Massive Swollen Teats In Rescued Stray Need Advice!

[Sjl9176]

I picked up a sweet kitty walking around in a shopping center parking lot about 2 1/2 mos ago. She looked to be about 4-8 mos old ( I’m completely guessing) and had no chip or collar. We have been continuously searching for her owner but no luck. After 2 weeks of having her, she went into heat. It lasted for about a week but then she started to develop some pretty sizeable lumps on her tummy and we began to get concerned. At first we were worried it was a tumor but after a couple days of watching her we realized all the lumps had, for the most part, evened out and there were now 8 distinct lumps (approximately golf ball size) evenly spaced over her belly. It was clear that it was something having to do with her nipples and came to the conclusion that she was pregnant. While we were not prepared or expecting a litter of kittens, we were excited and began preparing for their arrival. We took her to the vet to get checked out and he said it is normal for cat’s nipples to swell during heat and/or before giving birth but he had never seen anything like it and she WASN'T PREGNANT. He thought she had a hormone imbalance and after having her spayed they would balance back out. She did have a fever though so he gave her some antibiotics, vitamins (liquid tinic) and pain medicine (tramadol 50mg) and scheduled a follow up appointment to get spayed. At this point she was super lethargic and I felt like she was rapidly losing weight. We took her back to get spayed about a week and a half later. Her teats had continued to swell and the skin was so tight and full that it had begun tearing. After about a week with minimal change, we took her back to the vet again for a checkup and to remove stitches from the surgery. She had scabs forming over where her skin had torn and a few of her teats were leaking a lot of milk. He prescribed more pain medicine and a topical ointment (called A and D ointment - commonly known as diaper rash ointment I later found out through an internet search). That was about 2 weeks ago. Right now she is super swollen and is still leaking milk all the time. The vet who spayed her said she has never had kittens or been pregnant. Nothing is helping and she is losing weight and super lethargic. The vet seems to have no idea what’s going on. Please help!!!

 

[Sarthur2]

Oh, poor kitty! She must feel awful. Please get her to another vet ASAP for a new opinion and immediate help. She will need more antibiotics, medicine to dry up her milk production, and pain meds for a few days. She may also need a vitamin B injection.

Please also use coconut oil to soothe her split skin.

Please keep us posted!

S Sjl9176

 

[Sjl9176]

I will try the coconut oil thanks! What do you think is wrong with her??

 

[Sarthur2]

I told you in my response above. She needs medical help. She needs meds. This is serious. Please, please get her to a different vet than you took her to before. Take her ASAP. This is a serious medical emergency. I do not know what is causing this but it is NOT normal and she needs serious medical attention right away. Coconut oil is not a cure. It is just a salve for her cracking skin.

Can you get her to a new vet? You may be risking her life if you don’t. Re-read my first response please.

S Sjl9176