Advice On Helping Semi-feral Momma?

kittychick

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(I may have asked this before - - I hope not! If I did - I obviously don't remember the answer)

Last year hubby and I discovered a neighbor family had been trying to care for a little pregnant feral momma who had 3 kittens in their garage (we didn't know them - -they live several blocks away - and they knew zip about cats, as the mom was hyper-allergic). We took in the 3 kittens, vetted, fixed & socialized them, and found them wonderful homes (all still VERY happy!). We also TNR'd momma ("Maggie") and got her spayed and returned her to the family, along with a heated shelter for their garage. They love her dearly, and she's gotten so that she's definitely slowly warmed up to them (the hubby really loves her!). We go down to check on her periodically - - and this last time they were worried about her, as am I. The hubby can pick her up, so I got a good look at her and listened to her as well. I've worked with cats long enough to know that it's 99% likely it's a pretty standard URI (upper respiratory infection).

The problem - - - I can't find anywhere that I can get amoxycillin (or another option) without taking her in. The cat shelter I volunteer for knows me well enough that I used to be able to pay them for amoxy, etc. for OUR ferals, but they now have a new vet tech, and they won't do that anymore (which I do understand). And getting her in is problem one (probably doable though) - - but bigger issues are that most vets wouldn't be able to handle her, and it'll definitely make her quite flighty for awhile -- -which I hate to do over something that I used to be able to come by easily. (I'd rather save the stress of a vet visit for her for a bigger issue - -- although if this URI isn't treated - IT will become an issue). I've also talked to our two vets - - -no luck without seeing her.

Any suggestions? I hate to see her START out what will likely be a rough northern Ohio winter already with a URI! Thanks so much my fav cat folk!
 

Furballsmom

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Hi! Thank you for being so proactive!
She ought to go in, --ask the clinic if they can give or suggest a calming product.

It could be that by being treated and helped, the cat and her people might become closer.
 
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catsknowme

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Hooray for looking out for that kitty! Is she already taking L-lysine? There are also holistic products that you could ask the vet about. I use Homeopet Feline Nose Relief with 10 drops per pint. I am experienced with herbs and use elderberry, slippery elm and marshmallow root - you could ask your vet or consult a holistic vet about trying those & then if she doesn't clear up, or if the discharge becomes greenish, press harder for the antibiotics or order from a survivalist catalog or check with a feed store. Our feed store stocks capsules in their fish section.
 

shadowsrescue

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Can you ask the clinic for some gabapentin to gently sedate her? You wouldn't want her outside, but if you could confine her somewhere safe it would work.

I have used gabapentin twice for my feral Shadow who I brought inside when we moved. I am the only one who can touch him and getting him into a carrier is most difficult. The gabapentin was easy to give and within 2-3 hours, he was so easy to handle. It was the first time ever I have held him. The vet was able to examine him too without sedation. Many vets are using this now to help cats that do not do well at the vet.
 
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kittychick

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As always - thanks guys for two things I didn't think of! And as always - thanks all for the kind words and support! I decided that I'm definitely at least going to head back down there and explain it's critical that she get in bc I'm having no luck in getting meds on my own as I thought I'd be able to. And that I'll help (from getting her somewhere to helping them understand how to medicate)...because Furballsmom Furballsmom - I agree - it might help them bond further with her. They definitely do love her, but I think she's still a bit of a mysterious creature to them since having a cat has been impossible for them. And I thought it was the typical "oh - -we can't bring her in bc we're allergic" crud. But I actually did watch the wife literally just pet her once (when we got Maggie set up in their garage last summer in our giant dog wire crate to recover from her spay) and within seconds the wife developed big red welts! The family does care - - -they just need to understand cats a bit better. Things like how sick she is right now - - and how much worse it can get (yesterday I even said "she won't last the winter if we don't get this under control" which really shocked them). It's been amazing to see this family really change before your eyes with their understanding of cats and how wonderful, funny, sweet, loving (all in their own individual ways!) they are. They've gone from "we hate to see anything be hungry or cold or sick....but we don't know what to do" to calling us and saying "what can we do to help her?" Gotta love that!!!!!!

catsknowme catsknowme - I got her on L-lysine starting last fall (and have kept taking it down to them), in the hopes we could get things under control. At that time she had just a bit of a runny eye, and I knew we at least had a shot with controlling it with Lysine (we use it alot at our shelter - - and I use it with two of our ferals that seem to be herpes kitties). It definitely has helped our 2, and seemed to help Maggie for a bit, but it's definitely gotten beyond that. :(

shadowsrescue shadowsrescue - I know you've mentioned gabapentin before - - before getting involved in this forum, despite all my years in the cat shelter world, that's a med I've never dealt with. Is it available in pill only form, or in a liquid? I know I personally wouldn't be able to get a pill down her - - she's definitely more semi-feral (if even that at this point) at this point with her family (especially the father/husband, and one of their high school age girls). And of course this family has never pilled a cat in their lives! If pill form is the only option though - I'll definitely ask the spay/neuter clinic we use about ...and if no luck there I'll try both our vets (how big a pill is it, physically? Horse pill or baby aspirin size?). Hopefully - since it's a sedative - there's understanding that it would need to be given BEFORE being seen! At least the spay/neuter clinic has seen her, since that's where we take most of our TNR kitties. So I'll make calls tomorrow!

Thanks guys - - -as always!!!! I'll update if I can make progress on the gabapentin from either one of the vets or the spay/neuter clinic.
 

shadowsrescue

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I have had gabapentin in both pill and liquid. The capsule is very tiny. I just wrap some of the Tomlyn pill masker ( so much better than a pill pocket) and offer it with some treats. I also used the liquid a few years ago for pain management on a sick cat.

The biggest issue is the cat has to be in a safe environment. The cat will act drunk. That means watching out for anything tall where he could climb. It really dulls the senses and puts them in a "I don't care about anything" state.
 

white shadow

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Hi kittychick !

...gabapentin - Is it available in pill only form, or in a liquid?
I have had gabapentin in both pill and liquid.
Gabapentin is available in capsules, the smallest is 100mg (about right for a ~10 pound cat). These are easily opened and and mixed into a very small quantity of irresistible wet food - it becomes effective within ~1.5 hours and lasts for a few hours. Care must be taken so that the cat does not injure itself while under its effects.
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Furballsmom

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It's been amazing to see this family really change before your eyes with their understanding of cats and how wonderful, funny, sweet, loving (all in their own individual ways!) they are. They've gone from "we hate to see anything be hungry or cold or sick....but we don't know what to do" to calling us and saying "what can we do to help her?"
This is enormous kudos to you, --if it weren't for you they'd still be lost :catlove:
 

surya

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I think you might be able order it online, but the places that will sell it to you without a prescription take a really long time to ship it because there are in foreign countries. So I think you do have to got to a vet, unless you know someone.
 
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