A kitten with coccidia, URI, and ringworm...HELP!

[bellababy]

Hello! I am new to this site and thought I might share my story.  I just recently adopted a black kitten from the humane society at eight weeks of age as a companion for my 4 yr old kitty named Bella.  I got Bella when she was only four weeks old, nursed her and acted as a substitute mother.   She is my everything. I am sure many substitute mothers can relate.  Bella rarely meows she murmurs and all of the vets tell me she has a very "rare" coloring on her coat.  So needless to say, I am very protectant of her.

Mona, whom I just recently adopted from the HS has coccidia, upper respiratory infection, and now we think she might have ringworm (waiting on results).  The coccidia might have cleared up but I am reading blogs that no matter how old she is she will always shed the eggs in her stool.  Will Bella get coccidia if they share litter boxes?  Right now, I am keeping them seperated.  I did notice Bella sneezing a little but that was a few days ago, I havent heard it since. 

I am at my wits end.  I keep thinking to myself did I do the right thing by adopting this little one? I am stressing myself out worried that something will happen to Bella.  I cried when I got home from the vet because it is never ending.   As far as I can remember Bella had a clean bill of health when she was a kitten.  But she was diagnosed with enosphilic granuloma (sp?) a few years back.  So I have never dealt with anything like this before that Mona is going through.

Someone please tell me it will be okay.  The last thing I want to do is return Mona back to the shelter.

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• bellababy
• Jun 28, 2013

Bella when she was a baby

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• bellababy
• Jun 28, 2013

Little baby Mona

 

[txcatmom]

Bless you for adopting from the humane society.  Unfortunately, even though rescue organizations try to have the kittens healthy for adoption, these common kitten issues sometimes go unnoticed or don't pop up til the kitten goes home.  Our third cat, Leo, had coccidia and ringworm when we brought him home.  Our fourth, Lucy, had a bad URI and too many other problems to list here.  They were both in isolation for a month...which felt like FOREVER.  (I only tell you all this to sympathize and let you know it will come to an end.)  We just plugged away at the medicating, good nutrition (feeding the best food you can afford, preferably canned, will help kitten's immune system), and spending as much time with the isolated cat while not neglecting the resident cats. 

I've never read that about coccidia always being shed.  Leo took meds and has never had any more problems....and never gave it to the other cats since he was in isolation. 

You are doing the right thing by keeping them separated.  And that is usually recommended even when introducing two healthy cats.  So your resident cat will have plenty of time to get used to the idea of a new cat in the house. 

For the upper respiratory, you may want to look into the supplement l-lysine.  Many URIs (but not all) are caused by the feline herpes virus.  It sounds scarier than it is.  Our cats have never had an official diagnosis, but their history suggests feline herpes so they get lysine sprinkled on their food twice per day.  The lysine specifically fights the herpes virus and keeps sneezes and sniffles at bay, especially during stressful times.  Here's the one we buy (recommended by our vet)...

http://www.entirelypets.com/vetsolu...0&origin=pla&gclid=CKPu3YCoibgCFa7m7AodkykAbA

Again, I so sympathize with the stressful time this is.  I can tell you our 3rd and 4th cats are the most joyful additions to our family.  They were totally worth it!!  I'm sure Miss Mona will be too.  Keep us updated. 

 

[spiderplant]

I just wanted to say that I've been in a very similar situation. When my cat(love of my life, had him since he was a a tiny feral kitten) was around 4 years old, I took in another feral kitten with many of the same problems as Mona. Of course, my cat adored other cats/kittens and it was difficult to keep him away from her. She would sometimes slip out of her "isolation room" and he would immediately be by her side. She had coccidia as well and none of my cats ever contracted it. Once it was cleared up, it was gone. She also, like your kitten, had multiple problems that also cleared up over time.

I agree with the above advice: keep them separated, keep things clean, use lysine/probiotics/good nutrition, and she should be absolutely fine. I would not feel guilty either as, when all of this is over, Bella will likely have a new playmate and you've saved the life of a black kitten. Good luck to all of you.