My kitten isn't doing well and they're pressuring me into putting her to sleep - any advice?

Hey, everyone. I joined this forum because my nine month-old hasn't been doing well for the past week and my family is wanting to euthanize her tomorrow, despite my reservations. Back on the 24th of January, she suddenly started discharging a clear, jelly-like substance from her back end, though I could never find out if it was from her anus or otherwise. We took her to the emergency vet on the same day and had some tests run, but they couldn't find out what was wrong with her, though they noted that her white blood cell count was high. They sent us home with an anti-diarrhea/antibiotic mixture and for a few days, it seemed as if she was getting better, but then she suddenly started discharging liquid again, with it eventually turning bloody. She was also lethargic and kept trying to hide throughout most of this, nor did she want to eat anything, but she at least drank water. 

I took her to another vet a couple of days ago and their tests came back inconclusive as well. They gave me a few other antibiotics to try and also gave her some IV fluid to help her weight loss, but it doesn't seem to be doing much for her. She's definitely more energetic now and keeps begging me for attention, but she's still bleeding a bit from her anus and still won't eat anything, no matter what I try to give her. Her coat is also very ragged looking and she's beginning to sneeze/develop a wet breathing sound that reminds me of the URIs I often saw when I worked in a kennel. The vet says a lot of the symptoms sound like FIP and while she fits some of the criteria, she never developed any kind of bulge on her body and is very energetic now. This marks the tenth day since this started and my family keeps telling me that we need to put her down instead of letting her suffer, but she seems so lively right now and I'm not sure if the medication is actually helping her recover or if it's just prolonging the inevitable. I know you can't give me a diagnosis, but have any of you gone through something similar and can tell me if this sounds like FIP? Beyond her, I'm mostly concerned for my other kitten, who's been with her for as long as I've had them both - he misses being able to play with her and will often sit outside of the room where she's currently being kept. I can't imagine trying to find a new playmate for him.

Thank you for any advice you can give, I can definitely use it.

I am so sorry, It is so upsetting when the little ones are sick 

I am hoping  @catwoman707  can comment and provide some thoughts 

I am really sorry that I have no advice to give you.  I am going to bump this thread back up.

@talkingpeanut  Would you by any chance be able to offer some advice here?

@Dennis47   Do you have any advice for this person?

@Ginny-Do you think you could provide some insight here?

@foxxycat  - Do you have any experience with this issue?

I don't know that any of this would be conclusive enough for me to put my pet to sleep. Is the vet recommending you do so? If the vet doesn't think she'll get better I would strongly take that into consideration. I also know that cats don't eat when they really don't feel well.

Because of the GI issues, I would try different diets and see if that helps any. However, she must eat. Cats can't get fatty liver disease from not eating for even two days. You may need to force feed her to get her over this hump.

Regardless, please let us know what your vet is recommending.

Has your kitten been vaccinated? What is her background, where did you get her from? Is she indoors-only, indoor/outdoor? How long have you had her?

Are you force-feeding her? She cannot go without eating or she can develop something called Fatty Liver Disease (Hepatic Lipidosis).

Do you have any other cats/animals?

I agree with @talkingpeanut - ask the vet if he or she feels it's at that point.   I completely understand where your family is coming from in wanting to save your kitten from suffering, though..  It is very tempting for all of us in this situation to think our kitten will get better and to want to hang on a little bit longer.  It's so hard to know the right time.  As a rule, however, people who wait too long to have their cats PTS generally feel much worse about it than people who feel they did it too soon.

Having said all the above, it does seem to be a little early to take such a final step when she is still enjoying life so much.  The lack of appetite and the developing respiratory symptoms are cause for concern however.  She absolutely has to eat or she will develop hepatic lipidosis, or fatty liver disease, which is fatal if left untreated.  You might be at the point where you need to syringe feed her. The syringes are available from pharmacies and from your vet.   Try giving her turkey or chicken baby food, without garlic or onions. Many cats can not resist this food, especially if you warm it up so the aroma is stronger.  You can even try goats milk or KMR (powdered form.)   Below is an article that has some more ideas for getting her to eat. 
[article="33011"]How To Get Your Cat To Start Eating Again  [/article][article="32998"]Why Has My Cat Stopped Eating And Is It Dangerous  [/article]
One point about her not eating:  She won't eat if she can't smell the food and the fact that it sounds like she is developing a respiratory ailment might partially explain her loss of appetite.  If you can, set her up in a room with a humidifier.  If that's not possible, take her into the bathroom and run a hot shower until the bathroom is steamed up.

I don't have any experience with FIP so can't comment on that, but below is an article that might help.
[article="29712"]Fip In Cats  [/article]
Again, I would ask the vet to be completely honest with you and let you know if he or she thinks it is time.  My vet told me to pay attention to my cat's quality of life.  As long as my cat was still enjoying life,  I just spent as much time as I could with him, just loving him.  Those last few days meant a lot to me.  When I saw his quality of life degrading, I let him go.  It hurt more than I can ever say, but I knew it was an act of love.  Freeing him from suffering was the last thing I could do for him.

Quality of life means such things as:

1.  Eating and drinking

2.  Using litter box

3.  Being able to walk

4.  Enjoyment in favorite activities

5.  General interest in environment

6.  Being free of pain

7.  Being able to breathe easily

My heart goes out to you as you go through this.  I very much hope your kitten rallies.

So sorry to hear what you're going through!

I am someone who doesn't hear when a vet tells me I should have a cat I am wanting to save put to sleep, I just don't.

But I also know when I believe there is any chance at all that I can work hard and possibly save their life, where a vet doesn't understand rescue mentality.

That said, I think we need to look at the situation here.

I also think that the vet has mentioned he highly suspects fip, but you are resistant because she does not have a swollen tummy.

Plus you see her perk up now so it feels like she has a chance of recovering.

I get that.

One thing you did not mention is if she has had a fever.

Fever is a classic sign of fip, when there is no explanation for it, nothing else going on, no uri or infection.

As I first was reading it sounded like intestinal parasites, which can cause mucus discharge and also blood.

The blood is red/streaky or spots/drops.

Parasites rarely cause a cat to hide and stop eating though.

As I read on I thought of fip just before I read what the vet thought.

Typical in age. If she has had a fever, I would say it's likely fip. Which means, she is deteriorating right before your eyes and despite you being ready to let her go, it's the kindest most loving thing you can do for her.

She is perked up now but this happens when they get the sub-q fluids, just for a while though.

As for your other kitten, no worries, it's not contagious.

When a cat hides and is not social or playing, especially at 9 months old when they have nothing but energy, something is definitely wrong.

There is no definite test to diagnose fip. That's what makes it so much harder to accept, I know.

But what if.............

Many on here have dealt with an fip kitty, it's nothing nice.

You don't want her to suffer, you will regret it always. 

I'm very sorry for you having to make this choice, but deep down I think you know it's not good, after 9 days of illness she is still not eating, still not getting better despite meds, it's likely fip.

There are 2 types, wet form causing the swollen tummy with fluid, and the dry type, with symptoms like hers.

Very sad I know hun, so sorry.

Please listen to @catwoman707  on this very sad situation.  She is very experienced in dealing with cats with FIP.  I wish so much there was better news for this little one and know how this must break your heart.  

I will readily admit to having never had any experience like this with a kitten. My concern is this:  is there a real possibility that whatever your darling has could possibly be spread to your other baby. If so, you need to weigh very carefully the possibility that this would double the pain and stress that you are already going through. Wholeheartedly agree that it would be the most sensible thing to inquire of your vet if it would be better to let her cross the Bridge. I have read @catwoman707's experience with FIP--this would definitely give you a much better synopsis of what to expect.

My prayers are with you and your kitten. I know I may not be saying a lot in this thread, but like I said, I have no experience in this area. follow your heart on this, but also use your brain. If she is in real pain, then it would be safer to to let her cross the Bridge. Please let us all know what happens next.

I will add my two cents worth since I have had far more experience with FIP than anyone should have.  You say she has no abdominal bulge, so in that case if she has FIP, it would be "dry" FIP.  I have been through three of those, and the first one was my very first experience of FIP.  He would get better for awhile, then get worse, then get better again.  The vet called him a "NDW" kitten, for Not Doing Well.  He was rescued from a pet store that had a lot of sick kittens, and initially he got better, but then started having these episodes where he would not eat, would not do anything, just lay around and felt poorly.  The vet would give him steroids, fluids, antibiotics, an appetite stimulator, and he would get better.  For awhile.  Eventually he did NOT respond, and we had to put him to sleep.  The vet wanted to do a post mortem exam to find out what was wrong with him, and he discovered the kitten had dry FIP.  That could only be seen by microscopic changes in the tissue.  There is no definitive test for FIP. 

FIP can manifest anywhere in the body.  It can be in the chest and lungs, the intestine, the brain and central nervous system.  It does not have to manifest in the abdomen.  Diagnosis is often a combination of history (exposure to the corona virus, i.e. a multicat or rescue situation), age (most FIP cases occur in cats under two years of age), history of recent stress (boarding, spaying, neutering, change of home etc.) and certain blood test results, but the most important and most common signs to the owner are the total lack of appetite, profound weight loss, lack of energy, depression, withdrawal, hiding, often choosing to lie on cool hard surfaces.  At that point, it is truly kindest to put them to sleep because it only gets worse, sometimes slowly, sometimes quickly, but continuing treatment just prolongs the inevitable.  When each day is a little worse than the last, keeping them here isn't the best choice.  Quality of life trumps quantity of life every time.

Whether or not your kitten has FIP, if she isn't getting better, you should consider letting her go with love and don't hold her in this world if it is a struggle for her to stay here.