Kitten With Breathing Problem

scoomoo

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I have a mother with 5 babies who are just under 3 weeks. Since several days after I brought them home, I have noticed one kitten has difficulty breathing. No kittens have had obvious URI at any time. No major eye problems, no runny/snotty noses, and basically no sneezing. No other kittens (or Mom) have any problems breathing, except for the smallest one. This one has not been growing as well as the other kittens. She seems to be developing appropriately and seems to nurse ok, but she remains small.

She breathes very loudly, and when I touch her chest, I feel almost like a popping sensation in her chest when she breathes. I hear a little wheezing and coughing also. This has been going on for almost the entire two weeks (at least 10 days) that I have had her, and is possibly getting a little worse.

Has anyone ever had any similar experiences? I hate to make the shelter that is short on money, have to foot an expensive vet bill for a sickly kitten that has a good chance of not making it, regardless. I have never experienced anything like this before, and don't think it seems like a typical URI since no other kittens (or mom) are involved, no eye problems, no runny noses, just chest congestion. Thanks for any input.
 

tortiebaby

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When my cat had kittens the seemed to always sneeze and wheeze. They were fine though. the probably get stuff stuck in their nose(dust, etc.) since they are always sniffing around so close to the ground.
 

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Originally Posted by scoomoo

I have a mother with 5 babies who are just under 3 weeks. Since several days after I brought them home, I have noticed one kitten has difficulty breathing. No kittens have had obvious URI at any time. No major eye problems, no runny/snotty noses, and basically no sneezing. No other kittens (or Mom) have any problems breathing, except for the smallest one. This one has not been growing as well as the other kittens. She seems to be developing appropriately and seems to nurse ok, but she remains small.

She breathes very loudly, and when I touch her chest, I feel almost like a popping sensation in her chest when she breathes. I hear a little wheezing and coughing also. This has been going on for almost the entire two weeks (at least 10 days) that I have had her, and is possibly getting a little worse.

Has anyone ever had any similar experiences? I hate to make the shelter that is short on money, have to foot an expensive vet bill for a sickly kitten that has a good chance of not making it, regardless. I have never experienced anything like this before, and don't think it seems like a typical URI since no other kittens (or mom) are involved, no eye problems, no runny noses, just chest congestion. Thanks for any input.
I can't say I've experienced what you are experiencing....however you may want to give the vet office a quick call. There have been times where I felt a visit wasn't necessarily in order, but by calling the vet...I could determine whether my concern was also a concern to the vet. Fortunately asking a quick question was free.

Katie
 
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scoomoo

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Thanks for your input. This one wheezes/coughs/snorts with almost every breath. She definitely breathes different than any other foster that I have ever had. I think it is more than dust is irritating her.

I probably will talk to a vet sometime soon. However, I am sure they will ask to see the kitten! When I have called for advice before, with more straight forward questions, they are usually hesitant to give advice over the phone. If her symptoms continue, she will definitely need to see a vet before she can be spayed, vaccinated, and adopted. I have some worries this is some sort of congenital anomaly, but I am pretty sure no diagnosis can be made without expensive testing (like cxr, etc). Since she is only 3weeks/12 oz, I was hoping to wait until she was a little hardier to withstand a vet visit and testing. Thanks again.
 
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scoomoo

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I posted last week in the kitten section but didn't get too many replies.

I have a foster kitten who is just around 4 weeks old. I have had her and her mother and siblings for 3.5 weeks. I noticed a few days after she came home with me that she breathed different than the other kitties. She coughs frequently, wheezes, and has loud, squeaky breathing.

This kitten was a similar size to her siblings at a few days old, but has become considerably smaller (relatively)- she just is not growing nearly as fast. Her biggest sister is almost twice her weight! (The little one is 13 oz)

No one has ever really had URI's (there has been an occasional sneeze or runny eye, but nothing significant or lasting) including this kitten. They are otherwise appearing as perfectly healthy kittens.

She will see a vet next week, but I was wondering if anyone had similar experiences or ideas?

She has been like this for weeks, she is not better or worse, just the same.
 

yosemite

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I went back and read your original post - I believe the general consensus was that you should probably see a vet or at least call. If you foster kittens, I'm assuming you have a vet you use on a regular basis, in which case they should be more capable of diagnosing your kitty than we are.

Please try to see a vet sooner rather than later. If this is a URI, you may lose your kitten if you leave it much longer.

I'm going to also merge your 2 threads as we prefer you not post multiple threads in several forums for the same problem.
 

xocats

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Kittens can fail rapidly.
Even though it is a long weekend and she has had this for awhile....
I would want her to be seen right away.
 
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scoomoo

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Thank you for your input. I discussed all of this with the shelter that I volunteer with. The consensus is that she needs to be seen by a vet. She is being seen next week by a vet.

I have been around 100's (no exaggeration) of cats with URIs. This is completely different. She has no signs or symptoms of URI. Both myself and the shelter manager agreed that we could give antibiotics, but it would more likely cause more harm than good. I have treated many foster kittens with URI's with antibiotics, but this is different. She has no evidence of a bacterial infection.

I have several specific concerns. One concern is that this is something congenital given that no one else has symptoms and that she has had these symptoms since birth (or shortly after). I know that some heart conditions can present with breathing difficulties. One of my reasons for posting was to learn if anyone with newborn kittens has had a heart condition present this way.

The mother had carried one kitten around for 2 hours while being chased. I do not know which kitten. Was it this kitten and did this cause damage to her trachea? Or could she have a congenital problem with her trachea leading to similar symptoms? I know dogs can get a "collapsed trachea" and I didn't know if cats can have a similar problem, and that was one of my specific concerns.

I am not sure if things like Feline Leukemia or FIP would present itself in a kitten that is just days old.

I do not believe that there is any medicine out there that will change her immediate prognosis. I suspect that she will need further testing to diagnose her illness. I can't justify asking a chronically money strapped non-profit organization to spend significant extra money on a kitten who is likely suffering from a chronic illness that will be difficult to treat by asking to go to a different vet several days earlier. She is not dehydrated, infected, or lethargic- which are things I can treat. If she were to die before the vet visit, I am confident that a trip to the vet one week earlier would not have changed her prognosis. It is her underlying condition that will have led to her death.

I am concerned, and I do everything possible to give my foster kittens happy, healthy lives. I have lost 4 kittens (a litter) that were 1-3 weeks old to URI. The other 90 that I have fostered have lived happy, healthy lives. I have saved countless kittens by getting up in the middle of the night, force feeding, giving fluids, abx, treating diarrhea, bottle feeding, etc. She doesn't need any of this. I have never had a kitten like this. I would love more than anything to take her vet tomorrow and spend 1000's of dollars for an exact diagnosis. I'm just not sure in the grand scheme of things, that is practical.

Any other input is appreciated on the above specific questions, otherwise, I will await my vet visit and continue to monitor her health. Of course, if something changes acutely, I will get her seen sooner.
 

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Hi,

How did your kitten do?  I have the same exact situation. 
 

ashuatt

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Hi i helped my cat give birth to 3 kittens that will be a year in April. One kitten had a birth defect of a cliff palette and one is completely normal and the third one from day one has been wheezing and sneezing and has such a sick meow. I vrought them in to get shots and neutering and addressd my concern and go no answers even tho they said they heard the wheezing and sneezing. So he is almost a year it has not gotteb worse but he still has it. Should i be considered? The vet did not seem to be,so and he is normally playing and chasing his brother mom and the other 2 cats we own he likes the dog but only to sleep with him i feel bad cause i dont know what to do so i know how you are feeling but still little different
Quote:




Originally Posted by scoomoo /img/forum/go_quote.gif


I have a mother with 5 babies who are just under 3 weeks. Since several days after I brought them home, I have noticed one kitten has difficulty breathing. No kittens have had obvious URI at any time. No major eye problems, no runny/snotty noses, and basically no sneezing. No other kittens (or Mom) have any problems breathing, except for the smallest one. This one has not been growing as well as the other kittens. She seems to be developing appropriately and seems to nurse ok, but she remains small.


She breathes very loudly, and when I touch her chest, I feel almost like a popping sensation in her chest when she breathes. I hear a little wheezing and coughing also. This has been going on for almost the entire two weeks (at least 10 days) that I have had her, and is possibly getting a little worse.


Has anyone ever had any similar experiences? I hate to make the shelter that is short on money, have to foot an expensive vet bill for a sickly kitten that has a good chance of not making it, regardless. I have never experienced anything like this before, and don't think it seems like a typical URI since no other kittens (or mom) are involved, no eye problems, no runny noses, just chest congestion. Thanks for any input.



I can't say I've experienced what you are experiencing....however you may want to give the vet office a quick call. There have been times where I felt a visit wasn't necessarily in order, but by calling the vet...I could determine whether my concern was also a concern to the vet. Fortunately asking a quick question was free.


Katie
 

margd

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Wheezing and sneezing is not normal - I think you are right to want more answers than you've gotten so far. It's great your kitten is playing and doing well otherwise but it would probably be a good idea to get a second opinion. I had a cat who sneezed and wheezed a lot and it turned out he had asthma which we were able to treat. Not saying your kitten has asthma - just recommending you check in with a different vet. [emoji]128062[/emoji]
 

pjrullo

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Yes - I have the exact same situation right now. A feral mother had 5 kittens. Two of the girls have the same breathing situation. One of them is also deaf. They are active, no sneezing, no discharge. They are both underweight and one of them has to be spoon fed at a higher level so she can eat. When she eats from the bowl she has a difficult time swallowing as she needs to breathe from her mouth. Both kittens have bad breath - perhaps from mouth breathing or perhaps from whatever the underlying breathing problem is.

I took both of them to the vet on two occasions and the vet had no idea - didn't suggest blood work or urinalysis ...

I was hoping it was just small nasal passages that they would outgrow but they are not growing. I'd love to hear anyone's outcome.

So happy to have found this conversation. Feel free to email me at [email protected]
 
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