Interstate Kitten

bdk103

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Last Saturday evening, my wife and I were heading back from a family visit when we saw a kitten in the middle of the interstate as cars were dodging it. I immediately pulled over and had to wait for cars/trucks to pass before I could grab her. She was in pretty bad shape, all skin and bones. We took her home and quarantined her from our other two cats and called an emergency vet, who told us to try and give it bottle nutrients and see if she takes it. They said if she bites the nipple, then try solid food to get her through the night until we can take her to the vet the next day. Well, we tried the nipple and she ripped off the tip with two chomps (why in the world are these bottle tips so easy to tear off?). She swallowed it before we could grab it. I promptly took her to the ER and they ran a comprehensive test on her along with x-rays and radiograph. It turns out, the poor thing was eating rocks because it was so hungry. It has a rock in her stomach that was a little larger than the nipple and the pebbles in her intestines were nearly out of her GI. They don't want to do surgery because of her age and condition. She also has an upper respiratory infection, ear infection, ear mites and fleas. I wouldn't be surprised if she has intestinal parasites as well, but we didn't have a sample at the time. 

Well, it's Wednesday and we've been treating her for the infections and got rid of the fleas. We can't treat the mites until 8 weeks they said. She's eating a lot and pooping (a little pasty, but not completely runny). Her energy is extreme and wants to play all the time. The vet said to watch for signs of obstruction and take her in as soon as signs become present. This doesn't stop me from worrying about the rock and nipple tip. Obviously she needs these out of her stomach ASAP, but her next follow up is in another week. That seems too long to me, but multiple sources keep telling me that same thing. 

Anyone had this experience? I'm willing to do whatever it takes for her to be healthy.
 

margd

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I don't have an answer to your question but just wanted to say how wonderful it is that you rescued this little one. Does she have a name yet? She sounds like a real survivor - running around even though she has so many problems. Poor little baby, eating rocks. I wonder if someone threw her out of a car. These things make me so angry. Thank heavens you came along!

Fingers crossed everything passes out of her tiny digestive system without trouble.
 

stephenq

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Last Saturday evening, my wife and I were heading back from a family visit when we saw a kitten in the middle of the interstate as cars were dodging it. I immediately pulled over and had to wait for cars/trucks to pass before I could grab her. She was in pretty bad shape, all skin and bones. We took her home and quarantined her from our other two cats and called an emergency vet, who told us to try and give it bottle nutrients and see if she takes it. They said if she bites the nipple, then try solid food to get her through the night until we can take her to the vet the next day. Well, we tried the nipple and she ripped off the tip with two chomps (why in the world are these bottle tips so easy to tear off?). She swallowed it before we could grab it. I promptly took her to the ER and they ran a comprehensive test on her along with x-rays and radiograph. It turns out, the poor thing was eating rocks because it was so hungry. It has a rock in her stomach that was a little larger than the nipple and the pebbles in her intestines were nearly out of her GI. They don't want to do surgery because of her age and condition. She also has an upper respiratory infection, ear infection, ear mites and fleas. I wouldn't be surprised if she has intestinal parasites as well, but we didn't have a sample at the time. 

Well, it's Wednesday and we've been treating her for the infections and got rid of the fleas. We can't treat the mites until 8 weeks they said. She's eating a lot and pooping (a little pasty, but not completely runny). Her energy is extreme and wants to play all the time. The vet said to watch for signs of obstruction and take her in as soon as signs become present. This doesn't stop me from worrying about the rock and nipple tip. Obviously she needs these out of her stomach ASAP, but her next follow up is in another week. That seems too long to me, but multiple sources keep telling me that same thing. 

Anyone had this experience? I'm willing to do whatever it takes for her to be healthy.
The things to watch for re: blockage is any combo of: vomiting, constipation, loss of appetite, and lethargy. Did the vet suggest any lubricant to help pass the stones, like Nutrical as an example?
 
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bdk103

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Thank you for the concern; we took her to another vet outside of town that is known to be one of the best in the state. They took additional xrays and it appears that the rock and bottle nipple are moving along and getting close to the colon. This is such great news to us, but we're not out of the woods yet! She was also treated for ear mites and dewormed. We can't get her vaccinated until the infections resolve, however, it appears that her respiratory cleared up and her ears are now pink instead of red. She really is a true survivor. My younger cat (1 year old) is going crazy wanting to meet her. 

StephenQ, yes the vet said the exact same thing. He didn't want to try lubricant until it reaches the colon and that the Royal Cannin wet food would suffice for moving things along. He said his staff is competent enough to perform surgery if it's needed. I'm very optimistic at this point. I'll have more updates after her follow-up next Monday.
 
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bdk103

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Jexzy, it was our pleasure! Kiwi seems to be doing just fine. Still passing stools and eating a lot. VERY playful.

Thanks Stephen, Kiwi is going to be a great playmate for our cat Willow, who is too hyper for our older cat Buffy.
 

paiger8

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Thanks Stephen, Kiwi is going to be a great playmate for our cat Willow, who is too hyper for our older cat Buffy.
I love your cat names. :) I'm a big Buffy fan. I'm actually considering the name Buffy for the cat I adopted last week. She's basically a vampire and only comes out at night. Considering Angel or Spike for her brother that I adopted with her. 


Congrats on the new kitten!
 
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bdk103

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LOL! Naming cats after Buffy characters runs in the family. We ran out of female names, so Kiwi is the first one out of the theme. Too funny
 

stephenq

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Jexzy, it was our pleasure! Kiwi seems to be doing just fine. Still passing stools and eating a lot. VERY playful.

Thanks Stephen, Kiwi is going to be a great playmate for our cat Willow, who is too hyper for our older cat Buffy.
Congrats!
 
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bdk103

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Kiwi just passed the bottle nipple tip and we think the rock also. Hard to tell with the rock because of how coarse the litter is. We will know for sure on Monday when she gets a radiograph. This is awesome news!
 

ruaryx

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Kiwi just passed the bottle nipple tip and we think the rock also. Hard to tell with the rock because of how coarse the litter is. We will know for sure on Monday when she gets a radiograph. This is awesome news!
Yay!!! I'm as relieved as if she was my own. [emoji]10084[/emoji]️[emoji]10084[/emoji]️[emoji]10084[/emoji]️[emoji]10084[/emoji]️
 

Kat0121

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Last Saturday evening, my wife and I were heading back from a family visit when we saw a kitten in the middle of the interstate as cars were dodging it. I immediately pulled over and had to wait for cars/trucks to pass before I could grab her. She was in pretty bad shape, all skin and bones. We took her home and quarantined her from our other two cats and called an emergency vet, who told us to try and give it bottle nutrients and see if she takes it. They said if she bites the nipple, then try solid food to get her through the night until we can take her to the vet the next day. Well, we tried the nipple and she ripped off the tip with two chomps (why in the world are these bottle tips so easy to tear off?). She swallowed it before we could grab it. I promptly took her to the ER and they ran a comprehensive test on her along with x-rays and radiograph. It turns out, the poor thing was eating rocks because it was so hungry. It has a rock in her stomach that was a little larger than the nipple and the pebbles in her intestines were nearly out of her GI. They don't want to do surgery because of her age and condition. She also has an upper respiratory infection, ear infection, ear mites and fleas. I wouldn't be surprised if she has intestinal parasites as well, but we didn't have a sample at the time. 

Well, it's Wednesday and we've been treating her for the infections and got rid of the fleas. We can't treat the mites until 8 weeks they said. She's eating a lot and pooping (a little pasty, but not completely runny). Her energy is extreme and wants to play all the time. The vet said to watch for signs of obstruction and take her in as soon as signs become present. This doesn't stop me from worrying about the rock and nipple tip. Obviously she needs these out of her stomach ASAP, but her next follow up is in another week. That seems too long to me, but multiple sources keep telling me that same thing. 

Anyone had this experience? I'm willing to do whatever it takes for her to be healthy.
Thank you so much for rescuing this little baby!! People like you and your wife restore my faith in humanity.


It's so good to hear that she's improving. She has a lot to live for now. A loving home, a family and new kitty friends! 


Welcome to TCS. We're very glad you found us!! Please feel free to post pics of all your kitties when you get a chance!!
 
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bdk103

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The cat on the left is Willow, and the one on the right if Buffy. The kitten is, of course, little kiwi after her first Dawn bath. Next time I won't upload straight to the site, as a web developer I know some admins like to save server space when necessary. I'll start an album on Google Plus and link to there. Thanks everyone for the kind words!
 

stephenq

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The cat on the left is Willow, and the one on the right if Buffy. The kitten is, of course, little kiwi after her first Dawn bath. Next time I won't upload straight to the site, as a web developer I know some admins like to save server space when necessary. I'll start an album on Google Plus and link to there. Thanks everyone for the kind words!
Adorable!!!
 
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bdk103

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As I was sipping on a coffee this morning I noticed our little Kiwi was picture of the week! What a great way to start a beautiful Sunday.

As we hoped, Kiwi and Willow are inseparable. It took a few subtle hissing fits as first but now they chase each other everywhere. The funny part is that Kiwi chases Willow more often than the other.

As an update, we battled her fleas, stomach issues, URI, and ear mites. Those all seem to be in check. She was treated for parasites and received her first FVRCP; now we are waiting to see the vet in another week to see if her ear infection is cleared. Her ears don't seem to bother her, but we were never given a definitive answer on whether or not it's cleared up.

Thank you everyone for the kind words and advice. Thank you site authors and admins for the spotlight picture of the week! Photo credit: my wife Kate ;)
 
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feralvr

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Just wanted to drop in and say how your lifesaving rescue of Kiwi has touched my heart - all of our hearts. :heart2:. It makes me shudder to know people could just keep driving by and leave a kitten on a highway that way so thank goodness you came along when you did. I am always looking along the roadways as we drive along - I just can't help it. We have seen and rescued a few over many years that we have seen on the side of the road. I always have a crate in my car filled with towels/blankets. It just breaks my heart to know how they ended up there in the first place. I am so glad to hear that Kiwi is doing so well and that Willow has a new friend too. Buffy is beautiful too - thanks for sharing the picture. AND CONGRATS on the picture of the week :heart3: :wavey:
 
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kittyluv387

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Thats the saddest thing i ever heard...a kitten eating rocks because shes so hungry..so glad you took her in!
 
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