Vet refused treatment of Grey for retained pacenta/kitten :(

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As many of you know, Grey gave birth two days ago (Friday) to four live and one dead kitten.  She was doing great until today when I noticed she did not eat her wet food like normal.  My son called me over around 4:30 when he found one of the babies had blood on it's head!!!!!  I thought the kitten had been hurt until I cleaned it up and realized the blood was NOT from the kitten.  I checked Grey and found she had started bleeding (was not bleeding yesterday).  While the blood was not heavy, it was bright red and concerning for me.  I immediately phoned the emergency vet and they said it is not normal, bring her in.  I drove the hour to the vet and spent two hours while they evaluated her.  The vet stated that they needed to do a radio graph and possibly an ultrasound.  The radiogram would have cost $400+ and the sonogram $300+, not to mention the $125 I already spent to be seen!!!!!  I explained tot he vet that I did not have $525+ today, but could pay it Friday when I got paid.  The vet reused to do anything more without payment up front :(  They stated that the UF policy was they had to have 75% upfront and since I could not come up with that much they sent us home.  I am just in shock as the vet told me she probably has a retained kitten or placenta and possible infection due to the deformed kitten that was born in "rotten" blood/sack. 

I have tried ALL other vets and none of them offer after hour care


I have no choice but to hold out and hope she does OK till morning when my regular vet opens; at least they know me and will treat her!!!!!!!!  Is their anything I can do till then??????

By the way, anyone who lives in my area the vet that sent us home was The University Of Florida Veterinary Hospital. 
 

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I have Care Credit, unfortunately I allowed my parents to use it when their dog had to have a leg amputated.  They maxed it out and then did not pay it (did not tell me) so when I went to use it just now it was rejected :(

I spoke with Affiliated and they said NO unless I could pay 100% up front.  They are also in Gainesville. 

Grey is resting now and is not appearing to be in pain.  She is still nursing her babies and even took a few bites of her wet food just now, although not much :(  She is not acting sick other than the decreased appetite and the blood (not much, but bleeding just the same).  She is less active and not seeking out attention like she had been till today.  I am so afraid this is just the start of her showing that she is not OK!!!!  Because I was not able to see her deliver all the babies I was not sure if she had all the placentas?  I know I saw her pull one placenta out, she had pushed many times with nothing and then pulled the umbilical cord until the placenta came out.  The other concern is that the vet said another kitten could have "gotten crooked" and be stuck!!!!  

The vet said she felt Grey was OK to be seen in the morning, but I sure do not feel comfortable with it!!!!!!  Thank you for the offer, if I am not able to have her seen in the morning I will 100% get in touch and get her to you!!!!!!!!!!!
 
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THANK YOU!!
 

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Sadly because of people who don't pay their bills vets do need to turn away patients, not helpful in an emergency. Hopefully she'll be ok and you can get her to your vet first thing.
 

StefanZ

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Sending vibes and best wishes!   *vibes*

Although what strikes me, what the vet needs is prob really not costly searches. And first AFTERWARDS do the treatment (surgery?), taking payment for it too. So the money demanded is not for making Grey healthy, it is just the introduction fee.

What he can do is make an spaying from flank. The surgery will prob cost less than these searches.

Why shall YOU pay for his curiosity, if a emergency spaying is probably what he has in mind anyway?

It may be so this surgery is not the easiest, but he is no beginner either. Shouldnt be.

Good luck!
 
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Today was a very long day!  I took Grey in as soon as the vet opened today and they did a MUCH cheaper method of testing, they first did a vaginal swab to test the kind of blood and were able to detect something from it (not sure what?) that confirmed infection.  They also did a sonogram and found that she had passed all the kittens, there were none still retained; however she did have one placenta still inside (VERY close to the birth canal).  They started Grey on some medication to expel the last one and in just over an hour she was able to do so.  Grey is on antibiotics now because she did show some infection, but the vet said it was "barely there" so not bad at all.  She is now home again resting/nursing her babies quietly.  The vet said she never stopped nursing, that she was such a good mommy the entire time :)  The kittens also got a check over and given a clean bill of health :)  
 

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Glad you got her seen to, hopefully she's fully recovered soon 
 

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Thank goodness she is all right. It could heve developed into a very nasty situation. Now you can relax and enjoy the kittens.
 

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Aw...so glad Grey is going to be okay!
What a scary situation!

I wonder if the kittens getting antibiotic via her milk might have a detrimental effect on them? I know antibiotics can destroy good bacteria in a cat's system. Did your vet say anything about this?
 
 
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No, they did not say anything about the kittens getting the medication through the milk, but I am sure they are.  Grey and the babies are all doing great as of now, hope it stays that way!!!!  I have one of them already spoken for, the family has put a down payment on her spay/shot expense to hold her for them so I know they really want the kitten.  I decided to charge a fee to put toward spaying and shots for each kitten to ensure the family is invested and the kittens are NOT able to be bred, they will all be done before they go to their new homes.  I can not tell if they are boy or girls, they all look so much alike, LOL!  I tried to take photos but they are so small the photo is blurry.  I think they may all be male. 
 

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That's an excellent idea to charge an adoption fee to help with the kitten expenses, it will definitely help weed out the people that aren't serious about adopting and being good pet owners. I'm sooo glad your baby is ok now, and shocked at the costs the original vet wanted and the over the top methods, I worked as a vet assistant and am working on my undergraduate for vet school and I've never known a vet to act in that manner. When I complete vet school, i refuse to ever act in such a heartless way. My foster had a similar issue with a retained stillborn but she passed it and luckily their was no infection, I hope she is doing much better!
 
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