Purple feet and crippled paw?

Sneakers had her kittens! (See the "for those of us who are waiting" thread.)

She had six kittens, all are still alive. I have a couple of concerns.

She had problems getting the first one out because it had a big head (like momma) so we took her to the ER vet. They helped me get the kitten out. We decided to wait there a bit to see if more kittens would come. I noticed that a sac broke, and I told the technicians. A half hour went by, no kitten... told them again. Repeat after another half hour. An hour later, the vet comes rushing in with oxytocin because she thought the kitten might be stuck and stillborn. She was right... except that the kitten was alive. His/her back feet are still purple and the vet said it should go away, and if it doesn't, the kitten will just lose a few layers of skin and new skin will grow back. She said amputation will likely be unnecessary. Anyone have experience with this kind of thing?

Secondly, another kitten was born with a crippled right front paw. It is the smallest one, too. His/her paw curves downward into almost a fist. He/she can move the leg, but has a rough time getting about as well as the other kittens. This one also doesn't suckle very well and gets pushed out of the way very easily. Anyone else seen this or know what kind of deformity it could be/what it could be due to?

I appreciate your advice...

Congrats! Glad Sneakers are all the kittens are doing well so far as far as the one's crippled paw, I'm just taking a stab in the dark, but didn't you say that Sneakers is a small cat? maybe they were all just squished in there, 6 is a lot of kits, and his paw was stuck in that position. Maybe it will straighten out on its own, but until then I would help the little guy along, making sure he gets to nurse, esp if he is the runt. Good luck!

I'm wondering if a little gentle therapy could be used in getting the tiny foot a little straighter.

We had a very young kitten get a broken leg (less then a month old) - don't ask me how - it was a barn kitten. Anyway my husband rigged up a splint for the leg and we wrapped it good. Amazingly the kitten healed and while we figure he wouldn't be able to jump - he did - the leg healed fine He would drag the leg split behind him and really got around faster then we thought.

Not sure about the blue feet - that's usually a sign of circulation problems. Hope the little ones are better soon.

Well, the feet may not be regaining circulation because it's so young, but I don't think it would have happened if she/he didn't get stuck in the birth canal for two hours. My mom was a post-partum nurse, and she said that this sometimes happens with humans and that if there is still feeling and the swelling goes down a little bit, then the damage is likely to heal. She said it's like a bruise due to the extra pressure from being stuck at one narrow point. The vet seemed to think the kitten will be fine, and she was quite surprised that it was still alive. (Probably relieved... she probably thought I'd throw a fit if it was stillborn due to them not getting her oxytocin in time.)

The crippled foot I am a little more worried about... but it seems to finally be getting the hang of suckling.

I called my regular vet after I posted this thread and she said that we won't be able to tell for a few weeks if there is any permanent damage we need to consider... but that the suckling and such are all good signs. I am optimistic.l

I might try the splint thing... I think a popsicle stick will do nicely

A neighbor of ours had kittens that were either club-footed (much like what you are describing) or missing the lowest part of their paws entirely. All of the kittens were active and happy as they grew, so I wouldn't worry too much even if the crippling is permanent.

Thanks, Annasmom. That makes me feel a little better.

I'm going to go take that nap now... see ya all later!

I don't want to be too pessimistic, but I did have a kitten once born with a purple/blue paw that was twice as swollen as the other paw. I didn't see the kitten being born, but had assumed that the foot lost circulation from being tied by the umbilical cord. I didn't think much of it when she was born and she otherwise seemed fine, but by the next morning the kitten was not nursing and not doing well. She died about 24 hours after she was born. My assumption was that her death was due to this injury. I didn't ever take her to the vet because by the time I realized that the foot was going to cause a problem, she was already very weak. I didn't think she would have any chance of surviving a surgery in this weak state at one day old. This kitten's paw may have been in worse shape than your kitten's paw.

Good luck with your kitty and I hope you have a happier ending (all the other kitties in this litter did fine). Whatever happens will happen and with kitties this little there may not be much that can be done in these situations.

On the positive side, I have known many kitties who were born with deformed paws that did great as adults, many never needed amputations. I suspect the deformity will not go away with time, but most kitties with such deformities will do great later in life. My bigger concern would be the kitten that did not have blood flow because that type of injury can lead to cell death.

I don't want to seem overly pessimistic either, but I think it bears saying that whenever you are dealing with issues in neonatal kittens, it may be best to prepare yourself emotionally for less than a positive outcome.

With regards to using a splint, I would caution you away from doing anything at this point. Without meaning to, you could actually cause more harm than good. Give it a few days and see how the paw develops. It may straighten itself out on it's own. If it hasn't by the end of the first full week, then I would work with the vet to explore options with splinting.

Originally Posted by gayef

I don't want to seem overly pessimistic either, but I think it bears saying that whenever you are dealing with issues in neonatal kittens, it may be best to prepare yourself emotionally for less than a positive outcome.

With regards to using a splint, I would caution you away from doing anything at this point. Without meaning to, you could actually cause more harm than good. Give it a few days and see how the paw develops. It may straighten itself out on it's own. If it hasn't by the end of the first full week, then I would work with the vet to explore options with splinting.

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I agree. The only thing i'd do is very very gentle massage. Remember, kittens must use ther feet to push on the milk glands at the base of the nipple in order to get milk out. If you splint it, he might not be able to nurse effectively.

I just checked... there are no cleft palates as far as I can tell. The one with the blue swollen feet is somewhat better; his feet aren't swollen anymore and they are getting some color back.

Any ideas of what to look out for when a kitten is being underfed? I have a scale, but it only measures by the 1/4 ounce. It's one of those cheap diet scales.

Originally Posted by Godiva

I just checked... there are no cleft palates as far as I can tell. The one with the blue swollen feet is somewhat better; his feet aren't swollen anymore and they are getting some color back.

Any ideas of what to look out for when a kitten is being underfed? I have a scale, but it only measures by the 1/4 ounce. It's one of those cheap diet scales.

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Yes the bellies should fat & plump. They should be content. If the kitten does not have a fat frog belly and is crying a lot then it is not getting enough milk. You should not be able to see or feel ribs either.