3mo kitten with pneumonia - Praying for Survival!

[nansiludie]

Zoey Update... Again...

We just got back from the vet. Her bloodwork came back normal. Kidney, liver, WBC all normal. X-ray showed the same as Wednesday with no changes. Stomach clear. Lungs clear. Only difference is her breathing sounds congested. Dr. did say that she noticed drips from Zoey's nose and tried to extract/flush it out to see if she could tell if it has puss. Wasn't able to get much. Zoey lost .5 lbs since Wednesday bc she's not eating much and at 5.5lbs to start she doesn't have room to spare.

We decided to start the Orbax/Clavamox again bc the vet thinks the gagging may be from post nasal drip. We're going to keep the antibiotics on thru the weekend and see how she does. The vet is hoping this is just a symptom of the herpes virus that flared up with the stress of meeting her brother. Darn boys, see what they can do! [emoji]128540[/emoji] Needless to say we're back to the regimen from 3 weeks ago. Hopefully the antibiotics will do the trick and nothing more serious is going on.

My goal this weekend is to get her to eat and drink as much as possible. I went to the store and bought several brands of wet foods to entice Zoey since she doesn't typically like wet stuff (messes up her pretty fur...LOL). [emoji]128515[/emoji]

Nansiludi...thanks for sending the link. Fortunately I don't have those in the house and can see how they would be a huge safety hazard for cats. It's looking like Zoey's gagging has nothing to do with eating something and more to do with an infection. I'm praying the infection won't be so dramatic this time since we're catching it early. Fingers crossed! [emoji]128591[/emoji][emoji]127995[/emoji]

Okay, I hope the medicine works well. Is Zoey on L-lysine? Its a supplement that's an amino acid that helps to keep the herpes virus in check. Also if you can get some Nutrical for kittens, that will help her when she's off food to keep her from losing anymore weight.  

 

[zoe zoe]

Thank you for the suggestion! I've tried lysine treats and Zoey wouldn't touch them. I tried blending them in with her dry food and she ate around them. Being that she doesn't really eat wet food I don't know how I could use the powder version and I'm not comfortable giving her a supplement orally.

I'm going to looking into the Nutrical you mentioned. If that will help put some weight on her I'll try anything.

Thanks again! [emoji]128522[/emoji]

 

[zoe zoe]

Another update on Zoey... She see to be doing well with the antibiotics. They took her off the Orbax after 4 days but left her on Clavamox for the full 10 day course. She gained the weight she lost back but my goal is to get her over the 6 lb mark before next weekend. She only has half a pound to go which should be easy, however she is a picky eater and she's on to my tricks in getting her to eat wet food. Sadly she doesn't even like cat treats no matter what brand I try. She would prefer to play with them instead of eating them. Crazy little munchkin! Her fever has gone back down to 101.4 which is another sign she's bouncing back.

My only question to everyone is on her last lab work I noticed that her "retic" levels were elevated. Everything else on her report was perfect. BUN, creative, WBC, RBC, everything in normal range. My vet didn't seemed concerned however when I looked it up online it said the retic level measure anemia. Have any of you heard about this test? Should I be more presistent with my vet to look into this?

Thanks for your help! [emoji]128522[/emoji]

 

[anneno2]

As to why Zoey won't touch the Lysine treats. Dear she has a nose! She can smell them. She seems to be a girl with her own agender and we have to bow to that. She has no control over what the Vet does to her, but once she is home that is her territory and she is moving it around to suit herself she is  showing you who is in control there.  We will have to be guided by Zoey she will make the rules and we must just go along with it.r. Keep us posted as she goes from one episode to another. Honestly she is unique, I mean by now she ought not to have any bug in her system but she keeps presenting with new ones . Beats me. Regards anneno2 

 

[mollyblue]

Snowy is on the Lysine Gel, which I belive is prescription and a little more expensive, but smells like maple syrup, and Snowy does great if I just put a dab on the end of my finger and then put it in the side of her mouth.  If my daughter tries to give it to her she will spit it out, or throw up.  IDk what I do differently, but she doesn't even fight it and, if I forget, she will head over to the cabinet where we keep and it just look up.  I wouldn't say she is asking for it, but she knows our routine.

We bought some of the chews from Petsmart and Snowy won't touch those, but when we first got them, Tati liked eating.  They got old for her pretty fast though.

 

[NewYork1303]

I love the gel form of lysine as well. It can be found on amazon here:
It is the only way for my to give lysine to my FHV cat who won't eat canned food or any treats that aren't Temptations.

 

[zoe zoe]

Thank you all so much! I'm definitely going to ask about the lysine gel. Her brother loves the lysine treats so I was hoping Cody would show Zoey how to eat them...but no such luck. I truly believe they work bc we've seen improvements in Cody with his watery eyes and he's no longer sneezing, so I know it would help Zoey to start taking them.

Any thoughts on the retic lab test? Just want to make sure I'm not missing anything important that may help her future health. [emoji]128522[/emoji]

 

[mollyblue]

Sorry, labs are beyond me, but that Gel pictured is the one we use.  Hope it works for you!

 

[kittens mom]

For what it's worth I break the chews into pieces and she is more willing to eat them. I have the L lysine gel pictures. It's a good sized tube and the gel is so much easier than a paste. They can't spit it out.

 

[sparks17]

I've never commented on here before, but I just wanted to let you know that I keep you and Zoe in my thoughts/prayers and hope she gets well soon!  If you end up getting the  L-lysine gel, try putting a dab on Zoe's nose and she'll lick it off.  I had to give my kitten Laxatone gel for a little while, and that was the easiest way to get her to eat it!  Good luck!

 

[dvora]

Sparks 17 is absolutely correct about putting gel on the tip of her nose, the top of the paw usually works well too. Cats lick their nose every time they swallow something. I'm a vet tech. When we give a cat a pill and see them lick their nose we know we were successful. I want to suggest Acana or Origen dry cat food. It is the best quality food sold. My home is a cat shelter. There isn't a cat here who doesn't love Acana. It's pricey but because it is very concentrated it won't cost more than what you currently spend. Good luck. I read most of your notes. I have to say I wouldn't have stayed with your vet.

 

[Columbine]

Hi D dvora ! Welcome to TCS

This thread is over a year old now, and Zoe is just fine Great tips though :bigthumb:

 

[zoe zoe]

Hi Dvora, 

Thank you so much for providing your suggestions. As Columbine stated, I am so excited to say that Zoey is growing up strong and doing very well! She had a rough start, but to look at her now you would never know that she was in such a desperate situation. She runs around like a kitten, loves to play fetch and has a purr that you can hear from the other room! She truly is a very special kitty!  

 

 

[dvora]

Thanks for responding. I didn't see the dates. I'm glad all ended well. Did she and her brother bond well? Two cats are more fun and they are happier than one alone. But I'm over doing it with 20+.  May all of you be happy and healthy.

Dvorah