Two stray kittens with mean eye infections. PLEASE HELP.

Hi,

We are a home that offers food for strays around our neighborhood. We've grown very attached to very young females (not quite adult yet) who just recently had kittens of their own. We intervened when we realized that the two newborns had developed eye infections. When we found them, one male had one eye encrusted and sealed... The other was far more worse for wear. His eyes were entirely caked with black, crusted and dried mucus. He could not see, he looked as if he had two black congealed scabs over his eyes. After a lot of tender care, and some soaking with a warm rag- we finally got his eyes open. One is still swollen while the other looks irritated, his eyes are still producing a milky-yellow mucus. The other male looks as though he is clearing up a little bit. From what I've read online it's more than likely conjuctivitis, advanced on our unlucky male who we have affectionately named Tyson (after Mike Tyson due to his puffy eyes and the fact that he's been a real fighter thus far.) Ali, his brother is looking much better, but Tyson's eyes are CONSTANTLY sealing up within an hour if we do not blot his eyes tenderly with an aloe eye-wipe for cats. We have tried taking the two of them to a humane society looking for assistance but nobody seems to want to offer us any advice other than euthanasia due to their sorry state at the moment. However, my family and I have put so much work into these two kittens and have seen them improve SO much that we refuse to accept that the only answer is a mercy-killing. 

I was wondering if I could get some help, or advice for what I can do to help clear this infection up more efficiently. My heart is breaking for these kittens and I sincerely pray that one of you may have some advice. They are plump and well-fed, with healthy mewls and healthy appetites, but their poor eyes make me want to cry. Here is an image for each kitten to help you see what I'm dealing with at the moment, this was just a few minutes after I blotted the gunk away from their eyes.


(Above) is Ali, he looks much better than his brother.


(Above) and this is Tyson... He's looking a little rough. You can see the remnants of the crust that covered his eyes right below his right eye in this image. Please help. Nobody else in this city seems to care enough to give us any advice without a cost and we don't have any money to give them the professional care they really deserve.

Oh, goodness! They need antibiotics as quickly as possible - probably oral as well as ointment, such as terramycin, that is dabbed across the eyes twice daily for about 10 days. Tyson may have already lost sight in one eye.

They do not need to be euthanized, however, over eye infections.

I suggest that you contact a no-kill shelter, and turn the kittens over to them for immediate care. Then sign up to be their foster or adoptive parents so you can take them back home eventually.

Barring that, you need to ask a private vet for help and explain how much or how little you can pay, because these kittens' eyes will not get better without medicine!

Is there a friend or other financially solvent adult who can step up and cover the cost of a vet visit for now?

I wish you Godspeed in getting care for these wonderful kittens who you have so graciously helped with all the love and kindness you hold in your hearts.

Please post an update soon!

ileneslightly said:

 
Hi,

We are a home that offers food for strays around our neighborhood. We've grown very attached to very young females (not quite adult yet) who just recently had kittens of their own. We intervened when we realized that the two newborns had developed eye infections. When we found them, one male had one eye encrusted and sealed... The other was far more worse for wear. His eyes were entirely caked with black, crusted and dried mucus. He could not see, he looked as if he had two black congealed scabs over his eyes. After a lot of tender care, and some soaking with a warm rag- we finally got his eyes open. One is still swollen while the other looks irritated, his eyes are still producing a milky-yellow mucus. The other male looks as though he is clearing up a little bit. From what I've read online it's more than likely conjuctivitis, advanced on our unlucky male who we have affectionately named Tyson (after Mike Tyson due to his puffy eyes and the fact that he's been a real fighter thus far.) Ali, his brother is looking much better, but Tyson's eyes are CONSTANTLY sealing up within an hour if we do not blot his eyes tenderly with an aloe eye-wipe for cats. We have tried taking the two of them to a humane society looking for assistance but nobody seems to want to offer us any advice other than euthanasia due to their sorry state at the moment. However, my family and I have put so much work into these two kittens and have seen them improve SO much that we refuse to accept that the only answer is a mercy-killing. 

I was wondering if I could get some help, or advice for what I can do to help clear this infection up more efficiently. My heart is breaking for these kittens and I sincerely pray that one of you may have some advice. They are plump and well-fed, with healthy mewls and healthy appetites, but their poor eyes make me want to cry. Here is an image for each kitten to help you see what I'm dealing with at the moment, this was just a few minutes after I blotted the gunk away from their eyes.

(Above) is Ali, he looks much better than his brother.

(Above) and this is Tyson... He's looking a little rough. You can see the remnants of the crust that covered his eyes right below his right eye in this image. Please help. Nobody else in this city seems to care enough to give us any advice without a cost and we don't have any money to give them the professional care they really deserve.

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There are tricks and antibiotica ointments, some even mentioned in recent treads visible now.

But these her kittens are clearly vet errands, especielly the second one.  So, dont try with something you arent very knowleable about, but try and find them a good vet, asap.  Its the only good advice.

Minor problems can surely be treated at home, with home remedies and some nice oitment, but here it is quite possible they need more.  Also oral / injection antibiotics.

Tx for caring!

Good luck!

I wish I could say that I had money or that anyone in my family had money to help get these two to a vet. We don't have enough in our minimal funds to cover the full charge of a vet visit. But we are looking into terramycin, artificial tears/salt-water flushing and other antibiotics. We have officially cleaned all of the black gunk from under Tyson's right eye and he is wide-eyed and responsive! He moves around as much as Ali does and turns his head when we wiggle our fingers in the periphery of both eyes. So thankfully I don't think he has suffered any (major) vision loss. I'll keep you guys updated while we try to either find a cheap vet or see if we can't pool funds for a visit. I called our local no-kill humane society and they are currently not taking cats due to lack of vacancy in their kennel. Thank you for your kind advice. 

I'll keep you guys updated on their conditions! Keep us in your thoughts!

If you can find out which vets, if any, provide a service to the shelters in your area and try phoning them they might be more open to seeing the little ones without a fee.  

Again, thank you for caring and doing what you can for these tiny creatures.

ileneslightly said:

 
I wish I could say that I had money or that anyone in my family had money to help get these two to a vet. We don't have enough in our minimal funds to cover the full charge of a vet visit. But we are looking into terramycin, artificial tears/salt-water flushing and other antibiotics. We have officially cleaned all of the black gunk from under Tyson's right eye and he is wide-eyed and responsive! He moves around as much as Ali does and turns his head when we wiggle our fingers in the periphery of both eyes. So thankfully I don't think he has suffered any (major) vision loss. I'll keep you guys updated while we try to either find a cheap vet or see if we can't pool funds for a visit. I called our local no-kill humane society and they are currently not taking cats due to lack of vacancy in their kennel. Thank you for your kind advice. 

I'll keep you guys updated on their conditions! Keep us in your thoughts!

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Sometimes they agree to take in the kitten, and let you be their foster home, with this - or another kitten.

As quite often its not the money which is their real problem, but the lack of physical place.

An update for the day;

Tyson's eyes are swollen and red, but when we went to wipe his eyes today there was less mucus than there has been. Ali's eye is looking less swollen and is producing less discharge as well. Hopes are high even though it's only 11 in the morning.

We've fed them and they still have very healthy appetites.

I called the animal hospital that cares for the animals at our local animal shelter seeking care, told them that the shelter asked us to contact them and they immediately threw prices for a visit at us. When I told them we had no money at the moment they told us to call them back when we did.

I've read some reviews on terramycin and now I'm afraid of the adverse effects in the event that the treatment doesn't work because it can actually worsen the condition. Has any body used terramycin for their cat and can give me some more information on the POSITIVE effects it can have? We are thinking of ordering it today, it is a $25 purchase and I want to make sure it won't make things worse for Tyson. He's been through so much and come so far already.

I'll post pictures of them again later, right now I am preparing to go to work.

Bless you all, thank you for your encouragement and advice.

I have used terramycin for years and years on multiple cats, and never once had an adverse reaction. All the cats treated with it responded immediately to it, with their eyes often appearing clear within a day or two, but the treatment of course continues for a good week to ten days. And your kittens may show immediate improvement, or it could take a few days longer since their infections are more advanced.

So sorry to hear the vet was not more accommodating. That is indeed disappointing when it is all about money with little to no compassion.

Really glad to hear the kittens' eyes are better. I think just keeping them clean is helping!

Let us know what you decide and how long it takes to get the terramycin. Looking forward to the pictures and your next update!

This was in a parallell tread, I hoped you will find it.   I myself Im not comfortable to give medical advices, as Im supposed to send to vet if at all possible.

But as its not possible, Im copying this text - I think it is the very experienced rescuer Catwoman707 who wrote it in the beginning:

"Bacterial infections are very common in babies/kittens. Most will heal just fine with the commonly used eye antibiotic terramycin.

However I can't say whether or not this particular is available in Indonesia, but surely a good alternative is Erythromycin eye ointment will do the job too.

There are drops called   Pentamycetin if you can get this, especially since the eyes are not open, you can put a drop in the corner where it drains and hold the baby on it's back for a couple minutes to help give it a chance to soak in.

I know terramycin can be bought without a prescription but I don't know about the others, nor which will be available there."

Of home remedies, what you can use to pretty safely cleanse the eyes:  saline water, of type 1 teaspoon in one litre of water.  Boil up, coold down to body temp...

They use it in hospitals too, so its no hokus-pokus.   Both to cleaning by pouring, and to wet something, and cautiously wipe off the eyes, one at a time,  change the wipes between.

Also, weak tea, lukewarm, is often used for minor infections. 

Kamomill-tea is too useful here - I think the herb is called for Chamomilla Vulgaris in latin, Im not sure what its in english.

None of these three home remedies will help alone against a real severe bacteria infection, but they dont hurts either and works better than common water.

I hope my advices didnt come too late.

Good luck!

It is very important to consult a vet before using any medicine in a cat's eye. If you use the wrong medicine you can indeed make it worse. I urge you, consult a vet or turn these kittens over to someone who can care for them.

blueyedgirl5946

In the thread, the poster's problem is that they have no money for a vet. They have been turned away by the shelter as well.

Hello! How are the kittens' eyes doing?

I ileneslightly

An update:

Two nights ago, Ali passed away due to what the vet believes was feline herpes manifesting as a respiratory infection. We still have Tyson. He's seen the vet as of yesterday and the vet prescribed eye-drops and an anti-biotic. She's fairly certain that he has herpes but that with enough TLC he can make a recovery.

Here's my current concern:

Tyson hasn't had a bowel movement in over a day now. Is this normal for a kitten still nursing a bottle?

I am sorry to hear about Ali, but delighted that you were able to see a vet and that Tyson is hanging in there.

Yes, bottle babies frequently get constipated. You are stimulating after feedings, right? He needs more water, so either give him drops of water between feedings, or dilute the formula with more water. Another good tip is to add a few drops of olive oil or preferably mineral oil to his bottle. The oil is not harmful and will loosen him up. And they can occasionally skip a day, but if it continues, let us know. There are other tips we can offer.

Thank you so much for the advice and support.

Thank you, that really calms me down a little bit. I'm going to try the olive oil first just because we haven't been diluting because we've been following the directions on the back of the formula, and I'll start giving him some water in between feedings too. Thank you! I'll keep you guys updated. 

Also, here is an updated image of Tyson's improvements!

Very sorry to hear about little Ali.  Tyson must be a real fighter, and is looking so much better now.  It is great you managed to get to a vet, I hope he continues to gain strength now with the antibiotics and eye drops for the secondary infection.  Fingers crossed the advice helps with his little body managing to process his food and get it worked through his body so he feels more comortable.

Once secondary infections are cleared up it helps a lot with herpes if you can do everything you can to keep a kitten / cat's immune system as strong as possible so it can hold back the virus.  As well as being well nourished, one thing that is important is for the cat to feel safe and not anxious so do what ever you can to help reassure Tyson and help him feel safe and confident.

Sending lots of positive, strong vibes for this little one.  

Just a thought so you know - after a few days of antibiotics you may or may not see diarrhea. It can be a side effect.

Tyson looks so much better!

sarthur2 said:

Just a thought so you know - after a few days of antibiotics you may or may not see diarrhea. It can be a side effect.

Tyson looks so much better!

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Thanks for the warning! I'll keep my eye out and also keep him well hydrated in the event that diarrhea becomes a factor. He's purring up a storm right now. So full of life. I'm so happy. Two nights ago my heart broke into a thousand pieces for his brother. I felt so terrible that nobody out there gave a care about this helpless animal who never got the opportunity to choose his circumstance. It's always hard to lay down with an animal and try to make them comfortable while they struggle to breathe. I keep telling myself that at least Ali passed surrounded by three people who believed he was worth love and compassion and care.

Which is why I'm 10x more determined to make sure Tyson gets healthy and eventually finds a forever home that will love and care for him. We have too many cats at the moment and we are already searching for a family in need of his inspirational recovery and his warm little purrs. 

Thank you guys so much. I'll keep you updated, as always! 

Very sorry to hear of Ali's passing but he had a home for a short while and knew he was loved. May he run free. As for Tyson, he looks so much better. I am glad he is a tough little guy.