Kitten vomiting foam

sidneykitty

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I have a 9-week old foster kitten due for neutering this week. We've been down a road together...

background:
when I first brought him home 3 weeks ago, he was extremely scared and shy. he barely ate food and spent most of his time hiding and never played. at first, I put his inappetance down to stress and adjustment but when it continued for another few days and he started vomiting, I was very concerned.
I brought him to the shelter to be checked and they told me he was fine, just a picky eater, and sent me home.

he continued to decline and began having profuse watery diarrhea. the shelter was fairly unresponsive, they were down a vet, though they started him on a probiotic, but he still barely ate (so I started syringe feeding) and continued w/ diarrhea. I reached a point where they were not doing enough and I decided he needed vet care ASAP so I brought him in to a vet on my own dime.

they tested him for FIV, FeLV (negative) and did a fecal swab for panleuk (negative though they said he could still have it). he was anemic (RBCs 25%) but his blood pathology came back ok. We started Clavamox antibiotics and Panacur de-wormer and hoped for the best. within one day, he began to improve. within two days, he improved more and continued until his poops solidified, he gained lots of weight, started playing and behaving like a normal kitten, everything was great! he is over 2 lbs now. We don't know what he had but he got better w/ the meds.

what's happening now:
Thursday afternoon, he went in for a routine FVRCP vaccine and a de-wormer. Friday, he didn't eat much food again. Saturday, he ate breakfast but not much dinner. At first I thought maybe it was due to the vaccine/deworming. This morning, he meowed at me and vomited two small piles of foamy liquid...

I'm not sure what to think but I am concerned about the decreased appetite the last few days and foam vomiting today. Does anyone have advice or thoughts what I should do? would you be concerned? I can't find any eaten or missing toys or anything but I'm worried he ate something he shouldn't have or whatever he was sick with has come back again...I've been so worried about this poor little guy ever since he came home and I thought he was on the mend! he was doing so much better :(

I'm keeping a close eye on him and I will reach out to the shelter if he vomits again but I'm worried they won't take me seriously again.

he had a pretty good poop this morning - a bit soft at first, but then a formed log. I also notice he has smelly gas again (he had stinky gas before when he was ill, having diarrhea, not eating etc.)
 
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sidneykitty

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he always has access to food 24/7, wet and dry! I give him fresh food every morning and evening.
 
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sidneykitty

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Yes, I reached out to the shelter. I'm still waiting to hear back. They're very busy and often take 24 hours to respond.

The vet I took him to is closed today. I think if he doesn't improve, I'll take him to the shelter tomorrow AM to be looked at.

he's still very playful today, but hasn't touch his food still. he'll sniff it or lick a little and then walk away without eating, which is what he did way back when I first brought him home. it makes me think he is nauseous...

I put out some fresh food and some baby food. he licked a little baby food, but really not that much. :( he hasn't vomited again but he also hasn't eaten.

I'm mostly worried because he is supposed to get neutered this week and go up for adoption. I go out of town next week, so if he is sick and that is post-poned, I won't be able to care for him when I'm gone. we've really bonded and I'm worried he won't get the same level of care without me and will struggle to re-adjust to a new foster home.


I've wracked my brain for possibilities...and all I can come up with is:

were the vaccine and dewormer Thursday too much? his last dose of antibiotics were also on Thursday.

If he had FIP or panleuk - he wouldn't have improved with the clavamox + panacur right? (that suggests he had something treatable with those meds to me...)

whatever he had reinfected him? I didn't really sanitize and now I'm kicking myself for that.

He really likes kibble mixed in with wet food. could the kibble have gone rancid from the moisture and made him sick? I've read about this possibility but he really liked it and seemed fine.

Did he ingest something? I saw him chewing the sisal on the tree, so I took the tree away. no toys or other items chewed that I can see. Compared to other foster kittens I've had, he barely chews inappropriately on anything.

He likes to lick my nose affectionately. did he ingest some toxic lotion on my skin??
 
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sidneykitty

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Yes. Given the timing, logic tells me it was either the vaccine or the end of antibiotics course. He stopped abx and got vaccinated Thursday and started eating less on Friday... could he need more antibiotics? We did a full 10-day course. I have some left and I'm tempted to just try it but I don't want to medicate without vet guidance...
 
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sidneykitty

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whelp he just had streaks of blood in his poop. something is not right in that digestive tract.
 

Sarthur2

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Vaccines can upset kittens for a good week. Antibiotics can cause digestive upset as well. I’d wait it out until Monday and see the private vet you saw before. The kitten sounds like he needs nausea meds.

Is there any way you can foster him a bit longer or postpone your out of town trip? I’m concerned that he still needs you since you know his history and he’s not well at the moment.
 
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sidneykitty

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Vaccines can upset kittens for a good week. Antibiotics can cause digestive upset as well. I’d wait it out until Monday and see the private vet you saw before. The kitten sounds like he needs nausea meds.

Is there any way you can foster him a bit longer or postpone your out of town trip? I’m concerned that he still needs you since you know his history and he’s not well at the moment.
Oh really? I didn't know they could do that for a week. but would they cause him to lose his appetite like that? he just hasn't touched food today, and then the vomiting and bloody poop...

I heard back from the shelter and they can see him tomorrow and are considering a fecal test.

I would absolutely love to foster him longer. I'm worried about precisely that. Unfortunately, I have two back to back trips planned with only 2 days home in between. I could possibly cancel the first for a bit more time with him, but I'm not completely sure. The timing is really terrible. I briefly thought about the upcoming trip when I agreed to foster him at the beginning of August - but I thought, "they said he's healthy, so it'll only be 2 weeks!" here we are 3 weeks later, and I feel like the only advocate for this little kitten.
 

Sarthur2

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Yes, vaccines can cause vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite, and lethargy.

Do keep us posted! Would love to see his picture!
 
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sidneykitty

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Huh! I did not know vaccines could cause effects quite that long...

good news - shelter advised I put honey on his gums and try to feed him. within 30 seconds of giving honey, he started eating baby food mostly only from my fingers/hands and not the bowl. it's something at least.

here's a fuzzy one of him early on, and him just this morning.
 

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sidneykitty

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he is! we have become very attached with everything that he's been through...it's going to be very hard to let him go and before he got sick again, I was very worried about him finding the right quiet caring family but my partner reminded me that only the right, sensitive patient person will adopt a shy kitten and that made me feel a lot better about it! fosters are always hard to let go but he will be particularly difficult...I've agonized over a lot of his care but we are not in a position to adopt right now. I really just want him to get all better.
 
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sidneykitty

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In an unexpected turn of events, I brought him to the shelter yesterday to be checked by them. They opted to keep him there overnight to see what his stool was like, if he vomited, and to monitor how much he ate and if he was ok, to proceed with his neuter. (before he started having symptoms again, he was originally scheduled for his neuter this morning.) I had a feeling that might happen, but I absolutely broke down crying when she told me. I was able to say goodbye and give him love him before I left but I was pretty upset last night after to potentially be saying goodbye unexpectedly. they said he immediately looked so much more relaxed and happy when I was there to say goodbye and could tell we had bonded. yesterday also would have been my Amber cat's 18th birthday (who passed in February) so it was a very rough and emotional day for me in all...

this morning, they reported that he ate all the carefully measured food they gave, had a great poop, and no problems, so he went for surgery and will be up for adoption. I'm still a little confused about why he was vomiting and not eating and such again. perhaps it was from the vaccine? I only want for him to be healthy and happy and go to a loving home. I'm hoping to visit him once before he is adopted. It is always hard to say goodbye to my fosters, I cry and miss them everytime, but it helps to know/hope they are going to happy homes, but this litle man was very hard to let go of after everything we went through.

thank you all for the support and help! it's most appreciated.
 

Tibbs&Olive

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I had a kitten who vomited foam (she's a pregnant cat now!!). Her belly was distended and it turned out to be round worms. Check its stool for dead or live worms, and I'm aware that's really gross. Worms in kittens become fatal if not treated. Good luck with this little fur baby!!
 
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sidneykitty

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Thank you! he is no longer in my care as he was a foster, but I did check for visible worms in his tool and never saw any, and he had been dewormed as well but that is a great reminder! good luck with your pregnant cat! <3
 
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