Let me start by saying that due to my husband's job, we are currently in Manila, Philippines, so when giving advice, please note that we do not have a Petsmart or many vet options nearby (hence why I'm asking for help here).
Anyway, when we moved to our new place 2 weeks ago, I found this tiny little kitten -- the size of a mouse! -- crying at a park across the street. There was no mother around, so I took him home with me as I didn't want to leave him to die. I never seen a kitten that small! Here's a picture I had posted on my blog to give you an idea:
I fed him cow's milk for the first day through a dropper, and had a vet visit me at home to check him out, and I was able to get KMR then. She estimated that he was 2 weeks old.
Last week (a week after he was found), I had to take my dog to the vet, so I took the kitten with me as well. The other vet this time estimated him to be between 4-6 weeks old (you never see the same vet it seems), since many of his teeth were already out (can you tell I don't have much confidence in the local vets here if they can't even agree on his age?). They weighed him then, and he came up to 7oz (this was AFTER he had already put on some weight after being here for 6 days!). They can't test him for anything since they can't remove enough blood from him for a test, as he is still too small.
(I should add that he is staying in the bathroom, with a clean dog bed and blanket and a shoebox top for litter box, and I'm not letting the dog or the cat come in contact with him, to keep all of them safe, specially since I don't know if he has FIV yet either.)
I showed her a couple of small clear scabs on his stomach, she said he had a fungal infection, and she prescribed an orange liquid to rub in his scabs twice a day, and a cream to put on the scabs afterwards.
Fast forward to a week later, and about 20% of his body is now covered with scabs, including by his genitals, his whole stomach, his hind legs and a couple of toes. So I contacted the vet (I was out of town for 4 days and a friend took care of him, which is why I didn't contact the vet earlier), and he came over and prescribed antibiotics for a more aggressive approach, while I'm still using the other topical cream.
It has only been a day with the antibiotic, but he is not getting better. I know it's not instant, but I wonder if anyone here has any other tips or suggestions? This little guy is a cutie, and though I can't keep him, I really do want to get him healthy so that I can find him a good home. I find that getting him healthy is my responsibility since I rescued him.
(I should add that there are no shelters here, and I did try to contact a rescue organization since they would be much more suited to raising this kitten, but they replied that they don't have any available space -- they are just a rescue, not shelter though.)
I don't have much faith in the vets here, since they couldn't even agree on his age -- by a lot! Vets here are cheap (a home visit comes out to about $20), but they don't seem as reliable.
He is also still not pooping on his own, and the only way to make him poop is using the "triangle" method I saw on youtube -- even just a warm washcloth, etc, would do nothing to him. Today after pooping a bit, he started screaming bloody murder, so my guess is he is a bit constipated as well, but I'm not sure how to get it out. He does use the litterbox/shoebox we gave him, but to pee only. He actually used it right away when we set it up on the first day. (He likely has worms too, but again he is way too small to get dewormed.)
Also, he is ALWAYS crying, ALWAYS hungry, regardless of how many times I feed him and how much. I think he just misses his mom
At what age he should be weaned? He has teeth on the front and sides, but if I show him wet food or even just put the KMR in a little bowl, he completely ignores it, and will only eat from the bottle.
I'm at a loss and desperate to help the little guy, so any tips will be appreciated. (I'm dealing with a 12 hour time difference as well, so sorry if I don't reply to questions right away -- it's 1am here and I should be in bed already!)
Sorry for the loooong post, but I figured the whole background was important. And thanks for the help!
Anyway, when we moved to our new place 2 weeks ago, I found this tiny little kitten -- the size of a mouse! -- crying at a park across the street. There was no mother around, so I took him home with me as I didn't want to leave him to die. I never seen a kitten that small! Here's a picture I had posted on my blog to give you an idea:
I fed him cow's milk for the first day through a dropper, and had a vet visit me at home to check him out, and I was able to get KMR then. She estimated that he was 2 weeks old.
Last week (a week after he was found), I had to take my dog to the vet, so I took the kitten with me as well. The other vet this time estimated him to be between 4-6 weeks old (you never see the same vet it seems), since many of his teeth were already out (can you tell I don't have much confidence in the local vets here if they can't even agree on his age?). They weighed him then, and he came up to 7oz (this was AFTER he had already put on some weight after being here for 6 days!). They can't test him for anything since they can't remove enough blood from him for a test, as he is still too small.
(I should add that he is staying in the bathroom, with a clean dog bed and blanket and a shoebox top for litter box, and I'm not letting the dog or the cat come in contact with him, to keep all of them safe, specially since I don't know if he has FIV yet either.)
I showed her a couple of small clear scabs on his stomach, she said he had a fungal infection, and she prescribed an orange liquid to rub in his scabs twice a day, and a cream to put on the scabs afterwards.
Fast forward to a week later, and about 20% of his body is now covered with scabs, including by his genitals, his whole stomach, his hind legs and a couple of toes. So I contacted the vet (I was out of town for 4 days and a friend took care of him, which is why I didn't contact the vet earlier), and he came over and prescribed antibiotics for a more aggressive approach, while I'm still using the other topical cream.
It has only been a day with the antibiotic, but he is not getting better. I know it's not instant, but I wonder if anyone here has any other tips or suggestions? This little guy is a cutie, and though I can't keep him, I really do want to get him healthy so that I can find him a good home. I find that getting him healthy is my responsibility since I rescued him.
(I should add that there are no shelters here, and I did try to contact a rescue organization since they would be much more suited to raising this kitten, but they replied that they don't have any available space -- they are just a rescue, not shelter though.)
I don't have much faith in the vets here, since they couldn't even agree on his age -- by a lot! Vets here are cheap (a home visit comes out to about $20), but they don't seem as reliable.
He is also still not pooping on his own, and the only way to make him poop is using the "triangle" method I saw on youtube -- even just a warm washcloth, etc, would do nothing to him. Today after pooping a bit, he started screaming bloody murder, so my guess is he is a bit constipated as well, but I'm not sure how to get it out. He does use the litterbox/shoebox we gave him, but to pee only. He actually used it right away when we set it up on the first day. (He likely has worms too, but again he is way too small to get dewormed.)
Also, he is ALWAYS crying, ALWAYS hungry, regardless of how many times I feed him and how much. I think he just misses his mom
I'm at a loss and desperate to help the little guy, so any tips will be appreciated. (I'm dealing with a 12 hour time difference as well, so sorry if I don't reply to questions right away -- it's 1am here and I should be in bed already!)
Sorry for the loooong post, but I figured the whole background was important. And thanks for the help!