We recently found (as in had someone drive up to our house and beg that we take) a kitten, who's probably about 6 weeks, by now. We've been feeding him every few hours - put out the milk (kitten formula) first, and when he's done with that he moves on to the dry kitten food and the water. He's recently all but quit drinking the formula. (We had tried bottle-feeding that, about a week or two ago, but he bit the nipple in half.)
Also, this kitten is more thin and gangly than usual, but his stomach's always huge and round. His stools aren't at all solid and, while he knows how to use the litterbox, he'll often go anywhere else, and I do mean anywhere. My mom diagnosed his "diarrhea and potbellied appearance" as roundworms according to an in-depth cat book I have, and she's given him the proper dose of roundworm medicine as indicated on the packaging.
So my main question is this: Is there anything that you think we're doing wrong or not at all that we should be to help this kitten?
Answers:
I used to work in a diagnostic vet lab. You need to take the kitten to the vet and get it's stools tested. He probably doesn't have roundworm: its probably giardia (be really careful, humans can contract giardia from animals). With the proper diagnosis, and the proper care, your kitten will be well in no time at all.
Also, it is very dangerous to try and diagnose an animal by yourself. If the treatment is for the proper ailment, it will help. But sometimes treating an animal for something it's not sick with will harm the animal and sometimes cause death.
just lots of love, sunshine, rainbows and kisses
Ok. This kitten needs to see a vet. He will need his vaccinations and a proper health check, not one out of a book. A vet will also worm the kitten properly, not just for roundworm but tapeworms and all sorts of other nasties, some of which humans can catch too (ewww). If you can't afford to see a vet then you need to contact a local rescue society and get them to take the cat. Unvaccinated cats will pass diseases to other cats and to people too. There is a particularly nasty disease called toxicara that can make you go blind (I'm not kidding). Good luck with your kitty.
you should take the kitten food and put water in it so it moistens t up because 6 weeks is a little to young to be eating hard foods. and some kittens do get roundworms. just treat it as advised and do not give it any milk or that stuff but try to give it cottage cheese that helps with its diarrhea
I hope that the worm medication was appropriate and that the kitten will be relieved of that burden on his system. Meat is the natural food for a kitten as that is what the mother uses to wean them (the mouse). Something like Max canned kitten food will be much healthier than any dry food you might give him now.
please take the kitten to a vet to have shots and a check up. Good luck
If you want to keep him than take him to a vet.
If you do not..take him the humane society. They will treat him and find a home for him as well.
barring taking her to the vet, there is not much else you can do
you can keep hot water bottles in her bed for her to keep her really warm (just fill a 2 liter with very hot water and wrap in a towel, change every 2 hours) this will also help with any pain she may feel in her belly.
feeding kittens canned foods instead of dry helps them to stay regular, they will poop less, this is from personal experience
It is not wrong to help another living creature or person, If more people were like you and your mum the world would be a better place
This is like me,but i got a stray dog.What you should do is make flayers and put them around your area and see if anyone calls.You really shouldn't feed or give the cat water but ever so often you can.
ask your mom to make an appointment with the vet to have this kitten checked out
thank you
well it might help if you take him to the vet for a check up. otherwise just keep doing what your doing. love him and care for him, play with him and cuddle with him.
take him to the vet
Your mom is probably correct about the roundworms. Normally you will see them in the feces appearing as "spaghetti". Also, they travel into the digestive system, and often the pet will vomit them as well. Treatment is normally given in two doses based upon weight and age. Once treated, dead roundworms will appear in the feces. Over the counter medications are often not well suited for young animals. At our practice, we have seen 4 kittens die from toxicity after being treated with over the counter flea product. It is a much better idea to have the vet treat. We charge $6.75 per treatment for worming. We treat twice.
Also, you should not give cow milk to any cat, as they do not have the ability to digest it correctly. From your note, it sounds as though you must be using kitten replacer milk. Bottle feeding is a bad idea as it can cause aspiration pneumonia. A kitten who is able to drink water and eat dry food on his own does not need formula, just a good quality pet food. At 6 weeks, the mama cat would be weaning them anyways, and they would have been eating solid food already.
Your plan should be to get an appoinment at your veterinarian. Take a fecal sample with you so that it can be checked for ALL parasites. You should also consider having him tested for Feline Leukemia. This has the ability to cross the placenta during gestation. Without knowing the health status of the mama cat, he could be at risk.
In the meantime, get a good quality diet (Purina One, Eukanuba, IAMS). Give lots of love, and make an appointment with the vet.
Your kitten probably has worms. It is very common in stray cats and kittens. Treating for roundworms is fine, but more than likely he has multiple kinds. You can order Droncit liquid from 1-800-Pet-Meds. That will cover all the bases as far as worms go. Your will probably need to dose the kitten a couple of times before the problem goes away. You will know if it is working when you see little white segments in their stool.
Another thing to remember is that kittens get VERY round after eating. They will eat nearly everything given to them, so limit the amount of food offered. Switch it over to one kind of wet food. I recommend anything chicken or turkey flavored. Don't get fish flavored. Give them 1/4 of a large can or 1/2 of a small can about 4 times a day. Get rid of the formula. Gradually start mixing the dry food into the wet food lessening the wet food day by day. They should be on dry food only at about 10 weeks. Switching foods back and forth can just aggravate their stomach and cause diarrhea. Just make sure water is available at all times. Good luck!
i think Ur Mom is right. please for the cats sake take him to a Vet.
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