Injured Kitten Advice Needed

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  • #833944
    Halet
    Participant

    I stopped by the store and saw no “kitten” food what-so-ever. Same store that does not carry any milk replacement. I picked up two cans of 9 lives meaty pate; one is a seafood flavor and the other is whitefish. Those where the only ones that were not chunks. Little Sam took to it VERY quickly. I broke the seal on it and let him smell it and he started licking the can itself he wanted it so much. I gave him about two-three and a half spoonfuls as there are no instructions for a kitten his age. It also had nothing written on it about refrigerating leftovers but I did it anyway (wouldn’t see why it wouldn’t be on the label.) I did not want him eating far too much but he calmed down his begging after I put it away. He got a bit of milk afterward. I’m not 100% sure on what to avoid for kittens but options are limited around here, it seems.
    Here is one of them with the nutritional things on it. Meaty Paté With Real Ocean Whitefish

    Since he could start transitioning to the wet foods, I’m not sure how to adjust his intake and schedule, given that every brand is different and how much milk to give with it as well. He still makes attempts to nurse on the towel or padding lining his box. The wet food diet will help him gain weight a little better than the only milk diet. His little sock and bandage slipped right off when he did one of his giant leaps onto the bed out of his box. I got him quickly and had to hold to him really roughly to simply sip it back on and roll it up a little more over the elbow. Seeing that his leg doesn’t seem as big, I put a rubber band on the upper portion to get it to hold. Not tight at all just enough to give it that little grip that I think was lost out of the elastics of the sock. Makes me wonder if there is some sort of way to make a “slip on” sock bandage as that had almost no struggle to it. It would be different if he had something that would catch the bandage such as a scab or a patch of skin and fur, but he doesn’t.

    One of the cats was inside for a while and made a lot of growling at the kitten and a bit of hissing. Sam took her by surprise but she made no attempts to harm him, only smell of him. I turned out the light and went to pick him up to put him back in his box before I let her back out and he went into the biggest hissing, spitting, and flipping fight with me for a moment till I turned the light on. He was so focused on that other cat I guess I startled the love out of him for a moment. At least his defenses are not down around the other cats. I gave Sam so many little kisses and nuzzles… I felt so bad for spooking him.

    #833951
    CheetahBoysmommy
    Participant

    When you take the can out of the refrigerator to give him more, mix in some warm water. I usually use about 2/3 food and 1/3 water. Slightly warm food smells better to cats, plus you’ll know he’s getting sufficient liquid. You could also use warm kitten milk. The little bit of extra liquid will keep him from getting constipated again.

    #833958
    Kittyzee
    Participant

    Halet, please look at the links I posted a few posts back to help you with food and other things. These links are FULL of information on caring for kittens, or I wouldn’t have posted them. He really can have any wet food, it doesn’t have to be kitten. I don’t know where you live, but these things could be even purchased on line if you don’t have access to them locally. Also, the goat’s milk is much cheaper than the KMR and most places have it available. The canned would be in the baking section of your grocery and is condensed so you mix water 1 to 1. Cow’s milk contains lactose which give some cats/kittens diarrhea so it’s not recommended.
    When you spooked him in the dark, I’m sure he didn’t know it was you so that’s why he reacted like he did. I wouldn’t worry about his food intake at this point. He needs the nutrition so put some on a plate and let him eat, he will stop when he’s full. Keep his litterbox nearby and put him in it when he’s finished eating (20 min. or so) and he will know everything he needs is within a short walking distance away.

    #833959
    Kittyzee
    Participant

    Also, if you can’t find the pate, and only have chunky style..mash them up with a fork and make the chunks smaller…he sounds like he won’t have any problem with it.

    #833967
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Halet,

    I’ve been reading your posts and am glad you and Sam are doing so well. You’re doing a great job! Here’s a couple of links on how to raise money for Sam’s bills. I think every bit helps out.

    Help with Vet Bills


    http://www.gofundme.com/Animals-Pets/

    Keep up the good work.

    #833987
    Halet
    Participant

    He is taking well to the cat food. One of the sites, when I read it before, mentioned not to use much cat food with fish in it for diarrhea issues but he had only a tiny bout of it then seems to be alright afterward. He seems to do his hungry mews around the same times as on regular milk, even if he feeds till content. He is sleeping through the night, however. Perhaps he can keep that habit. If the litter box is fully clean, he seems to only want to play inside of it. I’ll have to keep at least one dropping of a sort in there to remind him it is for that. I don’t want him getting litter around the wound. He starts to run around a lot after I take him out of his litter box (probably the built up energy he got from playing in there) and only tumbles out once or twice from off balance. Right now, he hasn’t any issues with his leg or the abscess coming back.

    My parakeet wanted me to pick him up since I was playing so much with Sam. When I did, he was eyeing the kitten and Sam eyed back. I put them both on the bed and the little birdie ran right over to him and began preening his whiskers and pecking him lightly on his nose. Sam ran around a bit to get away but laid down, giving the parakeet a chance to try preening his fur. Neither of them seem to mind each others presence, which is wonderful, and they do not fight. I’m still going to watch them both carefully if they want each other’s company. Animal saliva is not wonderful for birds but it can do a little more harm than human saliva (from kisses) do.

    #833992
    Halet
    Participant

    I spoke a bit too soon regarding “no issues.” I’m unable to remove his bandage as the padding moved down a little and bunched in a spot. This is preventing me from getting it off of his leg or even slipping the bandage off, which makes me think the leg swelled a little more. It doesn’t appear swollen but it is extremely difficult to get it off now as the person who helps me cannot come by today. I put a bit of the given medicine on the little bit I could get exposed and rolled the sock further up over his elbow. He doesn’t seem to be in pain right now and I really don’t want to cut it off since if I graze along his leg it will make him jerk around, possibly causing a worse injury. He took his oral medicine fine.
    Every time there is a slight difficulty, I get so worried. The vet is closed right now and, apparently, closes very early on Wednesdays. He is making a lot of attempts to lick at either the medicine or the bandage since it is now a little higher than normal. Right now, he is roughly 14 ounces.

    #833993
    Kittyzee
    Participant

    I wouldn’t worry about the canned food being fish. There are many varieties out there and my cats eat it along with poultry all the time.
    When I start litter training, I always leave a couple of droppings in the box along with some pee…they sniff around and almost always ‘go’ after sniffing it in there. It may take a while, watching them go around in circles, but they end up being successful. I love hearing about the interaction between your bird and Sam. This could be the beginning of a long relationship between the two. As long as they can trust each other, why not?
    I can’t advise you on his wound as I have not had to deal with that in any of my kittens. But sounds like you and he are coping and he is doing well.

    #834032
    Buttons
    Moderator

    Poor little Sam 🙂 it seems like your Doing an amazing job looking after him though 🙂

    You’ve for some great advice from the regulars here! I can’t add much more other than to say my Mr Noodle had his right front leg amputated at 10 weeks old due to twisted leg syndrome and sever nerve damage. He was lucky as he never had feeling in that leg or if he did it would have only been for the first week or two of his life.. So Mr Noodle didn’t have to worry about phantom pain syndrome . Your vet is correct it is extremely common in trauma amputees to suffer for this sometimes weeks after the amputation.. And I suspect other than feeling discomfort now he is probably already suffering from phantom pain because of the partial amputation already preformed. And it must have to horrible to witness but not havering a vet nearby and it not being the ideal situation it probably saved the kittens life.. Blood poisoning ( septicemia) is the main cause of death in animals with sever open wounds.

    As for future amputation it’s probably wise as what is left of the foot might not be able to handle the constant wear of contact with surfaces so sometimes like Mr Noodle a full amputation was best.. A front leg amputation can sometimes effect the balance of a
    Cat slightly and they have to be cafeful with jumping off things but a hind (back) leg amputation doesn’t cause all Issues really..

    Oh also if you want to get his weight up get some L-lysine in your local health food shop .. 500mg twice daily will improve his immune system and help fight any infections and it’s great for weight gain too 🙂

    Best of luck 🙂

    #834049
    Halet
    Participant

    I managed to find someone else to hold Sam down (kept giving me the “I was a nurse. Do it like this” what not and then Sam would screech so terribly) so I could get his bandage off. It had soaked up so much of the blood and infection that it near glued itself to his leg. I had to cut it all over slowly and then rip it off quickly, much to the little one’s distaste. I’m just glad I could re-bandage it because I was getting very worried about it getting worse. These little socks are not stretchy like that vet described them. I had to force it over a oddly wrapped bandage I put on him while the Miss held to him and he just screamed and bit so hard on her and me. I didn’t have much choice because I didn’t want him getting a glimpse of it and then trying to chew. The leg appears to have shrunk… or something. I’m not sure whether it is due to scabbing and it “looking” smaller or if it is indeed shrinking upward. I doubt the bone in him is disintegrating so I have to figure it only looks so due to his new scabs. He is now fighting me a bit when I give him his oral medicine.

    He is purring a lot more now and is getting into every nook and cranny in my house! I ended up getting him by his tail by accident because he was half into a spot I know I would have not gotten him out of. I put a box there to keep him out. He keeps “cleaning” his bandage, as if there was just a regular leg there. Holds it up for lickings then nibbles (I press on his head to stop the chewing. Licking is fine but I don’t want any more issues with the bandage.) I’m not sure if it is dust or something else but he has a watery eye right now. I’m able to take care of that and even have medicine for that for kittens.

    If ever he starts doing his screeching, the sounds they make when they get tails or paws stepped on and such, he does it so loud and constant without a breath. I’ve a horrible memory from when I was little regarding a litter of kittens and an accident and if I hear the sounds too long, I began to get shaky and go into a near panic attack. That’s really the bigger reason I need someone helping me who wont snap at me or try to dictate what I’m doing. Well, truly I just want them to hush their mouth and let me do it. I ended up having to do this one on the floor because my breath got so shaky and my legs went to sleep. The miss just kept telling me I was being “too gentle.” Those little bones are paper thin! I just don’t want to cause anymore trouble.

    In regards to his weight gain, Buttons, I really just have to stick with foods. You cannot find near anything in these stores for animal care, just basic pet things. I did find him two mouse toys and he loved them.

    #834052
    Kittyzee
    Participant

    Halet, you are doing such wonderful things for little Sam. I know how it must hurt to hear him scream, but there doesn’t seem to be anything for it except to soldier through until you have him cleaned and his bandage redone. The Lysine that Buttons was describing is actually an over the counter remedy that is for humans. You can pick it up at Walmart even. The pills are big, white 500 mg or 1000mg and I put them in the blender and turn them to dust. If you sprinkle some on his wet food, it is odorless and tasteless. I give it to my cats (I have 4 inside, 3 outside) and it helps with weepy eyes and gives their immune system a boost. Their eyes cleared up and they don’t have sniffles anymore.
    You brought me to tears when you said he loved his mouse toys. The tenderness with which you care for him touches my heart. He knows you love and care for him. 🙂

    #834054
    Cheri Hoyt
    Participant

    Halet, God bless you for taking care of Little Sam. Please get a paypal account so I cam give you some money for his care. I really want to do this…

    #834110
    Halet
    Participant

    Cheri, I could not accept something like that. I can get it, it will just take a bit. His surgery is not needed extremely soon as they wanted him to be a little older and weigh more.

    Right now, his wound is fine but he got really sick it seems. I went to get his food from the refrigerator and came back to a large amount of feces on my bed in one spot. It isn’t liquidy but but it was fairly soft and greyish. Might of been a bit more brown but lighting in the room is odd but seemed grey when I got it. He drank milk in the night and this is starting only about twenty minutes ago. He was playful earlier playing with a string of beads and such but now he is laying his head down on the bed, doesn’t want to be picked up and seems more lethargic than sleepy. He slept near all day yesterday. He did throw up some of the milk but that might of been a bit of over intake. It was a bit bubbly and white, so I assumed the goat milk. Not long after his mess on the bed and throw up, he used the bathroom again in his sleeping box. First a bit liquidy and then it got more mushy but not solid like previous ones. It was much more brown, similar to the food color. I started to think perhaps it is him eating too fast and his body just having a lot to digest at once but his movement made me think it could be something else. He still purrs when I pet on him enough. He cries out more when I pick him up and will do similarly when he looks around for a better spot to sleep after I picked him up. When he lays his head down, it is really slow and more of his had facing downward than out with his nose pointed down on the bed fabric. He still seems alert when I move in the bed a lot and he will jolt his head up.
    I would hate for him to be taken out for something that might have occurred in the time I had him and not due to his leg as I’ve been doing so much to keep the little one there.

    #834115
    Kittyzee
    Participant

    On top of all the other things that he has had to overcome, he most certainly has worms or other parasites, unless he has been wormed by the vet. I don’t like that he is lethargic. You may have to give him some karo syrup rubbed on his gums to perk his sugar levels a bit. You don’t want him getting dehydrated with vomiting and diarrhea. The goat’s milk should settle him, but I am worried about infection. He didn’t swallow something he shouldn’t when he was playing with beads? When a cat holds it’s head the way you are describing, it usually means they are unwell. Well, we know that he has issues with his leg, but I fear that it is something else troubling his system. Please remember this, if something should happen to little Sam, it will not be your fault. Sometimes kittens are taken from us for no reason. I have lost many kittens that I have labored over for days and weeks. It is the successes that keeps me going, as my heart has been broken over and over. I am praying for this to have a positive outcome for both you and Sam. I would definitely call the vet, because this may take professional intervention.

    #834118
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    I would call the vet. and ask to deworm wee Sam. Start with the easiest action and I hope that’s all you have to do.

    #834120
    Halet
    Participant

    He did not swallow anything. I keep a good eye on him when he does play mostly because I don’t want him finding new ways to take the sock off. It might have been Sam’s medicine, actually. Thinking about it now, I do not recall if I gave him his oral medication last night or not. I tend to have to go by how much was in it previously due to it being midnight when he gets it and I am a bit tired at that time. I gave it to him a little while after his sickness upset because I did not want him to throw it up immediately afterward. I let him alone for a few hours in the room on his own to nap (took the parakeet out due to his noisiness) then had his bandage changed and gave him just milk and a little water. He seems to be doing a lot better and is just sleeping a bit more, holding his head better than he did.

    I have had many cats to have worms and he doesn’t look as if he has those, at least not roundworms. There was nothing else in his feces but feces, which is what you need to look for with parasites from what I’ve had to deal with. Belly is not hard and not extremely swollen. His vomit did not have anything in it either. He might of just had a really bad stomach upset and cleared it out.

    He was chewing on his mouse toy and carrying it back to his sleeping spot on my bed. He had just got so sickly for those few hours it worried me. The medicine might have helped him since they use that amoxicillin for a lot of infections and such, mostly outer wounds but still.

    #834123
    Kittyzee
    Participant

    Yes Halet, the amoxicillin may have been the culprit. Sometimes antibiotics give kittens diarrhea and stomach upset. The goat’s milk does help with that though as it contains probiotics. You are caring for him so well, I don’t want you to think that I am criticizing. I think you are wonderful for taking him in and loving him!

    #834124
    Halet
    Participant

    He is much more active now. Jumping around, practicing one handed attacks, and figuring out what parts of me are weak to teeth. I hope whatever it was, though, stays gone. I’m going to keep him off the wet food for a day or two so I can get his system to flush a little better with some milk and water. And I know you are not criticizing me. I might sound uneasy in things i say but it is just because I get worried about him.

    Another thing, his leg only seems to be bleeding from the top where scabs would get pulled. The rest seems to be excess moisture and a bit of infection and does not scab as much. The abscess has also not come back and the fur is starting to regrow on that little patch that bulged out.

    #834125
    Kittyzee
    Participant

    I know Halet, you are just voicing your concerns out loud and to people who care and have been in your shoes. It’s okay, that’s why we are here. I want little Sam to prosper and thrive. Good to hear he is feeling better and I’m praying he stays that way–he sounds like a perfectly normal, ornery kitten!

    #834221
    Halet
    Participant

    Sam’s little socks comes off much easier now… Some are a bit stretched and have lost some elasticity due to washing but even the one that I had not used came off fairly quick after he moved around a lot. I had to resort to putting a bit of a tighter rubber band on it that I think is irritating him but it does not seem tight enough to cut circulation. With his leg shrinking to normal size and quite thin, the socks are not squeezing to it like they used to. I do not see surgical tape sticking to it or really doing much of a difference to hold it in place. If I were to wrap the top of it or adhere it to his fur, he would only chew it off. I cannot find the “No Chew” spray I had used the first time (no success then but anything is worth a shot.) I have not any hair ties that fit the right way without being too tight or too loose. With just a lot of walking and hoping causing the thing to come off, the e-collars would only prevent his biting and pulling it off, not it just sliding off with ease. He wants so badly to clean that area but even the medicine does not deter little Sam.

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