Liver Issues In A Brand New Baby Kitten

[Hales123]

hello friends I need help,
My kitten’s name is Eddie and we brought him home only a few days ago to our other 2 cats. Everything seemed fine until the second day we had him home he wasn’t quite acting like a cat. He wouldn’t play and only wanted to sleep. Took him to the vet on day 4, turns out he is jaundiced (has yellow skin and yellow urine) and is extremely ill to the point where I had to pay $200 for his medicine (the vet thinks he may have liver failure) I have no problem with paying for his medicine because I just want him to be better! But then I’m hearing that I may need to take him to get an ultrasound which will be $600. I’m a college student and I work in a restaurant, there’s no way I can afford this!! And now I’m hearing that the adoption agency I got him through might have known about this and didn’t think to tell me or even treat him for his symptoms before it got this bad! Please, can anyone help me figure out what to do for him?? I’m helpless and I feel so bad for this poor baby. And I’m angry that someone at the adoption agency thought it to be okay to adopt this poor kitty out when he is clearly not okay! Just to make matters worse, and this was part of the reason I wanted to adopt him, he was extremely dirty when we brought him home (ears were dirty and black on the inside and his fur was covered in dirt or some kind of film) I just wanted to give him a loving home but this is a lot to take in!

 

[Furballsmom]

I'm so so sorry you're having to deal with this!!
It makes me wonder if your tiny one was exposed to something...
Does the medicine have milk thistle in it?
Have you talked to a different vet?

No Money For Vet Care? How To Find Help And Save Your Cat's Life

Financial Aid for Pets

 

[Hales123]

I'm so so sorry you're having to deal with this!!
It makes me wonder if your tiny one was exposed to something...
Does the medicine have milk thistle in it?
Have you talked to a different vet?

No Money For Vet Care? How To Find Help And Save Your Cat's Life

Financial Aid for Pets

We haven’t spoken with another vet, but purely because I can’t afford another visit to someone else. And as far as milk thistle goes I don’t believe any of his medication does. They have him on a cocktail of pills including Denamarin, Clavamox, metronidazole, and Panacur. My vet is just hoping that one of these will hit something and show some improvement! He has an aversion to food at the moment though so it’s hard to get him to eat anything let alone a pill!

 

[Furballsmom]

Can you try some goat milk?

 

[Hales123]

Might I ask, what will goat milk do?

 

[white shadow]

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KITTEN EXPERTS NEEDED URGENTLY @Norachan StefanZ Kieka
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[Kieka]

Might I ask, what will goat milk do?

Goat milk is a kitten milk replacement, it has good nutrition and moisture for young kittens. Since you mention he has an aversion to food right now it is vitally important that he is getting calories and moisture into his system. Whatever if takes to get him to eat something because he will not have any chance of improvement if he doesn’t eat. Tuna, goats milk, human meat baby food, whatever he will take right now. If your vet didn’t mention it, you might want to call and ask if you can get some high calorie perscription food to syringe feed for the time being.

Jaundice is not a good sign in any age cat but kittens are notorious for going down hard and fast. They can also make amazing recoveries when given the right treatment. Were there any other symptoms? I see jaundice, lethargic and loss of appetite. Was there fever? Was blood work done? Is the kitten

That cocktail should knock out some of the more common kitten ailments. If any of them will work you should see improvement in 72 hours. But you need to get food and water into him.

 

[Hales123]

hello friends I need help,
My kitten’s name is Eddie and we brought him home only a few days ago to our other 2 cats. Everything seemed fine until the second day we had him home he wasn’t quite acting like a cat. He wouldn’t play and only wanted to sleep. Took him to the vet on day 4, turns out he is jaundiced (has yellow skin and yellow urine) and is extremely ill to the point where I had to pay $200 for his medicine (the vet thinks he may have liver failure) I have no problem with paying for his medicine because I just want him to be better! But then I’m hearing that I may need to take him to get an ultrasound which will be $600. I’m a college student and I work in a restaurant, there’s no way I can afford this!! And now I’m hearing that the adoption agency I got him through might have known about this and didn’t think to tell me or even treat him for his symptoms before it got this bad! Please, can anyone help me figure out what to do for him?? I’m helpless and I feel so bad for this poor baby. And I’m angry that someone at the adoption agency thought it to be okay to adopt this poor kitty out when he is clearly not okay! Just to make matters worse, and this was part of the reason I wanted to adopt him, he was extremely dirty when we brought him home (ears were dirty and black on the inside and his fur was covered in dirt or some kind of film) I just wanted to give him a loving home but this is a lot to take in!

Goat milk is a kitten milk replacement, it has good nutrition and moisture for young kittens. Since you mention he has an aversion to food right now it is vitally important that he is getting calories and moisture into his system. Whatever if takes to get him to eat something because he will not have any chance of improvement if he doesn’t eat. Tuna, goats milk, human meat baby food, whatever he will take right now. If your vet didn’t mention it, you might want to call and ask if you can get some high calorie perscription food to syringe feed for the time being.

Jaundice is not a good sign in any age cat but kittens are notorious for going down hard and fast. They can also make amazing recoveries when given the right treatment. Were there any other symptoms? I see jaundice, lethargic and loss of appetite. Was there fever? Was blood work done? Is the kitten

That cocktail should knock out some of the more common kitten ailments. If any of them will work you should see improvement in 72 hours. But you need to get food and water into him.

The vet prescribed Urgent Care a/d with the prescription diet. It’s wet food that is supposed to have a lot of nutrients in it. But honestly goat milk might be a good solution too as he doesnt want to eat and I hate having to force it. The blood work, as far as I know, gave them no information as far as his condition goes. He had no fever. One other weird thing that I forgot to mention is that he has all his adult teeth. The animal hospital who originally admitted him had put him at about 4 months. But my vet seems to think he is much older! A few other symptoms: His urine is dark in color and stains everything yellow. He cannot make it to the litter box even though it is right next to him. He does not like his stomach pressed on. He’s still feisty though and lets us know when he doesnt like something!!

 

[StefanZ]

its a natural good food. Easily digestible. Often used as diet food for sick cat animals.

For our common house cats its often used as supplement or alternative to kmr, kitten mothermilk replacement.

Might I ask, what will goat milk do?

 

[Hales123]

Oh! And he drinks a TON of water

 

[white shadow]

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Hales123 - the Denamarin contains the 'milk thistle' - Denamarin is an excellent choice where reduced liver function is at play - and, the jaundice is evidence of this. (and, btw, this drug 'cocktail' appears perfectly suited and suggests you've had competent Vet care so far)

Now, about this:

"he doesnt want to eat and I hate having to force it"​

HE may not want to eat - which is perfectly understandable with his condition - BUT. his only chance is dependent on his getting food 'in'. The most common way to accomplish this is by using a syringe to insert tiny drops of liquified food into the side pocket of his mouth, allow him to swallow, and repeat. That is the gist of syringe feeding.

I need to stop briefly, because there's always a question of how much to feed. IF a cat has not been eating for a prolonged period, there is a danger of giving too much food in the beginning of this process as that may overload the liver (which causes yet another dangerous condition called refeeding syndrome). You really should speak directly to the Vet who saw him, bring them up-to-date on how much food he's had since then, say you're starting syringe-feeding and ask whether/not (based on this updated info) there's any danger of refeeding injury and how much you should be getting into him.

That said, you have to start immediately with something - you have the a/d food, you'll need a syringe and some idea of how to do this. Here's an overview of the process: Feline Assisted Feeding: How to get Calories into your Sick Cat And, there are practical how-to's here: Feeding Techniques

There's another real danger you need to know about. Cats are particularly susceptible to a condition called "aspiration pneumonia" - that is caused when food "goes down the wrong way".....it is an accidental 'breathing in' or "aspiration" of the food. To personalize it for you, if he doesn't want to take the food he will struggle, and in that struggle, he could accidently choke on the food.

That's why I wrote earlier:

insert tiny drops of liquified food into the side pocket of his mouth, allow him to swallow (by withdrawing the syringe), and repeat​

So, start now and meantime, speak with the Vet about whether/not you need to gradually increase the total daily intake.

You say he's drinking lots of water - that may bode well for his being willing to take the goat milk - can you get some?

There's also questions about what this agency knew, what responsibility they may have etc etc.......
.

 

[Hales123]

.
Hales123 - the Denamarin contains the 'milk thistle' - Denamarin is an excellent choice where reduced liver function is at play - and, the jaundice is evidence of this. (and, btw, this drug 'cocktail' appears perfectly suited and suggests you've had competent Vet care so far)

Now, about this:

"he doesnt want to eat and I hate having to force it"​

HE may not want to eat - which is perfectly understandable with his condition - BUT. his only chance is dependent on his getting food 'in'. The most common way to accomplish this is by using a syringe to insert tiny drops of liquified food into the side pocket of his mouth, allow him to swallow, and repeat. That is the gist of syringe feeding.

I need to stop briefly, because there's always a question of how much to feed. IF a cat has not been eating for a prolonged period, there is a danger of giving too much food in the beginning of this process as that may overload the liver (which causes yet another dangerous condition called refeeding syndrome). You really should speak directly to the Vet who saw him, bring them up-to-date on how much food he's had since then, say you're starting syringe-feeding and ask whether/not (based on this updated info) there's any danger of refeeding injury and how much you should be getting into him.

That said, you have to start immediately with something - you have the a/d food, you'll need a syringe and some idea of how to do this. Here's an overview of the process: Feline Assisted Feeding: How to get Calories into your Sick Cat And, there are practical how-to's here: Feeding Techniques

There's another real danger you need to know about. Cats are particularly susceptible to a condition called "aspiration pneumonia" - that is caused when food "goes down the wrong way".....it is an accidental 'breathing in' or "aspiration" of the food. To personalize it for you, if he doesn't want to take the food he will struggle, and in that struggle, he could accidently choke on the food.

That's why I wrote earlier:

insert tiny drops of liquified food into the side pocket of his mouth, allow him to swallow (by withdrawing the syringe), and repeat​

So, start now and meantime, speak with the Vet about whether/not you need to gradually increase the total daily intake.

You say he's drinking lots of water - that may bode well for his being willing to take the goat milk - can you get some?

There's also questions about what this agency knew, what responsibility they may have etc etc.......
.

I definitely agree that the vet I saw knows what she is doing and has Eddie’s best interest in mind. We contacted the original animal hospital that he saw when he got to the animal shelter. They were baffled that this is how he is and want to see him right away. I tried your recommendation on using a syringe and it was WAY easier on him and I. He still didnt like it but it’s for his own good. He did, however, lick my fingers that had some food on them afterward. That made me extremely hopeful. Thank you so much for the tips! I’ll keep this forum posted on what the vet says at the animal hospital today. Praying for some answers!!

 

[Furballsmom]

 

[white shadow]

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If you can......go and pick up a copy of his file at the Vet's clinic where you took him and bring them along.

I would be putting as much pressure as possible on the organization's Vet clinic to have them diagnose, treat and resolve this issue.....it sounds like they're open to taking some responsibility.

About the eating from your finger - yes, it's extremely hopeful development. If you read that 'Techniques' page, it's described there:

Finger Feeding Cats
Use a smooth pate canned food (NOT chunky, not fillet nor shredded). Something smooth like Friskies Salmon or Hill's a/d (an emergency recovery food high in protein and calories... very digestible and most cats like the taste. It is only available from the vet and is a very, very good food.)

With finger feeding, you use your index finger (pointing finger) to scoop up a little canned food about the size of a pea. Next open kitty's mouth like you are going to give a pill... or better yet, just by pushing up kitty's lip under the nose with your index finger that has the food. Then either place the food on kitty's tongue or put it on the roof of the mouth by drawing your finger and food out against the top teeth. (Be sure that your finger nail is either cut short or at least smooth so that it won't hurt kitty's mouth, gums or roof of mouth.) Many times, just getting that first little bit of food in the mouth will peak interest and get kitty to eat on his or her own. Have a little plate of the canned food ready for kitty to eat.

You will want to finger feed at least 3 times a day. Feed as much as kitty will accept. Don't force kitty to eat... encourage and try to get 'just one more bite', but don't force too much. If you talk to your kitty while feeding, kitty will understand what you are doing and may be more accepting.​

You should recognize too, that all this is utterly draining on you, the caregiver. It consumes our emotional and physical energy. That's difficult to maintain, so you must also take extra care of yourself.

You're really something else !

BTW......if you have any energy left, we won't refuse pix !
.

 

[Hales123]

This was Eddie the first day we brought him home

 

[Hales123]

This was him not feeling too hot at the vet he is extremely lovey and absolutely loves to give kisses and nose boops. He has a cute little tick that my other cats don’t do where he twitches the base of his tail and makes a cute meowing/clicking sound that the vet says is a happy tick I’m definitely ready for him to get back to that

 

[jen]

He doesn't really have that typical lanky body, big ear kitten look in that picture. He just looks like a small cat to me.

Anyway, every one has better advice here then I would but I just wanted to add that the rescues take in these unwanted cats to get them into better situations. It would be completely unethical and counter-productive of them to adopt out a cat in liver failure as a healthy cat intentionally. I know there are shady rescues out there but negative experiences travel fast, especially nowadays with social media and people suing left and right, it just wouldn't make sense for them to jeopardize their whole operation that way.

The point I want to make is to talk to them, set up a time to meet or something. Don't run in screaming, upset and angry (although I know you are). Stay calm and talk to them.