My Found Kitten “Lucky”

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  • 24 June, 2011 at 8:41 pm #45990
    billybob78216
    Participant

    Hello all you cat lovers out there, I am new to this forum, and I have a little problem.

    This past Memorial Day, I was BBQing in the backyard when I discovered a mother feeding her babies outside the shed. One look at me and she was off in a flash. I looked over the babies left stranded there, and didn’t like what I saw, so I left them alone figuring the mom would come back for them. One by one either the kittens were removed or walked off, except for one. It muddled and meowed for hours in the Texas sun. Mom never came back. I supposed I could have left it there overnight and sure mom would get her, but I decided to take that last one in for myself.

    She was in bad shape with a terrible case of the fleas. So so small, weak and could barely move or wasn’t combative at all, like other feral cats I’ve known. It’s eyes were so big, so irresistible to me… a guy who hasn’t had a cat for over 30 years, when I had many kittens and cats growing up.

    I quarantined her for a couple of weeks until I was sure she was clean again and appeared to cling to life. I fed it with a dropper replacement milk. She has since graduated to solid kitten foods from a bowl. She is a most playful and adorable house kitten today, being the best playmate my new puppy (of 14 weeks), a Mini Schnauzer could ever have.

    Last week I took her for her first checkup with the vet. She is so tiny compared to the other kittens they are selling there at PetSmart. The doctor had estimated she is around 8 weeks. Her eyes almost solid black, and are malformed where there are extra membranes that cover the eye, even to a point where it looks open still when she has them closed… so I am concerned about that. A SNAP test discovered she is positive for the Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV). This brought me heartbreak, not sure what to do. It appears FeLV has something to do with her eyes, even though the Vet couldn’t describe or diagnose it except to call it crocodile eye. Because of FeLV, she will never be allowed to socialize with other cats and must always be kept indoors. I plan not to have her spayed, but declawed.

    Here are some pictures of Lucky.

    http://i1080.photobucket.com/albums/j338/billybob78216/06102011140.jpg

    http://i1080.photobucket.com/albums/j338/billybob78216/06092011122.jpg

    http://i1080.photobucket.com/albums/j338/billybob78216/06092011120.jpg

    I purchased a year plan at the Pet Hospital at PetSmart. I’ll do what I can to keep her healthy and a happy little critter for as long as I can. Any thoughts out there?

    24 June, 2011 at 8:49 pm #672325
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Hello Bill! I really can’t offer any advice, having no experience with tiny kittens or FeLV, but I just wanted to say thank you for taking in this little creature and caring for her and loving her. The pictures break my heart, especially the first one. She’s a cutie.

    24 June, 2011 at 8:52 pm #672326
    Jetta and Boo Boo’s Mom
    Participant

    Thank you for rescuing this little one! Just a quick word, we are not permitted, by the owner of this site, to talk about declawing.

    Now… you should, for her long term health, get her spayed. She will be happier, healthier and it’s just good for her. Otherwise you will have males calling at all hours of the night and the chance of her accidentally getting out are great.

    I know that FeLV cats can and do live long and healthy lives. she can have a companion cat, most especially another FeLV positive cat. You can find them at lots of places that adopt. They are so hard to adopt out and you would be saving a kitty from a live of boredom and sadness. Just a thought.

    http://www.bestfriends.org has info about FeLV on it’s website. It’s slow around here on the weekends so lets try and keep this bumped up for you. I will check out her photo’s soon!

    Welcome to TDK!

    24 June, 2011 at 9:30 pm #672327
    DancingCatHill
    Participant

    What a little sweet heart Lucky is, and you to for being her Knight in Shining Armour!! As JJB’s Mom said you can get her a companion that also has FeLV. I would also urge you to have her spayed for her health and well being, as much as your own. I’ve not heard of that vision problem before but even if she would become completely blind cats can function very well indoors with that disability. There is a book about a blind cat called “Homer” which tells an amazing story. Best of luck to you and little Lucky!

    24 June, 2011 at 9:42 pm #672328
    AZDEBRA 5/27 & crew
    Participant

    And if you are on FaceBook, there is a site for Homer the blind cat plus there are sites for blind cat rescues who could prob give you lots of info about your little one. Good luck with her, she will be your best friend.

    24 June, 2011 at 9:45 pm #672329
    Kiplings_cat
    Participant

    Check with your vet; I thought I read somewhere to retest in a month or two as the SNAP test tests for the virus itself, and some cats are able to clear the infection. Since she is so young, she was presumably infected at birth. And it is very hard for FeLV-positve cats to find homes, so any no-kill shelter should have plenty of potential playmates.

    Why exactly do you not plan to spay her? Besides the risk of unwanted pregnancy (and never underestimate the determination of cats; one poster described coming home from a holiday to a male cat suitor who moved in with their female-in-heat while they were away!), her kittens would likely be infected as well. Since you aren’t planning to breed her (I hope) there is no drawback to spaying her.

    The Petsmart kittens may be closer to 10-12 weeks, and Lucky has had a tough time. But with good nutrition and an absence of parasites, she may be able to do some catch-up growing.

    24 June, 2011 at 10:55 pm #672330
    Jax_Dusky
    Participant

    My youngest, Ducky, tested positive for FeLV when I took him in to be neutered. I was so heartbroken and the vet asked me if I still wanted to go through with getting him neutered and I did. When he was between 6 and 8 months old I got him retested and he was negative. Which led them to belive that he tested false positive and his mother was the positive one. So there is a possibility that Lucky had a false positive. Like others have said, please get her spayed. If she has other issues you don’t want her health from not getting spayed to be one of them.

    24 June, 2011 at 11:19 pm #672331
    ecbrown
    Participant

    Welcome to TDK and congratulations to you and Lucky for finding each other. It seems like I’ve read that feline leukemia tests aren’t as accurate on young kittens. (I read a lot so I could be mistaken.) But, I guess if the eyes are associated with it the vet has reason to trust the results. I’ve also heard that unspayed females are hard to live with….lots of nighttime noises and trying to escape to reproduce when they are in heat. I think the advice to get her spayed is wise. May you have a long and happy relationship with Lucky! She’s a cutie.

    25 June, 2011 at 3:00 am #672332
    ladysky61
    Participant

    Like JD said, she may turn up negative later on. False positives are common in young kittens. However if it turns out that she is indeed FELV positive, it’s not a death sentance. It just means that she may require more care and she will be more susceptible to diseases. But FELV kitties can still love a long time. Also, I agree, that you should consider adopting another FELV kitten/young cat to keep the little one company and you would be saving a life. FELV cats are usually easy to find at no-kill cat shelters. If I had a FELV cat that’s what I would do.

    You should spay your kitten. It can be done the same time as a declawing, if you chose to do that. Even without the FELV, she’s susceptible to infections and cancers of the reproductive trait and she will try to get out when she’s in heat and that is obviously very bad.

    One last thing, when things are settled, please contact a Trap-Neuter-Release organization to trap the feral cat(s) in your backyard. Otherwise you will have many more in a short time.

    25 June, 2011 at 3:57 am #672333
    billybob78216
    Participant

    Wow! What a wonderful group and great response. I have talked to three vets now who’s votes came down to a draw where I couldn’t make a good decision. Now I feel I can gauge much better now what to do. So many experienced opinions to assist me, and less biased. Thank you all for your input and time.

    She is not blind at all; she can play and follow toys remarkably. I questioned maybe if it was her hearing that enabled her to follow things because she often cannot identify her Pounce treat unless I put it to her nose. When I put a toy silently above her head, she will look up and attack it! 🙂 When in bright sunlight you can see she does have the normal vertical slits and perhaps a green color. Maybe it is just immature eyes we are looking at and all this Lucky will grow out of. My pictures I selected I hoped would show you what I am talking about. She is so young I can’t tell today if they are normal for her age.

    She is right here with our family playing and we are having a good discussion about your good advice about her condition. She is very loved by all.

    I also appreciate the concern of “gniwalced” (spelled backwards in effort to conceal discussion of the thing we are not to talk about lol). The pet hospital offers a choice between that and spaying, and I figured I can control where she goes or comes into contact with and most folks I’ve spoken with said she might have a year to live, so I didn’t think spaying was a good option.

    When Lucky and Dirty Harry (our Schnauzer) play, and sometimes it could look quite rough, we worry that someone will lose an eye to one of those claws. My hands and arms already have battle scars lol. My decisions are not in stone. Perhaps a nail trim or file to dull the sharp points down could be done instead, and get her spayed for all the reasons given.

    Thanks very much again!

    25 June, 2011 at 4:01 am #672334
    Jetta and Boo Boo’s Mom
    Participant

    If you start trimming her nails now she will be used to it. Tag-team is always best, one to scruff (like a mom kitty would carry her around) and one to gently press her paws for the nails to come out and clip away!

    25 June, 2011 at 12:40 pm #672335
    ecbrown
    Participant

    I have three rambunctious “teenage” kittens (13, 11 and 7 months old) and I can trim all their claws in less than 10 minutes. It’s easy once you get the hang of it. There are videos and precise instructions on the internet to get you started if you are interested. You also really only need to do the front claws. The back seem to stay short with normal activity. (I had the vet do the back for me once just to get started.) Trimmed claws are much easier on the furniture and skin.

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