trying to save emaciated stray

[carrots33]

2 days ago, my kids and I came across a stray cat outside a store. It was so emaciated it looked skeletal and could barely stand or walk. We brought him home and made a home for him in our laundry room. That first night he was so weak he literally couldn't eat, even soft food. We took him to the vet the next day, but couldn't afford to hospitalize him so that he could get IV fluids. All we were able to do was deworm him (he has terrible diarrhea), give him a shot for nausea to see if that would help him eat, give a bolus of fluids subcutaneously, and buy some high calorie canned cat foot. Since then, I've been force feeding Gatorade with a syringe every couple of hours and feeding 6 small meals (just a couple of spoonfuls) a day. I just don't know if anything we are doing is making a difference. I bathed him today- in his weakened state I really didn't want to because I didn't want him to catch a chill, but I had no choice. He seems to be able to make it to the litter box to pee, but he just lays in diarrhea in his bed. I change out his bedding every time I go in there, but he was still caked head to toe with poop.I blow dried him as best I could and put a heating pad under his bedding to keep him warm.

What are the signs to look for that he is improving? At this point,I don't know if I'm helping or prolonging his suffering. I absolutely cannot afford any more veterinary care. I started a gofundme account to try to raise money for his medical expenses, but, so far, no luck. Earlier, when I went to give him fluids, he was in such a deep sleep I thought he was dead. It took me a full minute to wake him up. My heart just breaks for the poor guy- he is so sweet. He came right to us and loves to curl up in my daughter's lap. He is neutered, so I think some family just abandoned him! I can't stand crap like that and it makes me so angry I just want to fight all the harder for him.

Anyway, my daughter is in love with him, despite my warnings not to get too attached because he may not survive. She's named him Krookshanks, like in Harry Potter. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[ruaryx]

Hi.  Thank you so much for helping this poor kitty.  I don't have any personal experience with this but maybe @Norachan

can help?  Here is a similar thread:

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/285497/found-another-one-sigh

Some suggestions for stimulating appetite were: Fortiflora, turkey or chicken baby food, heating the canned food, tuna,  

Maybe try small, frequent meals and hand feeding. There's something called Nutrical. 


Try adding kitten powder replacement milk into his water to get him interested. 

 

[StefanZ]

2 days ago, my kids and I came across a stray cat outside a store. It was so emaciated it looked skeletal and could barely stand or walk. We brought him home and made a home for him in our laundry room. That first night he was so weak he literally couldn't eat, even soft food. We took him to the vet the next day, but couldn't afford to hospitalize him so that he could get IV fluids. All we were able to do was deworm him (he has terrible diarrhea), give him a shot for nausea to see if that would help him eat, give a bolus of fluids subcutaneously, and buy some high calorie canned cat foot. Since then, I've been force feeding Gatorade with a syringe every couple of hours and feeding 6 small meals (just a couple of spoonfuls) a day. I just don't know if anything we are doing is making a difference. I bathed him today- in his weakened state I really didn't want to because I didn't want him to catch a chill, but I had no choice. He seems to be able to make it to the litter box to pee, but he just lays in diarrhea in his bed. I change out his bedding every time I go in there, but he was still caked head to toe with poop.I blow dried him as best I could and put a heating pad under his bedding to keep him warm.

What are the signs to look for that he is improving? At this point,I don't know if I'm helping or prolonging his suffering. I absolutely cannot afford any more veterinary care. I started a gofundme account to try to raise money for his medical expenses, but, so far, no luck. Earlier, when I went to give him fluids, he was in such a deep sleep I thought he was dead. It took me a full minute to wake him up. My heart just breaks for the poor guy- he is so sweet. He came right to us and loves to curl up in my daughter's lap. He is neutered, so I think some family just abandoned him! I can't stand crap like that and it makes me so angry I just want to fight all the harder for him.

Anyway, my daughter is in love with him, despite my warnings not to get too attached because he may not survive. She's named him Krookshanks, like in Harry Potter. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

I will try and write in about a hour.  During the time, try and get home some dextrose sugar, commerical name may be dextrose, or dextropur or similiar.

 

[ldg]

If this was a kitty I had rescued, I would make bone broth and syringe that for a day (and pedialyte).

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2013/12/02/pet-bone-broth.aspx

I would use some of the bone broth to make "baby food." I would poach chicken and puree in a blender the meat with the bone broth. I would begin syringing that after a day of just bone broth. I would feed it in small amounts frequently.

I would buy a yeast-based probiotic called S boulardii absolutely ASAP. Best if you can find Jarrow with MOS, but any will do. I would syringe 1/4 capsule into kitty every 2 hours or so for several days then give him 1/2 capsule twice a day. If you see improvement in the stool, but this doesn't firm it up, I would double that to one capsule twice a day.

It is imperative to get the diarrhea controlled: without that he is getting no nutrition.

This protocol normally helps stop the diarrhea. If it doesn't, I would buy slippery elm bark powder and make "syrup" by putting one teaspoon in cold water, bring to a boil while whisking, and then simmer for 4-5 minutes while stirring. It will thicken as it cools. This can be syringed about 5ML at a time every hour or so.

These steps have saved the lives of many cats that even the vets had given up on.

Here is information on S boulardii: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/283161/saccharomyces-boulardii-use-for-diarrhea-and-gi-disease-incl-ibd

Information on slippery elm bark powder: http://www.littlebigcat.com/health/slippery-elm/

My heart goes out to you, your daughter, and Krookshanks. Please keep us posted. And many healing vibes for this kitty in need. :heart2:

 

[catwoman707]

I had rescued the very same type of cat you described here.

Sorry for the very graphic pics, but this was the day I found him. He too, was so sweet and loving, in desperately bad shape as you can see here.

Look at his inner lids too. Really unwell, with diarrhea so bad and for so long, the fur was burned off the back of his legs and tail. It was awful!

Buzzy 004.JPG

• catwoman707
• Aug 2, 2012

Buzzy 001.JPG

• catwoman707
• Aug 2, 2012

HE WAS A MESS....bathing him daily, and he needed it more like 3 times a day but impossible for me.

LDG's advice is excellent as always. This will help his body recover from it's very poor depleted state.

My advice/input is number one, with diarrhea like this, those fluids have got to continuously be going in to keep him hydrated. You will not be able to recover him unless his organs are happily functioning correctly, and must be very well hydrated.

The next thing is figuring out just what is causing this diarrhea. Highly likely a parasite or a combo of parasites.

Now that he has seen a vet, the vet will likely give you the meds without another office visit.

The first thing I would start with personally, is ponazuril, it will knock out coccidia very fast and completely, rather than albon, which is very slow as it only inhibits new growth rather than kill the cysts, ponazuril actually kills them and works so much faster.

Once a day and after the first few days you should see a noticeable improvement. 

Granted, this has been ongoing for some time for him to get in this state he is in now.

Ask for ponazuril, some vets have it and some do not.

It is actually marquis paste, made for horses with coccidia. But when diluted with water a slight amt, it's called ponazuril and is SUPER effective in cats.

Without a fecal float, this would be my med of choice to start.

Thank you for loving him and giving him a name and a safe home, and care. You are literally saving his life.

BTW, in case you're wondering, despite the vet saying to euthanize him, I would not, that vet now has Buzzy's "after" picture hanging in his waiting room He says he is astounded. It's just the passion to be vigilant and determined, no miracles

 

[ldg]

Coccidia is very common and a likely culprit.

 

[StefanZ]

 My heart just breaks for the poor guy- he is so sweet. He came right to us and loves to curl up in my daughter's lap.....y I just want to fight all the harder for him.

, my daughter is in love with him, despite my warnings not to get too attached because he may not survive. She's named him Krookshanks, like in Harry Potter.

You had already got excellent advices by the previous posters, where especielly LDG and Catwoman are very experienced in practical rescuing work.

LDG is also good at founding additional info on Internet and Libraries...

Here follow my coments...

LOVE is a very strong medicine in such here situations.  So being home, with dedicated and loving caretakers, is probably a better chance for him, than staying in a sterile clinic.

Its no coincidence, carrying premature kittens and babies at your chest, is a very strong trick! Well in class with top notch modern incubators and intensive care.

Splendid your dau is in love with him, and shows him this love.  Let her do it all out!!!  True, she feel it devastating if he doesnt make it, but having a true soul mate is always  precious.  This way, she will also get herself a guardian angel - whichever way it develops.

You had hitherto done everything right, as in a manual, even if some improvements are perhaps possible.

So, I myself would suggest, you use pedialyte instead of Gatorade.  Homemade pedialyte is OK and perhaps even better than these ready made, with additive colors and flavors.. It will give him some electrolytes he is losing in the diarrhea, it is also a stopper in itself.  Used heavily as savior from the manslaughter Cholera in poor countries.

Essentielly, its 3 soup spoons (15-18g) of glucose sugar in a litre water.   The brnad name of pulver glucose sugar may be Dextrose or Dextropur.  You can also use white caro syrup as source for gluscose sugar.

3 tea spoons of salt.  The so called minerale kitchen salt is probably best, but common kitchen salt is OK.

Another way of getting a good salt solution is to buy some good minerale soda water. "Polish water" did one forumite mentioned.  You see in the inhold declaration if it contains several different salts....  You let the bubbles out, and add the glucose sugar.

Or simply, add the glucose sugar, stir warming up some, so will the bubbles go out...

Re useful food:

Goat milk is always useful for weak, emaciated ones, cats and humans.  If you can get raw / fresh goat milk, its swell. But bottled full fat goat milk is OK.

Later on, adding a raw egg yolk into this goat milk, will help with his getting his health back.

If you cant get goat milk, so kmr, kitten mother milk replacement, is useful.  Best is the brand of  KMR, the pulver variation, stage one.

Useful probiotica: BeneBac.   If you cant get any other probiotica, plain unsweetened mild youghurt is better than nothing.  Especielly if it has the bacteria of Bacilofidus and Acidophilus (spelling?) added.

This is the most important, I shall think some more, and add/ rewrite, so look on here again after a while.

Tx a lot for caring for this guy!

Please continue with reports and further questions!

Pics are also welcome, if you have the time and peace of mind for such.

Good luck!

 

[carrots33]

Thanks for the advice- I'm on the way to the store to buy a whole chicken to make some bone broth. Where would I find the probiotic LDG recommended?

 

[ldg]

Certainly any health food store, most likely any vitamin shop.

Continuing to send many healing vibes!!!! :heart2:

 

[snugglecat]

Sorry, I don't have any advice but I am praying that everything works out and soon you have a beautiful healthy cat.

 

[StefanZ]

Certainly any health food store, most likely any vitamin shop.

Continuing to send many healing vibes!!!!

In the same place also surely other  probiotics.  So if they dont have this S Boulardii LDG recommends, try to find BeneBac.   I know the experienced rescuer Red Top Rescue, him too living in the USA, uses BeneBac for his protegees with great success.

Observe, I would suspect Walmart and the like, being big, do have several shelves for such health care products - and may have these health care products.

.

They usually carry goat milk in their dairy compartment.  @carrots33  

 

[carrots33]

I found the probiotic at Wal-Mart in the pharmacy-go figure! I also bought some Pedialite, chicken broth, and Turkey baby food. Krookshanks is not going to survive the 24 hours it will take to make the bone broth, so I mixed the Turkey baby food with enough chicken broth to make it liquid enough to put in a syringe. I syringe fed him 12 ml of this mixture (2 syringes full). Is the chicken broth enough to keep him hydrated if i give him this amount every 2 hours, or should I give him some pedialite in addition?

 

[StefanZ]

I found the probiotic at Wal-Mart in the pharmacy-go figure! I also bought some Pedialite, chicken broth, and Turkey baby food. Krookshanks is not going to survive the 24 hours it will take to make the bone broth, so I mixed the Turkey baby food with enough chicken broth to make it liquid enough to put in a syringe. I syringe fed him 12 ml of this mixture (2 syringes full). Is the chicken broth enough to keep him hydrated if i give him this amount every 2 hours, or should I give him some pedialite in addition?

Give pedialyte too - as I earlier said, pedialtye is good for them with heavy diarrheas.   Its among others, the need of electrolytes he looses heavily in the diarehea, ie different salts.

Simply give him pedialyte as his drinking water.  If he doesnt drink because he gets brooth,   have pedialyte as the solving water when making broth..

It it becomes very costly to use buyed pedialyte, you can make home made pedialyte from basic ingredients,  as I wrote.

 

[carrots33]

How much? It's so traumatic for him to be force fed constantly, I'd like to keep it at a minimum.

 

[catwoman707]

You can syringe him less frequently, every 4 hours is fine, as long as he gets plenty then.

If you can get 20mls in to him every 4 hours that should be fine. (this should consist of baby food mixed 50/50 with pediolyte.

Or better yet, while on the baby food, he should get 2 jars per day if possible, with equal amts of fluid, whether it be about 1 jar full of pediolyte and 1 jar of water per day, or bone broth, etc.

As close to this amt as possible. I'm sure at some point he will start giving you a hard time when he is full up with it, and if so, as long as he has taken in a good amt, there's no need to really force him to finish it.

If he gets about the amt of 1/2 jar at each feeding this would add up to the 4 jars of babyfood/fluid a day, but is closer to every 3 hours.

Just do the best you can with this, close to it is okay too. Meanwhile slowing up that diarrhea/fluid loss hopefully, and he does need to gain his appetite back so he will eat and drink on his own.

Did the vet happen to give you anything to help increase his appetite?

I got lucky with Buzzy, pictured above. He had an aggressive appetite like he was starving all the time.

If your boy's appetite doesn't turn around very soon, I would suspect FELV is possible, but likely it's the long term diarrhea that has him in this state and not necessarily felv.

Are you able to post pics of him?

Oh and what I really found helpful is lining the cage floor with peepee pads, several layers so I could go and roll up the top layer here and there.

Buzzy ALWAYS had diarrhea on him and in his cage. That first few weeks were unbelievable, I mean it was literally constantly coming out. Even in his picture above you can see some coming out of his terribly sore/raw and protruded anus. Poor guy.

Can you see his fur? It was rough and dry feeling, dull, very unhealthy, due to long term lack of nutrition absorption.

I do have an "after" pic of him if you ever want to see it

 

[ldg]

I wouldn't use the chicken broth, I'd use the pedialyte as directed by catwoman707.

In fact, I'm sorry I didn't think of it sooner, but plain coconut water is perfectly balanced with needed minerals and sugars for hydration. He needs the potassium and electrolytes, and that isn't chicken broth. :heart2:

 

[StefanZ]

In fact, I'm sorry I didn't think of it sooner, but plain coconut water is perfectly balanced with needed minerals and sugars for hydration. He needs the potassium and electrolytes, and that isn't chicken broth.

I saw earlier today this, on a blogg by "Lisa" about homemade pedialyte.

"I did also ask Dr. Kilbane about using coconut water for rehydration since it does contain some natural electrolytes, but the concern there is the lack of sodium. Your body needs the sodium to help you retain the liquid, otherwise it will just go right through you. You could potentially add 1/4 teaspoon salt and some OJ to coconut water to make sure both the sodium and sugar aspects are covered, ..."

So, add some common kitchen salt ad glucose sugar, and then you will get a perfect pedialyte / allround healthy fluid, for emaciated cats and health minded humans alike.

@carrots33  

ps.  Get some nice, coldpressed variation.  Best an ecological if you can find.

Do not use cheap warmpressed, if you have alternatives.

 

[StefanZ]

How much? It's so traumatic for him to be force fed constantly, I'd like to keep it at a minimum.

Yes, its a dilemma.  Being in a hospital / inlaid on vet clinic, they wouldnt have this problem: he would get pediale-equivalent in the vein.  Or with a tube in the stomach.

Its one of the few advantages for being in hospital.

I dont have ready amount recommendations, but I see Catwoman and LDG answered this question.

Anyways, if you are unsure, better a little too much pedialyte fluid than too little.

If you give too much, he will just pee out any surplus.  And its very important he is well hydrated.

Too little fluids and electrolytes, makes him weaker and worse by itslelf.

 

[carrots33]

I have my first (possible) positive news! He's had no diarrhea since the wee hours this morning- I'm hoping that means that the deworming medicine worked and not that his internal organs are shutting down. When I went back in to feed him 2 hours after giving him the baby food/ chicken broth mixture (and his first does of probiotic), there was a marked improvement. All morning he's been nearly comatose and hasn't responded to us in any way, but when I went in this time he tried to walk over to greet me. He's so weak and wobbly that he couldn't do it, but I took that as a good sign that he tried At this second feeding, I took the advice of LDG and catwoman707 and mixed the baby food with equal parts pedialyte. After syringing in a bit, he got really excited and tried to lick it from the bowl himself. He quickly tired and I had to syringe feed it all to him, but that was the first real interest in food he's shown in two days. Keep those positive thoughts coming! Here's a picture- I don't know if it's the crappy camera, the lighting, or just my skills as a photographer, but this picture in no way conveys just how skinny this poor guy is. When you touch him or pick him up, he literally feels like a living skeleton.

20150203_163328.jpg

• carrots33
• Feb 6, 2015

20150203_163312.jpg

• carrots33
• Feb 6, 2015

 

[sparrowhawk]

Poor guy! One this is for sure, you will have a dedicated friend for life. Not saying he will necessarily be a lap cat that loves to cuddle, but he'll be by your side as much as you let him.

From the earlier posts it sounds like he was only hours away from being beyond hope. He was obviously too weak not only to hunt and catch food, but he couldn't even scavenge or eat scraps people laid down for him. You literally caught him as he was falling into the darkness =)

EDIT - he's not out of the woods yet, but it's definitely looking up. Even if he never makes it out completely, you have gotten him to the point where he at least is aware of his surroundings and is aware that he is being cared for and comforted. Even if he begins to slide again, at least he will have known compassion one last time (and maybe for the first time).