4 month old Kittens stopped eating

[Fed]

We recently adopted 2 sweet calico siblings. They have been with us for 3 months and they have been super healthy happy.

On Friday they stopped eating. Not completely, but they basically lost interest for food. We can get them to eat small amounts by adding herring water to their usual food. After eating they become lethargic instead of the usual energetic.

We brought them to the ER last night, where got checked (temp, vitals and basics) and the doctor said they are OK (no fever). This morning we are going to the vet to get bloodwork done.

As you can imagine we are on our last straw and really scared about what might be going on. We initially thought this could be a reaction to vaccination (they got a Puravax shot last Monday), and they started taking Fortiflora, also last Monday.

I would appreciate any perspective you might have. I’m really scared for them...
Thanks, Fed

 

[moxiewild]

It’s great that you’ve taken them to the vet already! What great parents!

The ER didn’t do any lab work? Hopefully the bloodwork will give you some clues.

It could potentially be a reaction to the vaccine. Have they received FVRCP, just rabies, or both?

Reactions are rare, but they can occur (which doesn’t mean it’s serious! I usually get slightly ill and feel like crap for a few days after a flu shot, which isn’t particularly common but still normal!), and perhaps there is a genetic component at play with these two as far as that goes.

Are they always lethargic right now or mostly just after eating? Are they still playing with each other and/or you? Any other changes you’ve observed?

There’s not a whole lot you can do right now, which I know is difficult. You’re doing everything you should by getting them to the vet promptly, and they are the most qualified to handle this.

Just keep close observation for any other indications of illness or changes in behavior in the meantime. Document everything.

Try to encourage them to eat - does the fortiflora help with that? Keep doing the herring water, but you can also try things like tuna water and bone or chicken broth (no onion, garlic, or other spices added, and low/no sodium added). Temptations treats, lockable treats, Purebites chicken treats can also help entice them to eat.

And try to get them to play/play more to see if it helps perk them up.

Hopefully the vet will be able to figure out what’s going on. Anti-nausea meds of appetite stimulants might be necessary to get over whatever hump this is of it continues much longer.

I’m sorry, I know how helpless this sort of thing can make you feel! Please let us know what the vet says!

 

[Fed]

Thanks so much for your reply!
Last night they got anti nausea and fluids at the ER. This morning we are taking them to the vet to get bloodwork done.

This morning things haven’t changed much. They are generally much lower energy than usual and this morning we they slurped some fish fluid but didn’t want to eat anything solid. They have peed very little in the last 24 hours, which is also concerning.

To your question: they got FVRCP, and rabies was part of an earlier round of vaccinations back at the cat shelter where we got them.

They are at the vet now... I’ll keep you posted. Fingers crossed it’s nothing serious.

 

[Fed]

Update: we brought the kittens to the vet and it turns out they are running a fever. The vet gave them an anti inflammatory, a mild antibiotic, and fluids IV. The vet also suggested we try a bunch of different cat food types, as well as human baby food.

So far they have eaten a little something (more than yesterday), but they’re definitely still very lethargic. The good news is that they seem to be interested in baby food!

still not out of the woods but a bit better...

 

[white shadow]

.
Hi Fed and welcome to the forum !

'Glad to hear that things are looking up. There are not too many cats who turn up their noses to baby foods!

Do you know the name of the anti-inflammatory....and, was that injected or take-home?

Likewise, the "mild antibiotic", name and how/where given.

Does this appear to be a respiratory infection?
.

 

[Fed]

.
Hi Fed and welcome to the forum !

'Glad to hear that things are looking up. There are not too many cats who turn up their noses to baby foods!

Do you know the name of the anti-inflammatory....and, was that injected or take-home?

Likewise, the "mild antibiotic", name and how/where given.

Does this appear to be a respiratory infection?
.

Thanks for asking!
i just looked at the bill and found the following:
- Azimycin 0.5 mL SQ
- SQ fluids: 20 mL Type: LRS
- Vitamin B12 0.5 mL SQ
I didn’t see the anti inflammatory on the bill, although the vet mentioned it over the phone.
The kittens temp is 102.0 and 102.8 respectively.
It doesn’t appear to be a respiratory infection. They have no respiratory symptoms apparently.

 

[white shadow]

.
So, you have no meds to give at home ?

Are you supposed to bring them back to the Vet ?

I ask because it's unusual to administer one only/"one-time" dose of an antibiotic for any infection. (the exception being a long-acting antibiotic)

I think you're in Europe - make certain there is no onion in the baby foods.

And, keep us posted !

Oh............we never, ever refuse kitten pictures here at TCS
.

 

[Fed]

.
So, you have no meds to give at home ?

Are you supposed to bring them back to the Vet ?

I ask because it's unusual to administer one only/"one-time" dose of an antibiotic for any infection. (the exception being a long-acting antibiotic)

I think you're in Europe - make certain there is no onion in the baby foods.

And, keep us posted !

Oh............we never, ever refuse kitten pictures here at TCS
.

No meds given at home... the vet asked us to monitor the kitties closely and to bring them back tomorrow, if there’s no sign of improvement.

I’m in Houston, TX

 

[jeannem]

((((((((((((((((((hugs))))))))))))))))))) no advise

 

[Fed]

Kitten update! Bottom line - they are finally over the hump and eating again, more details below:

After the last vet visit mentioned above, we didn't notice much improvement, so we brought the kittens back to the vet (the morning after). The vet fed them (via syringe) and hydrated (via fluid IV), and also prescribed an antibiotic to be administered over the next 7 days. They got bloodwork done (CBC, electrolytes, and Chem10) and the numbers looks good, i.e. no concerns. Both cats lost weight during the last days, but especially Bella (the one with a black "eyepatch") lost 0.5 lb (from 5 lb to 4.5 lb). She is also the one who took longest to recover. When we took them back from the vet last night, Mira (the tabby calico) started eating immediately again and was energized, while Bella was lethargic until this morning, when she started eating again. Last night she was so out of it, that she passed out for 4 hours. She didn't even bother cleaning her mouth from traces of food on her nose (I tried to tap some baby food around her mouth to force her to lick it off)- that was probably the scariest moment. Also of concern was that both cats had diarrhea during the last few days, which was a concern for fluid loss... but this AM they both had solid stool again. And this morning Bella perked up and started eating again!

They vet wasn't quite able to pinpoint what happened. It could have been a bacterial infecfion, or some virus? Could it have been a bad batch of canned food? That seems hard to believe. i guess we'll never know what happened.

The good news is they are back to 80% and improving.

Wanted to share the happy ending. The lesson learned is that bringing them to the vet 3 times important, because they were able to keep the kittens hydrated, and also help us rule out FIP and other scary cat diseases (which helped us keep sane).

Thanks again to this great community!