Taking care of kittens - help

[Aeoh]

Just to add, I really do NOT think it's something medical, just because I will literally see her getting ready to pee, I will place her in the litter box, and she will jump out and find the pad. Repeat, repeat, until I give up and let her pee on the pad. I don't want to force her not to pee at all.

And another note - she can definitely get in and out of the litter box with ease. They are all low top, she will walk in just to sit and hang out, and then get out and pee or poop.

 

[vince]

Not sure, but did you say you tried putting the puppy pads inside a cat box? If not, you might just try putting one in an empty box, then gradually putting a little more cat litter in day by day until the pads are completely covered. If she'll use the pad in the box, you might get her to start using litter that way. It's worth a try.

 

[Aeoh]

Not sure, but did you say you tried putting the puppy pads inside a cat box? If not, you might just try putting one in an empty box, then gradually putting a little more cat litter in day by day until the pads are completely covered. If she'll use the pad in the box, you might get her to start using litter that way. It's worth a try.

Yes, I have tried this… sometimes she might use it, but more often she prefers the puppy pads on the floor of the tent that everything is housed in.

I did make the move today to remove the pads on the floor of the tent and just leave the pads in the empty litter boxes…. So it’s to be determined (when I get home from work) if she will use the pads in the empty boxes versus the floor of the tent without pads.

(for reference, I have 3 boxes of actual clay litter - non clumping, a box of paper pellet litter, and two boxes with just a pad in them)

 

[Aeoh]

Our first kitten is getting adopted tomorrow…. Thankfully to a great and responsible home that will send updates and such but….

It’s going to be rough for me! I’m so attached to these kids.

 

[Sarthur2]

Beautiful kitten! Do the adopters plan to spay/neuter?

 

[Aeoh]

Beautiful kitten! Do the adopters plan to spay/neuter?

They do! Thankfully we know the two adopters and are confident that they'll take care of all the outlying vetting (ie: neuter and, for this one, her last round of shots). The person taking miss Soup here is even making sure she gets vet insurance so that's even more reassuring.

Question you might know (I plan to ask today at the vet anyways, but I love second opinions): When should we get the kitten that we are keeping spayed? We plan on taking mom in for spay next month in late July when I can take a day off work to spend the day with her post-surgery, and I'm not sure if it makes sense to do mom and kitten at once so I can be there with both (for reference - they're 12 weeks tomorrow).

EDIT TO ADD: The male kitten is getting adopted probably the first or second week of July and they will be getting him neutered as well.

 

[Sarthur2]

Mom and kitten can be spayed anytime now. Twelve weeks is the perfect age. I have all my kittens done at 12 weeks. Do not let mom outside at all or around intact males until she is spayed.

 

[Aeoh]

Mom and kitten can be spayed anytime now. Twelve weeks is the perfect age. I have all my kittens done at 12 weeks. Do not let mom outside at all or around intact males until she is spayed.

Great! I’ll probably try to get them in the same day so I can plan a day of rest with both of them.

She will NOT be going outside - we don’t let the cats outside and just the thought makes me nervous lol. Also no males around except her son (12 weeks) so we should be ok there since he will be leaving within 2/3 weeks

 

[Aeoh]

We can’t catch a break here.

despite initial deworming when we brought her in, mom cat apparently has worms (see attached photo… she vomited up A TON this morning).

Kittens have been dewormed (final dose was last week) but they’ve nursed from mom occasionally at least within the past week, and mom has used their litter boxes at least once or twice.

What are the chances the kittens could have worms despite deworming within the past week? They received Pyrantel Pamoate as their dewormer. The worms mom has are likely roundworms (see image attached).

UGH, advice or piece of mind please? I love momma Bean and glad we rescued her, but geez, she’s been a stressful and expensive decision!

Edited to add: I’m picking up dewormer from the vet today for her and the other adult cat in the house that routinely use the same litter boxes.

 

[Sarthur2]

Oh my word! Mom appears to need further treatment as well. Please email this photo to your vet and ask what protocol you should follow for both mom and kittens. I would think they all would need further treatment. Please let us know what the vet says. A Aeoh

 

[Aeoh]

Oh my word! Mom appears to need further treatment as well. Please email this photo to your vet and ask what protocol you should follow for both mom and kittens. I would think they all would need further treatment. Please let us know what the vet says. A Aeoh

So I contacted the vet this morning and they prescribed her two topicals??

Administer today: Revolution (selamectin) topical parasiticide 45 mg .75 mL (60 mg/mL)
Administer in three days: Centragard - 3.6 mg eprinomectin and 74.7 mg praziquantel transdermal solution (.9 mL)

Is topical treatment typical for such a severe looking infection?? I was thinking they’d be pills…:: my mind says pills would be faster but maybe not I feel so bad for her

 

[Sarthur2]

Did they see the photo? I’m also concerned about the kittens and how they need treating. What did the vet say about the kittens?

I’m really not sure if a topical is the answer. Can you get a 2nd opinion from another vet? The topical prescribed has all the ingredients to treat; I’m just not convinced there isn’t a better way orally, and how quickly will the topicals get rid of the worms?

This is an area where I am not an expert, so please let me know what you do / outcomes.

 

[Aeoh]

Did they see the photo? I’m also concerned about the kittens and how they need treating. What did the vet say about the kittens?

I’m really not sure if a topical is the answer. Can you get a 2nd opinion from another vet? The topical prescribed has all the ingredients to treat; I’m just not convinced there isn’t a better way orally, and how quickly will the topicals get rid of the worms?

This is an area where I am not an expert, so please let me know what you do / outcomes.

I did show the vet the pic. They said it’s normal to vomit worms…..but the internet has me believing it has it be a severe infestation for so many.

So the Vet and Soup’s adopter (the kitten that was adopted on Wednesday) both made it seem like it’s not a huge concern since they just got dewormer - I made sure to tell the adopter this morning. The advice was more or less “keep an eye on them, try to make mom use a different litter box” - which she usually does.

From my understanding, even the topical should be pretty fast acting so if I don’t start seeing dead worms this weekend (ick) I will definitely reach out to both my vet/another vet.

Everyone is making it seem pretty common and not an emergency so that’s a little reassuring I guess. I’m still stressed and grossed out and worried about her and the kitties and our other adult cat.

 

[Sarthur2]

So, bottom line, your vet thinks another dose of topicals will cure this and the kittens are fine?

 

[Aeoh]

So, bottom line, your vet thinks another dose of topicals will cure this and the kittens are fine?

Yep, I believe so.

And I will just try to keep everything clean and watch the kittens pretty closely.

 

[Aeoh]

Welp, the other kittens are officially adopted so it’s back down to momma cat Bean, kitten Lucy, and the resident cat Elsa.

Bean is due to get spayed tomorrow and Lucy will be going Sept 2 (she’s small and they wanted to wait until 5 months).

Haven’t seen any evidence of dead worms, so when I take Bean to get spayed tomorrow, I’ll be asking the vet about additional treatment for her + Elsa and Lucy…I just want the issue taken care of.


Attached is a photo of our kids all together! Elsa doesn’t love them yet, but she’s getting better ‍🩹

 

[Willowy]

You don't always see dead worms; if they're killed higher in the digestive tract they'll be digested before they come out (ew). But doing a monthly treatment for everybody for the whole summer wouldn't be a bad idea.

 

[Aeoh]

You don't always see dead worms; if they're killed higher in the digestive tract they'll be digested before they come out (ew). But doing a monthly treatment for everybody for the whole summer wouldn't be a bad idea.

Oh, interesting! I feel like everything I read isn’t necessarily true lol.

I will definitely be inquiring with the vet about continuing treatment. Assuming the only way to know everyone is negative is to get negative stool samples in the future for all? Or does that not rule out worms somewhere else in the system?

(I’ve had dogs my life and never dealt with worms… this is all new! And our kitten is tiny to start, so I’m very cautious about her and her mom.)

 

[Aeoh]

Momma Bean is currently getting her surgery (NO MORE KITTENS!!) and I will be getting deworm medication for all the cats in the house after.

Poor Lucy was confused why her mom was in a plastic box, lol.

 

[Aeoh]

Welp, Lucy has a little blood in her poos today. She had two that were kinda diarrhea with what looked like blood.

Assuming it’s likely a symptom of the roundworms if not another parasite, so I’ll be seeing if I can get her to the vet early next week.

She’s 100% normal otherwise. Super active, hungry, playful.

Sigh. We can’t win.