Hi Kelley,
I understand what you mean about hating kitten season. I'm so sorry for
all the losses you've had to endure. I love all babies, but after being
in rescue I can't look at any of them without a touch of sadness. I
hate that!
The symptoms you describe sound like IBD, (Inflammatory Bowel Disease)
to me. It's a catch-all term used when the vets have done all the tests
and can't figure out what the heck is going on. The symptoms include
uncontrolled diarrhea and/or vomiting, thickened intestine walls and
malnutrition. There is an IBD list that I joined when my Gypsy
developed IBD after an accidental vaccine overdose. Generally the
people and the rules on the list are a royal pain in the a**, but I did
get some valuable information there that helped save Gypsy's life,
(http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FelineIBD). I have found that diet is a
key factor. Switching Gypsy to a raw diet was the turning point in her
recovery, (she's now on a cooked turkey diet that keeps her bowels
relatively normal and allows her to maintain her weight. Food allergies
usually play a part, low allergen foods and getting them on a "novel"
protein is usually the first step. If they are on dry food, get them
off of it immediately. Steroids are also commonly used to help control
IBD, Budesonide is sometimes favored over Prednisone. I hate putting
kitties on steroids because it lowers their immune response and has long
term side effects, but when someone is in grave danger... I've had very
good luck with homeopathics, but it was a long time before I found the
right remedies for Gypsy. As I mentioned before, B12 injections seemed
to help too. Get a scale you can use at home so you can monitor Rory's
weight without having to go to the vet. Hugs and best wishes to you my
dear,
Nina
> My vet said he is seeing it more, and they don't really know what it
is. It is pretty scary. He said she had thickened intestines, and she
could not absorb her food. So she ate, but remained tiny. At 5 months
she was 1.04 pounds. This may have been some other sort of illness that
she didn't have the reserves to deal with. I just don't know. Her
sister is perhaps 2 pounds. I need to take her and get her weighed.
This is the 5th kitten I have lost this year and the 2nd from this
litter. I hate kitten season. >
