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Sick Kitten
Hello All 
I dont normally post much but I was just curious if anyone on this board has any experience fostering/adopting kittens. I adopted a 7 week old kitten, and upon taking her to the vet we learned she has an upper respritory infection, an eye infection and intestinal worms. So she got medication for the worms, and we recieved an oral antibiotic and an eye cream..
This is the first time I've ever had to care for a sick kitten and it's been leaving me a little stressed. We have to keep her separated from our 2 year old kitty. Shes having diarrhea from the medicine so the vet reccommended I give her plain yogurt, and thats helping a little.. But every time she has to *go* she howls and cries.. Her little bottom is all swollen and irritated... And now shes not eating any of her regular food.
I worry about her a lot, we took her from an extremely unhealthy situation.. Has anyone here had any experience with sick kitties? Im also considering having her tested for FIV and Feline Lukemia but I'm not sure how important that is to do....
my babies
Re: Sick Kitten
Hi there!
So sorry your little kitty isn't feel so well.
I would have her tested for FIV. If she comes back positive for it and your current cat is negative you may have an issue.
Hopefully within a few days kitty starts to feel better. But, if you are still concerned please call your Vet.
BFP: July 2012 / 2nd Trimester Loss: October 2012 / D&C: November 2012
Benched, waiting on RPL testing.
First, thank you for rescuing this kitten from whatever poor situation she was in before. You're already giving her a better life by taking care of all her illnesses!
There's probably very little you can do to alleviate her discomfort from the diarrhea; possibly wiping her bum with a warm damp washcloth could make her feel a little better, but I'm not sure.
The most important thing is to make sure she keeps eating. Cats who do not eat for a day or two, yes, that fast, can develop something called hepatic lipidosis, which is life threatening and requires a lot of treatment. Entice her to eat with a quality and tasty wet food or canned tuna fish (in water!). Even giving her chicken or turkey baby food (plain chicken or turkey only) is a good move to get her to eat. When our cat was sick and stopped eating last winter, we were diluting chicken baby food with water and literally squirting it into her mouth with a syringe to get some nutrients into her! It's really THAT important that your kitty keep eating.
ETA: you might want to change your post title, as this has to do with a sick kitten, and not fostering. Others who have raised small kittens and dealt with sick kitties could have more insight, but might not come in thinking this is about fostering rather than illness.
B/w 1/8: betas 17,345, progesterone 25.6
Kittens shouldn't be tested for FIV until 6 months of age. Prior to that, you can get a false positive if the kittens' mother had FIV. Kittens usually inherit the antibodies, but not the virus.
FIV is spread through fighting/deep bite wounds, so as long as the cats get along, FIV+ can live with FIV- cats.
Thank you guys for your input! So far her diarrhea has slowed down from the yogurt... And she seems to be interested in her food only if i put warm water in it. I may try some wet food though if she still is being weird about it. Ive been feeding her blue buffalo kitten food but im concerned on how much she *should* be eating.. The package has instructions only for kittens 5 lbs and older and as of saturday shes only 2 pounds... Ive been keeping her bowl with enough food to cover the bottom and as she eats it I'm just adding more... Shes such a sweet little girl though. I think she's feeling better because she has SOMUCH energy!!! Acting more like a kitten should instead of sleeping all the time.
I also did change the title, thank you! I wasnt sure what to put, lol. I dont often post things.
Thank you for the info about FIV!! I didnt know that they could have false positives.
my babies
Following the feeding guidelines for 5-9 lb cats should be fine; if you think about it, a kitten needs a lot more food than an adult cat, and if my adult cats are recommended to get up to 1/2 C of food per day (being around 9 lbs!), following these same guidelines for your kitten should provide her little tummy with plenty of food. Just make sure to split it up into multiple smaller feedings per day.
B/w 1/8: betas 17,345, progesterone 25.6
my babies
I'm going to throw in a disclaimer here that I'm not a vet. I'm a behaviorist so while I have a lot of experience you should always consult your vet if you have any concerns. It's understandable that her bottom hurts if shes having diarrhea. Keep the vet updated on the diarrhea as this can lead to dehydration. It is VERY easy for a cat to dehydrate as they don't naturally have a high thirst drive. They are much closer to their wild ancestors than dogs and a lot of cats still naturally expect their water needs to come from their food. Even though she's seven weeks she's still within her weaning period which can extend to 8 weeks. Try wetting her food with the yogurt and/or consult your vet about putting her on a wet diet.
I would suggest speaking to your vet about FIV and Leukemia. Personally I had my cat vaccinated for Leukemia and (as she is an inside cat and the only cat) I didn't worry about FIV.
This is a link to a company called Dextar's Deli. They sell healthy foods for pets. The page I'm linking takes you to their Health info sheets page. I would suggest reading "Wet Foods for Cats." It's an easy read and reliable information. http://www.dextersdeli.com/health-info-sheets
Lastly, If she doesn't eat anything for 24 hours take her to the vet ASAP! Cat's aren't like humans. Their bodies start feeding off of muscle MUCH faster than ours. (for anyone else reading this even if your cat is overweight and stops eating you should consult the vet because it causes other chemical problems including certain organs to fail.)