I have with me two foster kittens of just over 4 weeks old. They belong to a local no-kill rescue group and were supposed to stay with me just long enough to gain enough weight for shots and neutering before being placed for adoption. I have fostered several kitties previously, but I have never dealt with something like this before. The timeline goes like this:
Nine kittens were orphaned in a crowded municipal shelter when their mother died of unknown causes. They were three weeks old at the time and had been in the shelter for about a week already. The mother is said to have shown no symptoms of illness prior to her suddenly being found dead, and no necropsy was performed.
The kittens were not bottle fed and were sometimes given canned food, but the only reliable care they received was daily dry food. They were not to my knowledge seen by any veterinary professional.
About a week later, the nine kittens were placed on the euthanasia list. Because they seemed adoptable, the person who does euthanasia for the shelter asked our rescue group to take them as transfers. Foster homes were found for all nine- I was to take three and a vet tech was to take six.
I picked up my three- all in the same carrier- by meeting a transport volunteer in a Petsmart parking lot. I went in with the kittens and bought some litter and canned food for them. I then brought them home. Upon removing the kittens from their carrier, I saw that one fluffy grey kitten's fur had been hiding extreme emaciation. I could feel his pelvis just trying to gently wipe diarrhea from his bottom.
I rushed all three kittens to the vet who sees the rescue animals. She immediately put the sick kitten on intravenous fluids- around 5:30 PM- but said that the other two seemed okay and would just need careful care. The sick kitten weighed only 10 ounces- half what his siblings weighed. Unfortunately the grey kitten passed away at around 9:00 PM that night. Another kitten from the litter who had been taken to the other foster home died the same day with the same symptoms.
My surviving two kittens had diarrhea and were obviously underweight with prominent ribs and hipbones, but were fairly active. The tabby was very playful immediately, but the black kitten seemed dehydrated, so because of this and the diarrhea I gave them fluids every hour all night and every couple hours the next day, with either a bottle or a syringe. By the second day I had them, both were eating very well (even stealing my dog's food!) and were fairly active, though the black kitten remained less playful, which I attribute mainly to personality differences.
The kittens have had some diarrhea and a couple of incidents of vomiting, but the vomiting appeared connected with one brand of canned food I offered them, and has not recurred since I discontinued offering that particular brand of canned food. They are currently eating Second Step weaning formula and Natural Choice kitten food. The black kitten has solid poop and the tabby sometimes has very soft stools and sometimes has more solid stools.
Today- day 5 of the kittens with me- I got a phone call saying a third kitten from the same litter was rushed to the vet and an x-ray revealed fluid in the abdomen. This kitten was never with me but was with my kittens in the shelter and in the same car during transport.
The veterinarian said it was probably FIP and that there is no treatment and she expects the whole litter to die.
What I have read today since hearing this contradicts that- I have read that only a small number of cats exposed to FIP develop the lethal form after their initial exposure. I also saw here that others have had some success with drug therapy for FIP, and the vet did not mention that. She just wants to euthanize if the kittens show signs.
I don't know if an organ biopsy or necropsy was performed to confirm diagnosis.
HELP!
Is there something I can do to prevent them from developing FIP? Should I pay (though I've had my own emergency vet bills recently and can't really afford it, but it's better than losing them) for them to see a different vet and ask about drug therapy? What do I do? These are beautiful vibrant little kittens (I have pictures if you want to see) and I do NOT want to lose them, and especially not now- I just lost another loved pet Thursday night to cancer, lost my first horse last month, and I could go on but let's just say this has not been a good year and that I have lost many friends both human and animal and I can't believe that I am facing losing two more I've already fallen in love with....
Nine kittens were orphaned in a crowded municipal shelter when their mother died of unknown causes. They were three weeks old at the time and had been in the shelter for about a week already. The mother is said to have shown no symptoms of illness prior to her suddenly being found dead, and no necropsy was performed.
The kittens were not bottle fed and were sometimes given canned food, but the only reliable care they received was daily dry food. They were not to my knowledge seen by any veterinary professional.
About a week later, the nine kittens were placed on the euthanasia list. Because they seemed adoptable, the person who does euthanasia for the shelter asked our rescue group to take them as transfers. Foster homes were found for all nine- I was to take three and a vet tech was to take six.
I picked up my three- all in the same carrier- by meeting a transport volunteer in a Petsmart parking lot. I went in with the kittens and bought some litter and canned food for them. I then brought them home. Upon removing the kittens from their carrier, I saw that one fluffy grey kitten's fur had been hiding extreme emaciation. I could feel his pelvis just trying to gently wipe diarrhea from his bottom.
I rushed all three kittens to the vet who sees the rescue animals. She immediately put the sick kitten on intravenous fluids- around 5:30 PM- but said that the other two seemed okay and would just need careful care. The sick kitten weighed only 10 ounces- half what his siblings weighed. Unfortunately the grey kitten passed away at around 9:00 PM that night. Another kitten from the litter who had been taken to the other foster home died the same day with the same symptoms.
My surviving two kittens had diarrhea and were obviously underweight with prominent ribs and hipbones, but were fairly active. The tabby was very playful immediately, but the black kitten seemed dehydrated, so because of this and the diarrhea I gave them fluids every hour all night and every couple hours the next day, with either a bottle or a syringe. By the second day I had them, both were eating very well (even stealing my dog's food!) and were fairly active, though the black kitten remained less playful, which I attribute mainly to personality differences.
The kittens have had some diarrhea and a couple of incidents of vomiting, but the vomiting appeared connected with one brand of canned food I offered them, and has not recurred since I discontinued offering that particular brand of canned food. They are currently eating Second Step weaning formula and Natural Choice kitten food. The black kitten has solid poop and the tabby sometimes has very soft stools and sometimes has more solid stools.
Today- day 5 of the kittens with me- I got a phone call saying a third kitten from the same litter was rushed to the vet and an x-ray revealed fluid in the abdomen. This kitten was never with me but was with my kittens in the shelter and in the same car during transport.
The veterinarian said it was probably FIP and that there is no treatment and she expects the whole litter to die.
What I have read today since hearing this contradicts that- I have read that only a small number of cats exposed to FIP develop the lethal form after their initial exposure. I also saw here that others have had some success with drug therapy for FIP, and the vet did not mention that. She just wants to euthanize if the kittens show signs.
I don't know if an organ biopsy or necropsy was performed to confirm diagnosis.
HELP!
Is there something I can do to prevent them from developing FIP? Should I pay (though I've had my own emergency vet bills recently and can't really afford it, but it's better than losing them) for them to see a different vet and ask about drug therapy? What do I do? These are beautiful vibrant little kittens (I have pictures if you want to see) and I do NOT want to lose them, and especially not now- I just lost another loved pet Thursday night to cancer, lost my first horse last month, and I could go on but let's just say this has not been a good year and that I have lost many friends both human and animal and I can't believe that I am facing losing two more I've already fallen in love with....