Oh Geez.. Do I really need another kitty? Updated with new pics!

[Ali]

Oh, the health issues are so scary. I hope it's parasites or worms cuz that is easy to treat! I think it's hillarious that he's a he after all!!!! OMG, that is TOOOOOO funny! Just pick a unisex name like Sam or Jamie (my daughter's name!) or Randy. That way, you're covered if someone else comes along and says no, it's definately a girl!!

[AltDeutsche]

Sasha is a unisex name. Russian it is a male but for those of us in the west it is feminine.

I hope he starts to feel better soon.

[Lyn]

It is Coccidia!

Thank god I haven't introduced him to my kitties yet. PHEW! The vet gave me Sulphadime something. He's on it for a week then another stool check to make sure it's gone.

The poor guy is feeling miserable, his belly is rumbling and gassy. He's been sleeping pretty much all day and he has no interest in food. He's not dehydrated but since I haven't seen him drink anything I syringed him some water anyway. If he doesn't eat before we go to bed I'll syringe him a little canned food.

I'm a tad ticked at the humane society.. he had loose poop before I got him and they never took him to a vet for it. When the foster mom got here with him she told me he had loose poop and she was feeding him boiled chicken to firm him up. As if chicken will get rid of coccidia, HELLO have his stool checked. That's why he hasen't gained weight in the past 3 weeks.. he's probably had it the entire time.

So I just called her and left a message that they will probably need to treat any kittens he was sharing litter with. I bet she'll be overjoyed when she gets that message. LOL I also called the pet store since he was in there with 3 other kittens that they still have.. they also have loose poop.. needless to say she isn't too happy either.

[Rajas Mom]

What a relief!  Shame on the agencies/fosters for not checking on this.

[Lyn]

The foster mom just called me and said she's taking stool samples from the other kittens he was in contact with into the vet tomorrow. She said oh I thought he just had diarrhea from the food. Nope...

I've never dealt with coccidia before and the more I read about it the more ticked off I get. 

[kathryn]

Congrats on your new little one.  He's too precious.  I've never dealt with coccidia either.  Hope he feels better soon.

[marypyrs]

The sad thing about rescues and shelters is that there are just too many animals and too few to help. Fosters are far and few between and although screened so far as reliability, they are not Vets. They've most likely had little experience with disease and illness. A lot of people have never heard of Coccidia. They do the best they can by what they know and offer the best they can. Many pay for food and Vet care themselves because funding is short. But - thank GOD they are there. Or many, many, more would be euthanized. And at least this sweet little wee one was not in a high kill shelter. And thank God he found his way to you. 

Support your local Shelters, people. Believe me. It goes to the animals. You won't find anyone getting rich in the rescue world. Most if not all funding goes to the animals.

I really love this little kitten of yours. He's adorable and I think he's found the very best of the best of homes.      Hugs all the way around!   

'J'

[GoldenPyrs]

I've dealt with coccidia before.  Years ago a had a 1 yr old kitty and then I adopted a feral 6-8 week old kitten that turned out to have coccidia.  Fortunately, like you, I'd kept the kitties seperate until I'd had the kitten vet checked, so I only had to treat him.  It's been 21 yrs now, but if I recall it took a few weeks.  I think that I had to run a 2nd course of meds before he was cured, but then that did it!  By the way, that was my Theodore Barrington ("Bear").     He was a gorgeous seal point siamese mix and he lived to be 19 1/2 years old.  I wish you many happy years with your new little sweetie, too.

[Lyn]

Very true Jane. I'm glad they are there I just wish some of them were a little more aware. She did know exactly what coccidia is and said she had a couple other kitties that had it a few months back.

I gave the little guy the first dose of Albon and now he's sneezing and has discharge from his one nostril. I'm not sure if it's a reaction to the medication or if he's coming down with a respiratory infection now. Geez the poor little guy. I'll be calling the vet in the morning.

I did manage to get him to eat a little bit.. but he's really not feeling well at all.

[TINKSMOM]

TINK had that from the shelter I picked her up yet. It is a common parasite for shelter kids. The important thing is that you pick up the poop. If she gets it on her paws, she can re-infect herself. I would scrub her litter box regualarly too. She should be over it in about a week. Tink was.

[Lyn]

I have been removing the poop immediately after he 'goes'. I just scoop out a huge spot around it to make sure I got it all. I also have to wash his rear.. much to his dismay but his poop is sloppy. I also bleached his food and water bowls as well as the litter tray. Plus I bleached the kitchen floor.

I asked the vet yesterday about Bubba and Lola since they have had contact with him before I knew about the coccidia. He said it mainly effects young animals and those with a weak immune system. So they should be fine.. but of course I'm keeping them away from his litter and their contact with the kitten is now limited to a passing sniff.

On the up side the little guy is feeling a bit better
today. He was purring up a storm and looking for attention. Plus he ate some canned food on his own this morning. He's still sneezing a bit with a drippy nose. The tech said it sounds like a bit of an allergic reaction to the Albon but she was going to check with the vet and let me know what he says but in the meantime not to stop the meds. So I gave him his second dose this morning on schedule. He can breathe fine and he doesn't sound congested so maybe she's right?

[Ali]

Aw, poor kitty boy. Sounds like he's on the mend though - purring and eating are certainly good signs! You've done a really good thing for him, you know. Imagine if he were still in foster care eating chicken? He's so tiny, he'd probably not make it. You probably literally saved his life. You go girl! Mend that kitty up and give him the most boyish boy name you can think of. A big strong tough name, like Butch or, I don't know, whatever names sound big and tough! Spike! Diesel! Hercules! Boss! Ooooh - Wolverine! (Sorry for that last one - we are a very Marvel Superhero family, and Wolverine is super tough!) Anyway, good for you. He will love you for the rest of his life!

[Lyn]

Poor little man   I'm glad hes in good hands now, and I'm sure hes loving it too.

I'm sure he'll be a totally different kitty once the albon works through his system.

More pics Lyn! please

I hope the albon works. He's still pretty lethargic and sleeping quite a bit. He worries me alot, I got up a couple times during the night to check on him. During the day he's seeking out warm spots, either us or the warm air blowing out the bottom of the fridge. Just looking at him I can tell he's miserable.

LMAO Ali, those names are hilarious but they would fit him. Boss expecially since he is bossy and when he doesn't want to be disturbed he screams his fool head off. LOL If he's sleeping on you and you move him he'll bellow and go right back to the spot he was. haahah

An update on the sneezing and nose dripping. I think he does have a respiratory infection. The discharge was clear earlier but now it's varying from clear to green tinged. GAH My vet is already closed but they are open tomorrow so I'll give them a call in the morning. His chest still doesn't sound congested though. I still think it's odd that the first dose of Albon seemed to start it all. Probably coincidence. 

He won't eat his dry food, only canned and he's picking at it but that's better than yesterday.

[Lyn]

I've had no internet since Saturday.

Onto the kitty update... Besides the Coccidia he does have a URI and was given Clavamox. By Sunday afternoon he was so stuffed up he was breathing out his mouth and both eyes were running. The clavamox helped with the bacterial aspect of the infection it's the viral part that's hammering the little guy. He's been at the vet's since Monday since he's so tiny and his immune system's pretty much non existant so the possibility of him developing pneumonia is high. So far it's not in his chest.. and I'm hoping it stays that way. *knock on wood*

I'm also having some issues with the humane society. The foster mom has asked me more times that I can count "you know you can return him and they will give you your money back". I haven't mentioned money to her at all. They are almost making me feel like I'm not doing enough. My vet said that because it's viral it needs to work it's way out on it's own. What else could I do?

Plus she also said something about my cats making him sick.. excuse me! Then 2 seconds later says that she's 99.9% sure that my cats didn't make him sick but someone else mentioned it. WTF? God I'll take stool samples from my cats in if they will just shutup!.. GAH

She calls me daily to ask me if I know anything more from the vet. She even tried to call my vet for info and wanted me to arrange that the kitten stays with her at night.. Ummm no, nice try.

They will not get the kitten back, over my dead body... I've had enough.. Coccidia does not appear in 2 days plus he had diarrhea when she brought him to me that was never checked. URI's don't just appear either. Neither of my cats are sick.. nor have they ever had those.

I think they are ticked because I got them banned from the pet store. All I did was call the store to let the owner know that he has Coccidia and that the 3 kittens that he was with will need to be checked. The owner was fuming.. but it's not the first time she's had issue with ill kittens.

So yeah. This is turning into quite the drama.

I'm calling the vet for an update at 3:30 so I'll let you all know how he is doing. As of this morning he was still the same.

[People Whisperer]

Gee, they sound like pain in your butt Like you don't have enough to deal with already I hope your poor guy with get with health straighten pretty soon