Need Some Advice for a Feral Cat ASAP

[alexisanb]

I actually got some Consolidate Qi per your advice

How much should I be giving them per day? I was just doing 3 drops once per day, and it didn't seem to help much, but it doesn't sound like I was giving them enough. Boots is around 9 lbs and Bartholomew is around 12 lbs (kind of a guess since we haven't weighed him since his neuter and he was 11 lbs then).

Also, one of the other fosters bottle feeds kittens and has had two die in the past week. She didn't notice any diarrhea in either of them. One wasn't eating too well the day he passed, but the other was a complete surprise. I think they're around 4 weeks old. We have a ton of albon and panacur around, should we go ahead and give that to them as a preventative measure?

I tried giving Mew some Albon last night by putting it in his wet food. He normally isn't a picky eater, but he wouldn't touch it, lol. I guess it's the syringe, though I'm pretty terrified of trying to use that on him.

If it helps, I don't think she can maintain her body temperature on her own either. Apparently, she got down to 94 this morning, so they have her on heating blankets now, though that might have been because they have to fast them for the bile acid test. We don't get results until Tuesday, so it's going to be a tough couple of days. I don't even want to know what my balance is right now.

I'll let you all know when we hear anything.

Oh and just a bit of an update, Bartholomew is so freaking cute. When I stop petting him, he'll grab my hand. They're going up on the rescue's website soon, so keep your fingers crossed! Of course, I need to get rid of whatever they have before they can be adopted.

 

[feralvr]

So much news!

First, I am so sorry about the loss of those kittens. Unfortunately, we can't save them all, try as we might. I am still sending mega vibes for Sabin. And I don't blame you for wanting to hide

from the medical charges. I sure hope your vet can cut you a break for all of this as these are rescues/fosters and without your intervention and their help, they would not be here.

I always have great respect for vets who step up and assist people such as yourself with medical care and saving lives in these situations. We need so many more of those kinds of vets.

YAY

Mew has come such a LONG way in these past months. I can't believe he is ready for adoption soon and I pray he finds the furrever home he so deserves

.

More vibes for you as you continue to rescue and save lives. For the little kittens too

 

[ldg]

Originally Posted by Feralvr

So much news!

First, I am so sorry about the loss of those kittens. Unfortunately, we can't save them all, try as we might. I am still sending mega vibes for Sabin. And I don't blame you for wanting to hide

from the medical charges. I sure hope your vet can cut you a break for all of this as these are rescues/fosters and without your intervention and their help, they would not be here.

I always have great respect for vets who step up and assist people such as yourself with medical care and saving lives in these situations. We need so many more of those kinds of vets.

YAY

Mew has come such a LONG way in these past months. I can't believe he is ready for adoption soon and I pray he finds the furrever home he so deserves

.

More vibes for you as you continue to rescue and save lives. For the little kittens too

I'm so sorry about the babies,

but Lauren said it all just right.

As to the Consolidate Qi, that isn't nearly enough! Basically you can give him/them 3 drops at a time - as often as needed to firm up their stools. The vet said I could take that up to 8 - 10x a day if needed. (He weighed 10 3/4 pounds then. He weighs closer to 14 now.

But his maintenance dose of 12 per day (3 drops 4x a day) hasn't changed.

).

I can't get the liquid directly in Chum's mouth, but he'll eat it if I mix it into his food. We feed them wet food 4x a day, so I talked to the vet, and instead of 3 drops 8 or 9 or 10x a day, I just increased the number of drops per wet meal until it worked. I started with the 3 at each meal. When we started on it, I would bump up the number of drops at each meal every two/three days, I think.

When he got the runs from the antibiotic, I just bumped up the number of drops by one at each meal until I had doubled his maintenance dose (from 3 drops to 6 drops). So it took Chum 24 drops a day to firm up his stool when he was on antibiotics, and his maintenance dose (once he got over the diarrhea) is 12 drops a day.

It's really not an exact science, and an extra drop here or there isn't going to hurt. The only side-effect would be constipation.

You can try feeding them little bits of wet food as "treats" and mix the drops in, and see if they'll eat it. I did it by putting the wet food in the bowl, dropping the drops on top, then setting it in front of a desk fan for a few minutes to let the alcohol evaporate, then mixing it up. Once he got used to the taste in his food, I figure there's so little alcohol in that number of drops, I just drop, mix, and feed.

 

[alexisanb]

Sorry I haven't updated you all for so long. It's been a stressful summer. To sum everything up:

Sabin, the kitten who was in the hospital, stayed there for a good 2 1/2 weeks straight. The bile acid test came back negative, and at that point, her condition was rapidly declining. For whatever reason, the hospital failed to mention that they had an internal medicine specialist, who Sabin hadn't even seen, because apparently you have to make an appointment, even though she had been in intensive care without a diagnosis for 1 1/2 weeks. To say the least, I was pissed. To top that off, they couldn't even make her an appointment for another 5 days or so. Their suggestion was to take her to Purdue, a 3 1/2 hour trip, so that I could see an internist there. I was ready to take her, but her condition had deteriorated so much, that it was likely she wouldn't survive the trip. The internist did suggest some tests, so instead of risking her not making it down there, I had them run the tests, as well as telling them to start her on broad spectrum antibiotics. The CBC was done in house, which showed that she needed a blood transfusion to make it through the night. The complete urinalysis and fecals were sent out to Purdue the next day. After getting the blood transfusion and being started on the broad spectrum antibiotics, she began doing MUCH better. The urinalysis showed glucose in her urine, and it turned out to be a bacterial infection (Pseudomonas).

My reason for explaining what happened instead of just telling you that she was okay is to show that: 1) Even though she was at an emergency vet, you can't assume that they are doing everything that they can. 2) Most veterinarians are morons. The only medical background I have is from watching House, and I knew that if all else fails, you should at least try antibiotics. Seriously, what's more likely, an infection or a rare congenital disease or defect? Might I add that if they had done the urinalysis when I had asked them about it, she would have never needed that blood transfusion and would have come home a week sooner.

Now, if that bacterial infection wasn't enough, a few days after we brought her home, she started vomiting after eating. We thought it was just because she was eating too much, so we fed her less and it would work for a day or two, but then we would have to feed her even less. We took her to the vet and it turns out she has megaesophagus. Initially, they thought it was PRAA, but then they decided it wasn't. They immediately went to either mysthenia gravis or lead poisoning, both tests came back negative. So they have no idea what it's from. I'm sure it's somehow related to her bacterial infection or her treatment, but I'm not entirely sure how to link them. My best guess is esophagitis caused by her medicine, or since she possibly went septic before, that the infection spread to her esophagus. She's on a liquid diet right now, fed every 4 hours with 4 different medications, so I'm just glad it's manageable. The x-rays show that her esophagus has shrunk and she hasn't been vomiting (unless she decides to be sneaky and get into the hard cat food). She has such a ravenous appetite, and it doesn't seem like she's ever satisfied. That probably is a symptom of something, but I'll look into it later.

Sorry for ranting, but it still is just unfathomable to me that something as simple as a bacterial infection, that could have been found and treated within a week, went undiagnosed for 3 weeks, and nearly killed her multiple times. I had asked if it could be from parasites or an infection, and it seems like they just disregarded my questions. Instead of going with an infection, they would rather attribute it to a rare congenital disorder or a disease like fading kitten syndrome, which doesn't even make sense considering she was at least 10 weeks old when she was admitted. They obviously are lacking in their reasoning skills.

And that doesn't even touch on my frustration with their payment policies. Right now, I think we've racked up around 7k. I'm not entirely positive, but I think that we may have gotten about $100 off total. Now I realize that they are a business, but considering that I am with a rescue, and I've had some of the other rescue volunteers go in there and confirm that I am with the rescue. And considering that I am a full time college student, I would think that they could cut me a break. Maybe they have, but it sure doesn't seem like it. The other volunteers even mentioned that any discount is completely tax deductible.

One of her siblings passed away, most likely from FIP. She could hardly breathe because she had so much liquid in her body. They tried tapping as much as they could, but it wasn't enough.

After all of this has happened, I am now more paranoid than ever, so of course Boots got x-rays. He has a little fluid in his abdomen, but not even enough to tap, so he has a (mostly) clean bill of health. I have an upper respiratory infection going through my house, but as soon as it's cleared, he is going in to get the chop. I have some Panacur for him, I just haven't had time to give it to him. If that doesn't work, I'll get some Drontal next.

Oddly enough, the upper respiratory hasn't hit the FIV's as hard as it's hit the other cats. Ragman got over it in about a week (and to be honest, I didn't even know he had it). I can't really tell if Boots or Bartholomew have gotten it yet. One of the kittens just cannot shake it. I feel so bad for her.

I am going to get videos of Bartholomew as soon as I have time. It's just so hard to explain how cute he is. I'm not sure if I already mentioned this, but he has decided to move onto the bed now.

 

[ldg]

Oh wow what a nightmare, but what a kitty angel you are!

for ALL the kitties. And would the rescue be willing to talk to the vet about the bill? Seems to me that they need to assume some responsibility for what went on. Fine - charge you for the blood transfusion &etc. But knock off charges for the hospital stay or boarding, and perhaps charge you cost, not a marked up amount for most of it.

I assume you got the problem with the smell/carpet under control?

LOVE to see videos!!!!

For the kitty that can't shake it... do you have a humidifier? Keeping her in the bathroom in humidity can help, and you're already giving them L-lysine?

 

[feralvr]

OMG yes, what a medical nightmare and it IS so frustrating that these vets just can't seem to figure things out. Seems to me that they should be responsible for some of the charges for the weeks that Sabin was there and they were mis-diagnosing her.

They KNOW these are not your own personal cats and you rescued them. Where is the compassion for the animals and giving the rescuer a break in charges

!!!!!! I thought since you were fostering you are not responsible for any charges anyway, or just minimal charges that you are willing to pay for. You seriously are a kitty angel on earth

MEGA vibes for you whole crew!! And would love to see videos!!!: heart3:

 

[alexisanb]

Okay, new problem. A couple of the kittens have ringworm and everyone has been exposed to everyone. What's the best plan of action? I think I'm going to end up treating all of them for ringworm, but as for disinfecting the house?

 

[alexisanb]

Okay, I think I finally have everything under control. For the ringworm, I have all of the cats in the house on Itraconazole. For the diarrhea, I finally found the answer!! I read up on the different parasites, and giardia fit best. They all have flatuence, distended bellies, diarrhea (of course), and a couple have been vomiting. I got some digestive enzymes from the vitamin store, and after 1 1/2 days, the grey mom cat (one who has not had a solid stool since getting her in June) finally had a solid stool! I was thrilled to say the least.

Also, we created a webpage for the one kitten who got sick this past summer. If you could donate or share it with friends, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks!

 

[ldg]

Alexis, that is all great news!

You didn't include a link to the website.

 

[alexisanb]

Oops, lol. The website is: http://sabinsfightforlife.weebly.com/

 

[feralvr]

AWWWWWWWWWWWWW

Sabin is just a gorgeous, little fighter and I am just beaming with smiles to hear that she has pulled through the way she has. She is just too cute in that blue harness, what a beautiful face.

What spirit she must have, and what a wonderful soul you have to go ALL the way, no matter what to save these babies.

. I am very impressed with your commitment to the cats

. I hope Sabin gets a wonderful, furrever home

 

[alexisanb]

Thank you! She is such a wonderful little girl with a very spunky personality. We will make sure that she goes to the perfect home. I had another question for you guys.

We found a cat in May or June out in the middle of the country near some amish farms. She was in terrible shape, but we managed to get her healthy again. She got into the rescue, and was taken to be fixed at one of the low cost spay and neuter clinics, but they denied her because she had severe gingivitis. So the rescue paid for her to get her teeth cleaned. We took her back to get fixed and they denied her again because of dental issues. They then proceeded to call the rescue director, who then decided to have her euthanized. Thankfully, the director called one of the other lady's in the rescue right after making the decision who proceeded to call me, and it was stopped. I was SUPER pissed to say the least. Anyway, they said that they will not fix her there, so I need to take her to a veterinary clinic to get fixed.

I also wanted to get Boots and Sabin fixed at a veterinary clinic because Boots is probably pretty old and FIV+, so I don't want him to have any adverse reactions to the anesthetic. With Sabin, I am probably just being overly paranoid, but it worries me nonetheless.

Do you guys know of any funding I can get to have all of this done? From Sabin's fiasco, our finances have been pretty much wiped out. I'm sure there has to be a place where we can at least apply for a grant or something.

I think that they give discounts if you spay/neuter multiple cats at the same time. Regardless, females generally run around $220, and males are around $150. Then, we also have to have Lydia's teeth cleaned, and I'm not sure how much that will be.

Anyway, if you know of any grants I can apply for, let me know.

Thanks!!

 

[ldg]

I don't. But it's worth talking to the vet - they may be willing to donate the profit margin and just charge you cost. It's worth asking.

Put it that way - and if you work with a shelter/foster network that is a 501(3)c org, maybe there's some way for the vet to deduct the profit margin as a charitable donation. I'd look into that, if there are any orgs you can talk to about that before you approach the vet to ask. Good to go with a proposal.

Also, FYI gingivitis can often be treated quickly and effectively if you can do this. RAW VIRGIN ORGANIC (UNTREATED/UNPROCESSED) HONEY. Take a baby toothbrush, cut it down. Have a warm damp cloth at the ready. Spread the honey on the gums daily for a week. Should clear it up.

(Honey has antiviral, antifungal, antinflammatory properites).

 

[feralvr]

I don't have any advice on the financial front, other than agreeing with Laurie. I would definitely plead my case to the vet

and since these are NOT your personal cats couldn't they do this "pro bono" (you know what I mean ???) Worth asking

Laurie!!! Thanks for the advice about the honey

. I know you mentioned this in another thread about

Chumley's teeth or one of your babies. Guess who has gingivitis......... PIPSQUEAK..... Will give the honey a whirl

 

[alexisanb]

It's been awhile. I just thought I would let you know that Old Man Bootsies was adopted in January. I still have Mr. Bartholomew, and he has turned into such a wonderful cat. He went to his first Meet and Greet last month and did surprisingly well. He let people pet him and just couldn't get enough cheek scratches. I can pick him up and carry him around (though he really prefers that I don't), and he sleeps on my bed right next to me every night. He comes when I call him, and boy does he love treat time. I am so glad that I took him on. This experience has taught me so much and definitely opened my eyes to just about everything related to cats.

Also, Miss Sabin was spayed and has turned into my very own princess, I couldn't seem to find anyone that wanted to adopt her that I would trust enough.

If anyone knows of someone looking for an FIV+ kitty to add to their family, let me know! Bartholomew is definitely ready, and Ragman has been waiting far too long.

I hope all is going well for you guys, and I can't thank you enough!

 

[sadiecat]

Hi Alexis,

I spent much of today reading this post.  Seriously girl, you are incredible.

You must be about, what? 19?  As much as a cat lover that I am, I would not have put $7k into 1 very sick kitten/s.  Bless your heart (and your wallet).

I was ready to send you a message saying, enough already!  But I saw the post was from last year (and I though about how much $$ I have spent on my own feral

).

And then I saw that you personally adopted little Sabin.

You are a true Angel.

I am so mad about what the vet put you both through.  I hope you have crossed him/her off your go-to list.

I was thinking you must have a large room to have a couch in there!!  I hope so with all those kitties and pups in there.

Your mom is very understanding!

I absolutely am so impressed with the shelter that you built for Bart.  I was hoping you could tell me how you got the plexiglass to stay attached to the wood???? Velcro?

Your socializing of Bart is a huge inspiration to me.

The solid grey kitty in your facebook link is absolutely gorgeous!!!  Which one is s/he?

Thank-you for sharing your story.

What are you studying at college?  Something to do with animal care perhaps?

Best wishes to you.

 

[alexisanb]

Thank you I'm glad some people think I'm not too crazy. I'll actually be 22 on the 25th, but I could easily pass for 15. I'm going to graduate in May (hopefully) with a Mechanical Engineering degree, though I may go back for a veterinary degree. With Sabin's ordeal, you really had to have just been there. My fiance and I both could just see the fight in her heart, and we weren't going to let her go, especially not after losing her sister. She's a very lucky girl, and naughty as can be now. Her new favorite hobby is finding bouncy balls and dropping them down the basement stairs, chasing after them, and repeating this for hours on end. As far as vets go, they are actually the only ones in the area I trust to at least keep animals alive. After all of this ridiculousness, I've found that most vets have very poor diagnostic skills. The sad thing is that a lot of people are naive and follow their veterinarians advice out of sheer ignorance. Just this year, if I had done exactly what the vets said, I would have lost at least 7 cats instead of 1. One they were going to euthanize because of bad teeth, Mew and Boots would have been gone because they're FIV+, Sabin and Tifa from misdiagnoses (bladder infection, not parasites), my grandma's cat due to a misdiagnosis (no spinal injury, more likely a spinal infection), and Phoebe because the treatment given wasn't aggressive enough. Okay, done ranting, lol.

And the solid grey cat is Mister Ragman. He's one of my FIV+ fosters, so if you know anyone that wants a wonderful FIV+ cat that may have herpes, let me know! It sucks because he is such a wonderfully sweet boy, and I wish I could find the perfect home for him, because he definitely deserves it.

And as far as the box thing goes, we bought some aluminum sheet metal (it was specifically made for putting on wall edges when plastering) and screwed it into the wood. We did have some difficulties with the design though. The plexiglass was difficult to cut exactly right, so it ended up being a little to big and flexed a little when it was on. We kept something heavy in front of it when we weren't in the room because we knew that if he really pushed, he could get out of it. And sure enough, that's exactly what happened when we forgot to put something in front of it one day. And that was the last day he spent in there because I was pretty terrified of him at the time, and didn't want to try getting him in there again. To improve the design, I would suggest using some aluminum angle. You could put another piece of it on the bottom to help hold it on better as well. Also, don't forget to waterproof the wood.

If there's anything else I can help you with, just let me know! Have a lovely day

 

[feralvr]

It's been awhile. I just thought I would let you know that Old Man Bootsies was adopted in January. I still have Mr. Bartholomew, and he has turned into such a wonderful cat. He went to his first Meet and Greet last month and did surprisingly well. He let people pet him and just couldn't get enough cheek scratches. I can pick him up and carry him around (though he really prefers that I don't), and he sleeps on my bed right next to me every night. He comes when I call him, and boy does he love treat time. I am so glad that I took him on. This experience has taught me so much and definitely opened my eyes to just about everything related to cats.

Also, Miss Sabin was spayed and has turned into my very own princess, I couldn't seem to find anyone that wanted to adopt her that I would trust enough.

If anyone knows of someone looking for an FIV+ kitty to add to their family, let me know! Bartholomew is definitely ready, and Ragman has been waiting far too long.

I hope all is going well for you guys, and I can't thank you enough!

OH HOW WONDERFUL on Bootsie's adoption I am just FLOORED to hear how great Bartholomew is doing. OH MY GOSH - I remember the first day you had him. The patience, love and care you have bestowed on him is just incredible. Look how it all turned out. I really hope that he can find a forever home :heart3: He is a beautiful boy :love: It is a wonderful learning experience in socializing an adult feral cat. It CAN be done. I am a true believer in that and you have just proven it as well. :bigthumb:

Great news on Miss Sabian too!!!! Just great news all the way around!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :cross: for Ragman to find a home too :heart2:

 

[ldg]

It's SO great to hear from you!

OH HOW WONDERFUL on Bootsie's adoption I am just FLOORED to hear how great Bartholomew is doing. OH MY GOSH - I remember the first day you had him. The patience, love and care you have bestowed on him is just incredible. Look how it all turned out. I really hope that he can find a forever home :heart3: He is a beautiful boy :love: It is a wonderful learning experience in socializing an adult feral cat. It CAN be done. I am a true believer in that and you have just proven it as well. :bigthumb:
Great news on Miss Sabian too!!!! Just great news all the way around!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :cross: for Ragman to find a home too :heart2:

OMG OMG OMG just to hear how Bartholomew is doing lifts the heart! And Miss Sabin.... :heart2: Just AWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!! And a HUGE on Bootsie's adoption!

YOU GO GIRL!

I'm sure you'll find homes. :nod: It may be slow going, but your perseverance will pay off, I know it. :heart3:

I SO hear you on the vet rant. It breaks my heart every time I see someone put a cat down and tell us about it LATER, when it's too late to say anything. And what's the point of telling someone with a broken hear they shouldn't listen to the vet? Just thank goodness you've got SUCH a great head on your shoulders!!!!!!

and for all!

 

[alexisanb]

I just wanted to let you all know that Bartholomew was adopted 2 weeks ago by the same lady who adopted Boots. He is doing well! Also, I had him tested for Bartonella and it came back as a strong positive, so that's what caused the diarrhea! He's on Azithromycin now, and hopefully getting better (though I need to confirm with the lady who adopted him). Also, we had some kittens with terrible diarrhea. They were also super underweight and always sleeping. We put them on the medicine as well, and all of them have gained over 1 lb in 2 weeks. They were all 2-3 month old kittens and weighed 1.0-1.5 lbs.