Foster question - what would you do ?

Question about Kiera again...

Here the story.

I have 2 cats of my own plus a foster momma and her 3 kittens (who are to-die-for gorgeous !)

Got call from shelter to see if I would foster a pregnant cat. Said yes, drove all the way down there to pick up Kiera. Was told that the vet at the shelter thought she was pregnant. However if she had no other signs in a few weeks to bring her back. Since I was all the way down there (and had my 6 yr old daughter with me who would not have let me leave without a cat), I agreed but would certainly have preffered a more "for sure" pregnant cat.

5 days later, Kiera started throwing up and stopped eating. Took her to my vet who figures she probably just has a cold but might be something more serious. We'd need additional tests (and $$) to figure out exactly what was wrong. My vet checked and cannot confirm she is pregnant. Enlarged uterus but can't feel foetuses inside.

She is being kept confimed in a spare bedroom so as to not give whatever she has to my other cats.

So here's my dilema. While I agreed to pay for emergency medical expenses for a pregnant cat, I have doubts that this one is pregnant. My options (as suggested in another thread) are

1- keep Kiera and possibly pay for medical expenses until we find out if she is pregnant or not

2- bring the little miss back to the shelter and foster another cat that is more "for sure"

????

What would you do ???? Help !

How long does the SPCA want you to keep her?

I guess you mentioned it in another thread, but I think holding onto her until she gets over the cold and then returning her (if she shows no obvious signs of pregnancy) is the best idea.

Thanks eatrawfish, that's what I was thinking of doing. I guess I felt guilty about bringing her back since there is still a *possibility* that she is pregnant. She's my first pregnant cat and I was hoping for an easy first time !

The SPCA said she could come back anytime but I'll kep her til she starts to eat again. Still nothing today but the lip-licking has gone down. She doesn't want to be petted though, she just wants to be left alone. Poor baby...

Things are never as easy as we want them to be huh?

Poor thing. Yeah, if she's sick the shelter isn't a good place for her to be anyway.

Originally Posted by JulieH

Thanks eatrawfish, that's what I was thinking of doing. I guess I felt guilty about bringing her back since there is still a *possibility* that she is pregnant. She's my first pregnant cat and I was hoping for an easy first time !

The SPCA said she could come back anytime but I'll kep her til she starts to eat again. Still nothing today but the lick-licking has gone down. She doesn't want to be petted though, she just wants to be left alone. Poor baby...

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Julie...I symphathize...really, I do. I fostered a mom and her 3 kittens..and it was ROUGH. One of the kitten was sick...and although I tried all I could, she died of pneumonia (cost the rescue over $300 for vet visits and medicine). The other 2 kittens did great. Oftentimes, because of the environment these cats came from and the fact that they have been around other cats who could have been sick, they don't always have the easiest of pregnancies. I do hope it all works out.

Katie

What do your families (husbands, wives) say about the cost assosiated with fostering ? My husband flipped yesterday when I told him I brought Kiera to the vet and the cost was out of MY pocket ("my" spending money not "our" family money). He does not believe in spending anything on stray cats. He figures giving them a roof and food/water/love and attention is plenty.

I asked him what his suggestion would be if for example a momma cat had delivered 2 healthy kittens then had major problems delivering the 3rd kitten. Do you spend the money to save her or have her put down ? And then what he'd do with the newborn kittens. Lets just say that we have different opinions on what we'd do...

(guess I just won't tell him then, hum ?)

Julie

Originally Posted by JulieH

What do your families (husbands, wives) say about the cost assosiated with fostering ? My husband flipped yesterday when I told him I brought Kiera to the vet and the cost was out of MY pocket ("my" spending money not "our" family money). He does not believe in spending anything on stray cats. He figures giving them a roof and food/water/love and attention is plenty.

I asked him what his suggestion would be if for example a momma cat had delivered 2 healthy kittens then had major problems delivering the 3rd kitten. Do you spend the money to save her or have her put down ? And then what he'd do with the newborn kittens. Lets just say that we have different opinions on what we'd do...

(guess I just won't tell him then, hum ?)

Julie

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Julie..I'm single..so I don't have to discuss the costs with anyone. Honestly, this could become more of a strain on your marriage than necessary....especially if he views spending money on a cat this way. Perhaps the best thing to do is to try to find a rescue group that will cover any medical issues (typically you have to go to their vet) and foster for them. It can be very costly in the end but to me, saving lives is worth it.

Katie

I agree with Katie.

I try to spend my own, personal, money on the cats and fostering. My bf does support me though, and by default the fosters. We've talked about it, and he knows that I would spend $$$ to save lives and deal with it later. He doesn't love it, but he does love me, so he supports me.

If it's going to be a serious problem w/ your husband see if you can rescue for someplace where they will cover more medical costs. Because you will have to deal with medical costs, it's not fair to let an animal get sick and not do anything.

I would agree with TNR1 - you need to think of the repercussions this could have for you, especially if you get a cat with difficulties. I live in the UK and all the charities I foster for pay for vets, food and litter, as if the cat was in the shelter, they would be paying for it. Obviously they get treats and stuff that I pay for, but that is my choice and I am also single so don't have to consult anyone. You can't not tell him about this, he will find out, especially as the vets bills could run into hundreds.

I ran into this with my DH when one of the kittens had icky eyes. My husband was whining about the costs but when I pointed out that without vet care the kitten could very well go blind he agreed treatment was the only option. He told me "Even though I don't like these things I love you and support you. If you need to do this fine, but get it out of your system because we aren't doing it again."

I figure next time an animal in need comes into our lives we'll deal with it then. He acts tough but he's a huge softy (Shhhh, don't tell anyone I said that)

Well, at the end of the conversation my husband said "Well, I guess if that's what you want to spend your money on I don't have much to say. I've certainly spend my money on useless things" (at the end he pointed to his rum & coke !). He doesn't like it but once he saw it that way he can't say much.

We have "family money" and then we have our own "personal spending money" that we can spend where we see fit. I asked him if he'd prefer me spending my money on a prada bag or some other useless item...

I just won't give him too many details...