of cats and all of my knowledge comes from sites like these. When my wife came home, she took charge and is taking care of the kitten.

Ask the vet about Metacam.  It's an injection and the amount they get goes by how much they weigh, not their age. There's also Buprenux and Fenatyl which are more powerful. They all have risks if taken for long periods of time though. I hope the vet will give your kitten something for the pain at least

We have a couple of members who also live in Japan. @Norachan is one, and very knowledgeable about cat care. I'm sure when she has a chance to read your posts she will have some very good and useful suggestions.

I understand how terrible you feel. But we call these things "accidents" because no one does them on purpose. Your young kitten will heal well, better than an old, old cat. He's scared and in pain and you are upset so he picks up on that and is more scared and it all goes around and around. Take a deep breath. Now another one. Try to calm down. From the very beginning you are doing good things - rescuing the kitten, trying to find him veterinary care, even considering taking a day off work should it be necessary to get him to a different vet.

This WILL improve. Everyone here is rooting for you, your wife, and the kitten. And looking forward to updates and improvements. Sending good, healing, calming wishes your way.

Thanks guys. @jmljml19, I've heard mixed things on Metacam but I'll talk to the vet about it.

My wife and I decided to not take him to another vet. She is sure that they will not prescribe him pain medication or put him in a cast. He's also comfortable right now, asleep in his carrier. I haven't heard him make a hurt sound since midnight (we took shifts watching him throughout the night). I decided to take a day off to make sure he is ok. Thankfully, my good friend who also owns a cat will fill in for me. We don't have any type of cat fence but we made a fence out of not too big but heavy objects around his kitty cushion, his litter box, and food tray should he need to. He hates his carrier and even tried to climb out once when we opened it.

He's being very good about it. He's using his litter box and eating very well...drinking milk. We are just going to take care of him and watch him as much as possible.

I'm so glad to learn that the kitten is able to relax enough to sleep. That's a good thing.

What's not so good is feeding him cow's milk, which can give cats diarrhea. @StefanZ recommends goat's milk, canned or bottled if fresh is not available. Everyone - kittens, puppies, even human babies can accept it.

And perhaps when you can get out to the stores you can find a baby's playpen, something like a pack-and-play here in the USA. That will keep the kitten confined for now, without having to shift bulky things around. He won't be able to climb or jump for a while, I'm thinking. Of course a dog crate would be even better.

Again, happy he can get some rest. And that means you can too.

Thank you.  We feed him milk made specifically for kittens.  I haven't thought of goat milk yet.  I am a bit concerned because he is breathing heavily...not like gasping breathes but I assume its due to the pain.  I am a bit concerned but is this natural?

I want to add that yes, you CAN splint/cast an 8 wk old kitten. We have done it in our rescue several times (currently have a 12 wk old recovering from Achilles' tendon surgery. He has Ben splinted since we got him at 8 wks.)

You can wrap the leg with cotton gauze (not too tightly,) use a tongue depressor to stabilize the leg, then rewrap the leg/depressor with vet wrap, or cut an ace bandage down to size (not sure what type of bandaging you have access to.)

I have heard before that Japan and surrounding countries offer very little in the way of pain medication to animals (feel that the animal is less likely to move around a lot if they feel pain.) Your kitten can have pain medication, though the vets there may not carry medication at a low enough dose (we get our meds compounded.)

Also, yes, the rapid breathing can be due to pain/distress.

I spoke with a friend who was a vet tech. From what she says it sounds like you really need a different veterinarian.

Yes, the leg can be splinted or cast, though not as easily if the break was lower down the leg. Since we're talking about a growing kitten it is important to check frequently to be sure the splint / cast has not become too tight.

She definitely thinks the kitten needs pain medication. Metacam for 3 days then change to something else.

He will be able to rest more easily, get in / out of litter pan more easily, get up and down more easily.

And, she said, while he won't be in as much pain he is still going to be uncomfortable enough that he won't be running / jumping / aggravating the situation.

Can you perhaps telephone around to different veterinarians and ask about treatment they would offer, then make an appointment with the one that sounds best.

Please keep posting and let us all know how things are working out for you and the kitten.

Thank you for the responses. We had him in a carrier case but he was so angry being in there by trying to run around that we took him out. He is a very active and playful kitten. So we made him an enclosure out of large and heavy materials that he can climb out of. But he managed to during the night and slept on a pillow across the room. We tried to correct the holes with other materials but we'd come back and he escaped.

As for the other vets, there are only 5 vets in my city. I called out a total 15 vets (some as far as 2 hours away) and they all said "Please bring in the cat so we can have a closer look." I tried asking about pain medications and kitty casts but they said "We don't know how the cat is so please bring him in." Maybe it's an Japanese thing but even my wife, who has been attending to him when she can, said he's fine without pain meds and a cast. He's a strong animal and can heal on his own. My American thinking is he needs to be resting with pain meds and a cast.