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Hello, My son found a litter of 4 kittens in the

Sent to Cat Experts June 22 03:13 AM

Hello,

My son found a litter of 4 kittens in the yard of the shop where he works, and since it is very hot in the summer around here, he brought them home to see if we could take care of them. They are most certainly from a wild mother. They appear very young, may have been abandoned by mom. Eyes are open, but they look to me as if they may have just opened a few days ago. In the morning, I am going to the pet store to get a bottle and some KLM kitten milk to feed them.

Two kitties seem to be in good health, alert and prowling around. The other two had eyes that were crusted shut (one was pretty bad). I moistened a cotton ball w/ warm water, and eventually the crust came off, but their eyes are still goopy, running a clear looking liquid, and one of them has a runny nose. I separated them so that the others don't get whatever these two have. Was wondering if their symptoms seem serious, or maybe they have a cold(??) or even worse - because we have been handling them of course. I am willing to take them to the vet, but am trying to minimize expense of treating them, since my husband is already angry that they are in the house (he is not an indoor pet person). Any help you can give me would be great.

 

Customer (name blocked for privacy)
Status:  Closed   Value: $8
Answer
June 22 8:12 AM (4 hours and 59 minutes and 32 seconds later)
         
REPLIEDCheck Mark
Bless you for taking the time to take these babies in...you can treat the eyes with terramycin ointment that you can purchase at many pet supply stores or online at www.revivalanimal.com. Clean the eyes and put the ointment in twice a day. You should see a vast improvement in 2 or 3 days. After feeding, make certain you stimulate their genital area with cotton ball or tissue to make them urinate and deficate as they are unable to pass body waste without direct stimulation. If they develope a yellow or green nasal discharge, then you need to take them into the vet, however, you can treat the eye problems at home. Keep an eye on the clear drainage from the one kitten's nose to make sure it doesn't become stuffed up or change color. Clear drainage is usually viral in nature and the vet will only give supportive therapy. Yellow or green discharge is probably bacterial. Please let me know if I can assist further with this litter. Again, bless you for caring for these infants!

Edited by kydoll on June 22 2006 at 8:16 AM

Please Press ACCEPT if my answer helped solve your problem.
Lori McLaughlin
Your veterinarian should ALWAYS be consulted first and foremost when your pet's welfare is at stake.
1 Other Expert Agrees with this!
Lori -- Feline Healthcare -- 100% Positive Feedback on 2821 Cat Accepts
14 yrs health care mgmt & issues relating to cats, reproductive issues and multicat environments
Reply
June 22 10:41 AM (2 hours and 28 minutes and 32 seconds later)
         
Reply to Lori's Post: Thank you very much, Lori. I think that your response has been very helpful. I have had many pets over the years, and am familiar with Terramycin. As soon as the pet store opens, I will get on it.

Can I ask just two more questions? First, should I be concerned that their eye problems can be transmitted to any of the people in our house? Do I need to wash my hands every time I handle them? (I have bad eczema and my hands are ALWAYS dry and irritated, so I try to avoid washing more than I have to.) Lastly, it appears that you are a cat breeder, so can you give me any advice as to what I need to do to make sure these little guys are healthy before I find them homes? I.e., vaccines? De-worming? Since they are from a wild mother, should I be concerned about rabies??? Other than the eye problems, they appear to be normal.

I am actually happy to have the opportunity to care for them and love on them (although the hubby isn't). Both my 18-year-old son and I love animals, so he is going to help me (which really makes me proud). I have a lot of experience raising small kittens...growing up, I lived in the country and unfortunately on several occasions my mom and I had to raise litters of newborns after the mothers were killed (one by a car, the other probably from coyotes). I remember those times with extreme happiness - it was very rewarding!!
Customer (name blocked for privacy)
Answer
June 22 11:14 AM (33 minutes and 26 seconds later)
         
ACCEPTEDCheck Mark

I would keep your hands washed, although I've never heard of feline eye infections transmitting to humans, in theory, I'm certain it could happen.

Most vets are pretty understanding when it comes to a litter of kittens - 4 times the expense, so they will usually take one fecal sample and treat the whole litter if the sample is positive for parasites to save you some money on 4 separate fecal floats. I wouldn't treat for them unless you have a positive stool sample-and take a little stool from several droppings to try to cover all the kittens.

Vaccinations - FVRCP one at 8 weeks one at 12 weeks is standard. They aren't able to get rabies until 16 weeks in most states and they will have natural antibodies against them from mom up until that time. Even if she was rabid, the kittens wouldn't be carriers. I 'think' that's probably all you really need. If you see diarrhea and/or blood in the stool, it's probably coccidia or giardia - and again, treat the whole litter since it's passed via the litter box. You are in for such a fun few weeks. Kittens are such joy, and you are a great lady for taking this little band under your wing. I'd be happy to help further if you need assistance!



Edited by kydoll on June 22 2006 at 11:15 AM

Please Press ACCEPT if my answer helped solve your problem.
Lori McLaughlin
Your veterinarian should ALWAYS be consulted first and foremost when your pet's welfare is at stake.
Lori -- Feline Healthcare -- 100% Positive Feedback on 2821 Cat Accepts
14 yrs health care mgmt & issues relating to cats, reproductive issues and multicat environments
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