very OT...sick kitten
 

I know this is way OT, so please just bear with me. I have a mama cat who had 3 precious baby girl kitties about 6 months ago. They went on a couple of day hunting trip and #3 didn't come home, she was the favorite. Now, the twin to the favorite is sick. I'm not sure what is wrong, she was absolutely fine yesterday. She's lethargic and feverish. I know there is a pet forum, but I like it here, and I don't get many responses on the other boards. On hand I have vit B12, Vitamin C (sodium ascorbate powder), electrolytes, probiotic powder. My kids love these kittens and were heart broken when the other never came home. Vet isn't an option. We lover our kittens, but vet prices here are outrageous---we're talking $65 just to walk thru the door. Any suggestions? Tractor supply isn't but about 10 miles from here if I need to get something. We do have black widows and brown recluses. We lost a kitten to a black widow bite last year, so I know what that looks like. So far, like I said, lethargic, fever, and possibly breathing a little hard. I'll go give her a good once over to look for bite sites after I get my kids started on some math. Thanks for reading if you made it this far. Sorry to take the board so far off topic.

You need PenG from the TSC.

Liquid injectable penicillin can be bought without prescription at a feed or farm store. The dosage for cats is 1/2 ml (.5ml) per cat (you need not worry about per-pound.) Small syringes 1ml, 3ml are easiest to use, get 20 or 24 gauge needles to use on the cat, and if possible, one larger gauge needle (16-18) to withdraw the liquid from the bottle. You MUST keep it refrigerated, and be sure to shake the bottle before drawing - penicillin has a tendency to separate.

Dose at 1/2ml for the kitten. You need to get a SMALL needle, 22 or 24 gauge. Give one dose and wait to see if the kitten improves. If you see improvement, dose at 1/2ml per day for 5 days.

That's the best I can think of for cats.

I know nothing about cats/kittens so I would do the same thing & ask here & follow Calliann suggestion.
I hope the little kitty makes it. If they are roaming though my first thought was them eating a rat/mouse that has eaten decon from maybe a neighbors place or something?
Just thinking out loud not even sure if you have neighbors but cats can cover quite a distance if they aren't spayed or neutered.

What color are the gums and inside of the ears...any yellowing? Or pale?
Is she showing signs of dehydration? When you pull up on the skin at the shoulders does it go right back down or does it take a few seconds?
Is she eating/drinking? Normal poop?
Has she been dewormed?
What do the eyes look like? Sunken? 3rd eyelid up more than usual?
Did you get an actual temp on her?

Yay! Minelson can fix you up!

off to examine...

Yes - check color of gums & are they sticky? Are the cold or warm?


Worms can kill a kitten quickly, if that's what's going on.

Is she eating at all?

What I would do: Mix electrolytes (either the powdered kind or pedilyte) and beef or chicken baby food. Syringe a little every half hour or so. Keep her warm and hydrated.

Deworm her with a good dewormer. I have to get mine from the vet's. They will give it to me if I'm a patient and tell them I actually have seen the worms in poo or vomit.

Ok, here are the answers...
What color are the gums and inside of the ears...any yellowing? Or pale?
pale, nearly white
Is she showing signs of dehydration? When you pull up on the skin at the shoulders does it go right back down or does it take a few seconds?
goes down fairly quickly, does not stay pinched
Is she eating/drinking? Normal poop?
have not seen her poop, there was some stuck to her tail with a partially digested grashopper stuck in it
Has she been dewormed?
haven't dewormed in a while, probably 3-4 months
What do the eyes look like? Sunken? 3rd eyelid up more than usual?
third eyelid up more than normal
Did you get an actual temp on her?
no actual temp, she burned my lap up though. I'd say a lot hotter than her sister.


She's not interested in food or water, I'm about to mix up the electrolytes I have on hand and give it to her. I have a kitten dewormer, but it says it is for roundworms only. I also have the Horse paste ivermectin...would that work? I know it's a long shot, lol. I realize they are just barn cats, but if any of you have daughters I'm sure you understand the heartache that comes with watching a sick animal.

forgot to add...heard sneezing out of the cats last night, wasn't sure which one. I'm guessing it is her (Sally) and her nose is very dry.

Do not give.horse ivermectin to cats. Pyrentel is a safer way but drontel is best as its a multi worker. Id vote on a upper respiratory infection or poisoning. Worms may.have weakend so they got it faster and harder than normal

Pale gums can mean she is anemic and shutting down. It can also be a sign of dehydration. Fleas can also cause anemia and I have seen cats die from flea infestation. Does she have fleas? 3rd eyelid up is also a sign of dehydration. She is not eating because of the fever. She needs flea meds if she has fleas. She needs antibiotics and she needs fluids. She REALLY needs a vet. The pale gums is not good. There is also a chance of Feline Luekemia but usually that doesn't present with a fever. Sometimes it does though. just not common. She could also have a blood parasite
Feline infectious anaemia (FIA)
Kitty needs a vet!

Thanks guys! I didn't see more than a couple of fleas on her and very little flea droppings. I've been keeping the electrolytes going in her 5mL at a time mixed with the Vit C powder. I'll try the Pen G. I was getting desperate so I mixed up some amoxicillin powder to the drink mix once to give her. She seems a bit more interested in her surroundings right now, but still hasn't moved out of her spot on the lounge chair on the porch. She coughs a little bit after I finish giving her something to drink. Her gums have gone from nearly white to having more pink color too.

Safeguard liquid wormer, goat variety is what I use, 1ml /5lb once daily for 3 days. This is a great dewormer for kitties.

cattle, horse and goat safeguards all have the same amount of drug

Getting her pink again is good. The temp needs to come down though..she needs to eat and drink. I would suggest a flea bath but I'm afraid she may be too frail. Really look for how many fleas are there. You would be surprised how many can be hidden and you don't know the damage until you give a bath and see all the blood wash off. It's astounding. Check around her face and on on her belly. I just say this because it is so often overlooked. Prayers for Sally!

Has she had any vaccinations? Distemper comes to mind.

How is Sally this morning?

upon first glance I was encouraged. she seemed to be interacting with her sister. I offered up some chicken broth from our dinner last night and she licked at it. gums are really pale pink, fever seems less BUT (i really hate "buts") she seems neurologically off. she's holding her head funny and has lack of balance. I know she really needs a vet, but we can't. My dh is the only one working and we're looking at him losing his job soon. :(

mama where
are you in Ga

sorry this is cannon_farms bikehealer is my husband he must have been on the forum this morning

There thats better I have to make a hay run if by chance you are in my area please give me a call 770-842-5528 the only other vet I can work with is in Taylorsville area and I am not even sure they area still the same vet I as he was going to retire but let me know.

First ask the Humane Society if they have a compassion fund. Some do and can help pay for treatment or even pay for all of it.
Second do you have SQ fluids or can you get your vet to prescribe some? That would work way better and faster then springing the fluids in her mouth. When tenting the skin there is a big difference between the skin going back down immediately and fairly quickly.

If you see a few fleas she has 10x more. Your in Georgia in the summer, it's dang near impossible not to have fleas. Get some frontline for that cat ASAP since you can't bath her right now. It is the best you can do right now.

If you get fluids but B complex in it. She needs it, I can't look up the ode right this second but I will try later today. If all else fails look at the bottle and dose it down. A little extra won't hurt.

Go to a pet store or TSC and pick up some cat dewormer. Don't use livestock dewormer, some of them are very toxic to small animals. Ask me how I know! Dose her twice with dewormer.

Take her temp! We need actual numbers. Also look for ulcers in her mouth feline leukemia often presents with mouth ulcers.

I would get pen G at TSC and use that. It is more broad spectrum then amoxicillin, I know that is all you had but most feed stores carry antibiotics.

BTW I breed Persian cats so I have done this a time or two.

Thank you all so much. I'm afraid it is too late for her though. I got in from getting the PenG and other supplies and my dh and I were checking her out. She has something running out of her nose and mouth, can not use her back legs at all and is breathing very rapidly and seems to be hurting when we touch her. We decided to put her down since we know we can not afford any intense treatments. I hated making the decision. My dh put it in this perspective for me...she's a cat. we may love her, but she does not provide anything for the family. We should use our resources (money) wisely and keep our vet emergency fund for goats that are here to provide meat/income for our family should they ever need it. Again, thank you all. I'm gonna go find a quiet spot and hang with my kiddos.

So sorry to hear this! ~ hugs~

I'm sorry :( My guess is she got into poison with the weird neurological symptoms and the fluids coming out of her nose.
Try to take comfort in she is not suffering now. It's so hard to loose a pet. You really tried your best and I really don't think she was coming back even if you would have gone to the vet. ((((hugs))))

~hugs~ So sorry!