Yesterday morning, while out on a Sunday walk with my husband, we found a tiny little kitten crying by the side of a path.
After catching it, we brought it home. I gave it a wash in the sink (its paws were filthy) and noticed it has fleas and its tummy is bloated.
I've kept it in the bathroom (since I have other cats and didn't want them getting fleas) tucked up warm in a little box.
It wouldn't eat anything all day, so I called the out-of-hours vet and managed to take it in last night.
The vet examined it, weighed it, and checked its temperature and blood sugar. She then managed to get it to eat a bit of that 'a/d' wet food or something similar.
Weight-wise: it's about 1.5 lbs (704g), estimated age: 6 weeks, temperature and blood sugar were both fine.
She gave me some worming treatment, which I gave it last night around 7 pm after getting back from the vet's.
I offered it some more wet food which it ate; it even went back to the bowl for more on its own. It's used the litter tray for a wee twice, once yesterday and once this morning.
However, no poo yet (so this morning I put a bit of liquid paraffin in its wet food – one of my other cats gets constipated, so I use it sometimes), and this morning its little belly is still swollen. I was searching online during the night and saw that FIP can also cause a bloated tummy. The vet told me its general condition was good and that it's probably just worms, but I'm panicking now I've seen the info about FIP...
How long do you think it takes for the wormer to work? And for the swelling to go down?
Thanks for your help.
Translated from French
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Hello @greylox,
Yes, it’s true that they need time to adjust to one another. My big boy is starting to come back to me a bit (he’s a real "velcro cat" and we’re very close), so I’ve been slightly worried about his mood.
The second one is pretty detached lol – he’s skittish, shy, and a bit of a loner. It took me years before I could even give him a proper fuss, and even now he’s not exactly obsessed with it. Recently, because of his teeth, I had to give him some antibiotics and it was a total nightmare! He started panicking, so I had to stop giving them to him directly. Now I’m crushing the tablet and mixing it with a tiny bit of margarine then spreading it on his paw, but even then he freaks out!
So he’s giving me the cold shoulder now, and on top of that, Ouistiti keeps chasing him and acting like a bit of a bully (the "you don't scare me, I’ll take you down whenever I want" type :). Poor thing, he’s staying upstairs more than he used to.
I’m going to keep taking things slowly with the three of them and do my best to respect the pecking order.
Thanks, your reply has really put my mind at ease.
Hi there,
It’s all still very early days.
You’ve got to give everyone a bit of time to find their feet.
Make sure you play with Ouistiti several times a day so he gives the poor "middle" lad a bit of peace.
The "old boy" will probably give you the cold shoulder for a while until he’s settled in.
Just do your best under the circumstances; you’re already on the right track.
He's been with us and his two "cat brothers" for about a fortnight now ;)
Ouistiti plays a lot, eats well and is fully house-trained. He isn’t much of a cuddler unless he wants some wet food or when it’s bedtime; then he purrs quite loudly and this morning he woke me up with his purring and by suckling on the blanket...
As for my other boys, things aren't going quite so well; they’re struggling to accept him and are pretty unsettled. My eldest has just had a check-up at the vet’s; his bloodwork was fine but he has an ear infection. He’s still trying to teach Ouistiti some manners, but he’s changed towards me and is becoming a bit distant.
Ouistiti bothers my younger one a lot more and doesn’t back down like he does with the big one, so he’s been retreating upstairs quite a bit (he did that already, as he doesn’t get on brilliantly with the eldest either). He needs to have two teeth out by the end of the month and he’s on antibiotics at the moment, so he’s not really in the right frame of mind to put up with the little one.
Other than that, Ouistiti is very, very bright! He figured out how to get onto the dining table in a single day—climbing up a chair and then from the chair to the table. I know I’m biased because he’s mine, but he’s honestly such a clever little thing :)))
I’m trying to give my other two plenty of attention so they don’t feel pushed out, but it’s not easy to find a balance (especially with one’s ear infection and the other’s dental issues).
I hope everything settles down soon for all of us.
Here’s a photo of him having a cuddle with my husband :)
Last night he was going absolutely mental, jumping all over me with his claws out. Eventually, I’d had enough (since his toys weren't doing the trick anymore), so I grabbed my big boy and put him right in front of him. He growled, gave him a little swipe, and that was that!
I’m absolutely cracking up at my screen. I can just picture the scene ^^
And thanks for offering to keep us updated; it’s always lovely to see how they’re getting on. Plus, you’ll be able to share your experience with others who might be in a similar situation :)
Thank you too for your kindness: a little monkey in good hands and a big brother like Pascal, it’s lovely to know that some are this lucky. Have a lovely day.
Anyway, thanks to both of you for the advice, it’s a massive help since I’ve never had a kitten this young or this lively before :) (it’s a sign of good health, mind you ^^).
I’ll do my absolute best for him and I’ll make sure to post regular photos and updates on how he’s getting on and his progress, etc.
Yeah, I think so, he’s the first one I’ve had who’s done this. My old girl had thick claws too towards the end of her life, to the point where the base of the claw was touching the pad, but they never actually grew into it. Yet with my oldest, it’s already happened three times. Anyway, Ouistiti is doing fine :) he’s playing a lot! Last night he was going absolutely bonkers, jumping all over me with his claws out. After a while, I’d had enough (since his toys weren't cutting it anymore), so I took my big lad and put him right in front of him. He gave a growl, a little swipe, and that was that! Ouistiti came back to me and finally settled down! It’s funny, I call my big one ‘the big brother’ now, like he’s some kind of teen whisperer :))
Hi,
@greylox
That’s great, it’s one less hassle to deal with. I have to do it for my oldest, who gets ingrown claws every now and then. The latest one was his dewclaw, which had grown right into the paw pad. So now I keep a close eye on my younger one just in case. I find their claws get much thicker as they get older; even with scratching posts, it's just not enough anymore.
@Ouistiti: we don’t clip their claws. They’ve got scratching posts and since they haven't got an ounce of aggression in them towards us, scratching is never an issue. The only scratch I’ve had in the last three years was an accident while playing with my boy.
@C&CàP: Yeah, not great at all. That’s why I started that thread when the little one was poorly, because it really got me down having to pester him four times a day to give him his meds. Plus, he’s never shown any aggression towards me, which sent my "guilt-o-meter" through the roof.
When they were kittens, we tried to force things a bit at first, like picking them up to put them on our laps and so on. But it was obviously the wrong approach with them. So, we ended up just letting them be rather than risking the bond we were trying to build. It paid off; even though the "Miss" is a bit quirky and isn't big on cuddles, her brother trusts us so much that he even lets us stroke his tummy.
Our vets adore them; having cats that don’t turn into "Taz" the moment they’re in the surgery is a nice break for them, but it’s still a bit heart-breaking to see them petrified on the examination table every time.
As for the carriers, we leave them out all the time now, but no matter what, they can still spot the subtle signs that a vet trip is coming up. We always try to be as quick and gentle as possible to keep the stress to a minimum.
