Raising Orphaned Kittens Part 3: When to call the Veterinarian

One of the hardest parts about fostering orphaned kittens is that kittens can easily get sick. Sick kittens should be dealt with quickly, because they are small and fragile, especially if they have no mother cat.


If one or more of your orphans becomes sick, you should call a veterinarian and discuss the problem. The veterinarian may or may not advise you to bring the kitten in.

At home, you can take your kitten's temperature, if you feel comfortable doing so. You will need a regular thermometer (preferably one that you will not want to use again!) and some KY jelly.  Put some KY on the tip of the thermometer and stick just the tip into the kitten's anus. The kitten will likely protest. Hold the thermometer there until the thermometer beeps (or for about a minute if it is a mercury thermometer). If the kitten's temperature is over 103 or under 99, it is important to call the veterinarian.

Abnormal signs to watch for in a kitten:

• Discharge from the eyes or nose.
• Poor appetite
• Lethargy (lack of energy)
• Diarrhea 
• Vomiting
• Weight loss or failure to gain weight
• Coughing or sneezing

Emergencies requiring immediate veterinary attention

• Continuous diarrhea
• Continuous vomiting
• Bleeding of any kind 
• Any trauma: hit by a car, dropped, limping, stepped on, unconscious.
• Difficulty breathing.
• A kitten that does not respond or that hasn't eaten for more than a day.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR:

-Watch closely for respiratory signs.  Kittens have weak immune systems, especially when raised away from their mother, as they are not getting any antibodies from their mother. They can easily and quickly succumb to disease and infection if not treated appropriately. 

-Aspiration pneumonia is a concern for bottle-fed kittens; be careful when feeding and give them only what they can swallow at one time. Make sure to feed them in an upright position to decrease risk. 

-Watch stool and urine output closely, and observe for any signs of constipation from the milk formula. Some formulas can increase the risk of diarrhea and some can increase the risk of constipation - either one can be a significant issue for tiny kittens.

-Watch for lethargy/or inappetance.

-If you ever have any questions about kittens’ health please call your veterinarian.

Diarrhea and parasites of the digestive tract
Diarrhea is common in kittens and can have many causes including: parasites, viruses, bacteria, food changes, stress, overfeeding. Because kittens can become dehydrated very quickly, make sure to discuss your kitten's diarrhea with your veterinarian sooner rather than later. If the diarrhea is severe, lasts more than 3 or 4 feedings, or contains blood or obvious parasites, you should call a veterinarian and bring in as much as possible of the feces in a Ziploc bag.

Several causes of diarrhea in kittens involve protozoan (single-celled) parasites, such as coccidia, giardia, and tritrichomonas.  These parasites are common in kittens, and occasionally found in adults.  They are not generally treated with common de-wormers, but antibiotics. For diagnosis of these parasites, especially giardia and tritrichomonas, extremely fresh stool is best for diagnosis.

Most large intestinal worms do not cause diarrhea, but can be very debilitating to kittens in large numbers. Sometimes, if the numbers are large enough, or many worms are dying, the dead worms will pass in the stool. More often, the diagnosis for these parasites is by seeing the microscopic worm eggs in a stool sample. If you see spaghetti-like worms in the stool, you are seeing roundworms. These worms can come up in vomit or stool. The cysts of roundworms can persist for years in soil and be spread to other cats or human children, so it is important to deworm cats as directed by a veterinarian.

If you see rice-like worms on the stool or in the hair around your kittens' tails, you are seeing tapeworm segments. These rice-shaped pieces of the worms are mobile when they exit the body, so they may work their way off the stool or kitten and into the environment. They are not infective at this stage. They are spread by fleas or by eating rodents. Tapeworms do not generally cause diarrhea, but it is advisable to treat your kitten for tapeworms, especially if you know that he has had fleas in the past.

Several types of bacteria, including Clostridium, are potential causes of diarrhea in kittens, and all require microscopic examination, bacterial culture, or PCR testing for diagnosis. These are among the fecal pathogens that can be spread to people if adequate hygiene is not observed after handling sick kittens or litterboxes. Most bacteria respond quickly to antibiotics prescribed by a veterinarian.

Finally, there are a number of viral causes of diarrhea, with feline distemper (also known as panleukopenia or feline parvo virus) being the most devastating. If distemper is suspected, seek veterinary care immediately. Treatment for distemper involves aggressive nutritional supplementation and hospitalization, and you may have a number of kittens die if an entire litter is exposed.This is one of the reasons that you should make sure any older cats in your household are up to date with their annual vaccinations before bringing a kitten into the home. Thoroughly disinfect anything that has been exposed to the sick kittens with a bleach solution.

Ear mite

Ear Mites
Ear mites are tiny arthropod parasites which live in the ear canal. Common signs of ear mites are ears full of coffee-ground-like crumbling debris, itchy ears, head shaking.In very large infestations, you may actually see the pinpoint white mites moving in the debris in the ear. They are highly contagious, but easily treated.

Failure to thrive
Once in a while, one or more kittens in a litter that were healthy and vigorous at birth will begin to "fade" after a week or two of life. They will stop growing, begin to lose weight, stop nursing and crawling. They may cry continuously and lose the ability to stay upright. The mother cat may push them out of the nest, where they often chill and starve to death. Kittens fade very quickly - they will not last 48 hours without veterinary care, and probably will not recover even with intensive care.
There is no clear cause or reason for this condition - it has been linked to birth defects, environmental stress and infectious disease. Early veterinary treatment is imperative, but even with tube feeding, rehydration and monitoring, many, if not most fading kittens will die.

Feline Leukemia (FeLV) and Feline immunodeficiency (FIV)
FeLV and FIV are retroviruses cats get from other cats (or their moms). Testing for disease can help you make the decision whether to foster a kitten, or whether to add kittens to a litter or keep them in isolation. It is often a good idea to have positive test results confirmed.

In the early stages of FeLV, infected cats appear healthy but over months to years, they develop severe, ultimately fatal disease. In very young kittens, it is advisable to test at least twice as some kittens can be transiently positive, or falsely negative.

On the other hand, testing for FIV is more difficult until after a kitten is four months old. The good news about FIV is that it is much harder to transmit than FeLV, and cats that have been infected with FIV can live long, healthy lives, often not experiencing detrimental disease symptoms until the age of 8 years or more.

A flea on a flea comb

Fleas
Fleas are insects that love to feed on kittens. Each flea only consumes a small amount of blood, and most adult cats are relatively unaffected by large flea infestations, however fleas commonly attack in large numbers and an infestation in a kitten can lead to severe anemia and even death. It is essential that your home be free of fleas before bringing home a small kitten.

If your foster kitten enters your home with fleas, it is important to remove them without causing harm.  Fleas can be transported from the kittens isolated in one area to the main part of the house on clothing, shoes, etc. Therefore, it is also important to treat any other animals in the home with monthly flea prevention or a stray flea, flea egg, pupa or larva may cause an infestation in your house - any unprotected animal in the house can then become a reservoir for the infestation.

Check with your veterinarian before applying any commercial flea products to your kitten, as some flea medications can be harmful to cats. One safe way to remove fleas from very young kittens (less than 6 - 8 weeks) is daily flea combing. Keep a jar of soapy water near you to dip the comb into as it comes off the cat full of fleas. Try not to moisten the kitten too much, and make sure to thoroughly dry your kittens after you are done combing.

If the Kitten is 4 Weeks old and over two pounds in weight, Capstar can be given orally up to once a day to kill adult fleas. This product starts to work within 30 minutes and is effective against adult fleas for 4-6 hours. It does not have any affect on, eggs, larva, or other adult fleas in the kittens environment.

If the kitten is 6 weeks old or older, you can use topical monthly applications available from a veterinarian. Despite your best efforts at flea control, you should plan to treat the kittens for a minimum of 90 days to ensure that all the fleas are out of the household. For more information about flea control, please refer to our blog article "Fighting Fleas Fairly...For Good!"

Upper respiratory tract infection (URI)
Upper respiratory infections are very common in kittens, especially if they have been through a shelter situation and exposed to other cats. These infections are caused by airborne viruses and bacteria which are contagious and spread very quickly.

Signs of URI to watch out for:

• Sneezing and discharge from eyes or nose
• Congested breathing
• Loss of appetite
• Lethargy
• Dehydration

Vomiting
If your kitten is vomiting, it is possible that the kitten is eating his meals too quickly. You should watch him when he eats and not allow him to eat too much too quickly. If your kitten vomits 2-3 times in a row, it should see a veterinarian. Vomiting can be another sign of distemper in kittens, so it should not be taken lightly.

Indoor cats can get fleas, too!

Most people know that outdoor cats are at risk for picking up fleas - especially those cats that like to lounge in the shade under bushes where other animals spend their time. But, did you know that even indoor cats can get fleas?

Sometimes, the fleas are brought into the house by unsuspecting owners, on pants legs, on shoes, or other outdoor items. Most times, it is not the adult flea that comes inside. They have a large warm food source, already, why would they want to jump off into the great unknown and leave a good thing behind? Instead, the female flea is almost constantly laying eggs, which roll off the host - a rabbit, a squirrel, a stray cat - and into the dirt. There, the eggs can hatch, and the flea larvae can eat and grow under the bush until it is time to

Flea larvae are only a little thicker than a cat hair. Under the microscope, we can see this larva has eaten some flea dirt (adult flea feces - digested blood) which gives it a reddish color.

form the pupal cocoon. Once the pupa stage is reached, the flea is pretty much indestructible. No amount of pesticide is going to hurt that cocoon. After a period of time, that cocoons can be picked up by a human and transported inside. Once inside, when conditions are right, the adult fleas hatch and find a food source - your pampered indoor pet.

Other ways that an indoor cat can get fleas is from visitors to the home - with or without their own pets. We often find out that just before a cat starts scratching, Aunt Sally might have visited along with her Jack Russell Terrier, or maybe the kids just got home from visiting Grandpa Frank and his indoor/outdoor cat Puma. Or, maybe everyone just got back from camping in the Blue Ridge Mountains and the cats were rolling around in the luggage.

Sometimes, your cat will show signs of itchiness such as scratching or excessive grooming if he or she is bothered by the fleas. In cases where cats actually have an allergy to flea saliva, cats will develop hair loss and/or sores in a classic pattern - usually around the base of the tail and the neck. Other signs of fleas are more subtle. Your cat may be noticeably spending more time up off the floor, may be more easily irritated than usual or may have no signs of discomfort at all.

To check for fleas, use a fine-toothed comb and comb your cat from neck to tail, concentrating under the chin and near the base of the tail. Afterwards, check the comb for fleas or flea dirt. If you find a flea, you win! Well, not really, but at least you will know that your cat has fleas. Unfortunately, because cats are such good groomers, just because you don't find fleas, it doesn't mean they're not there. Sometimes, it can be very difficult to catch them in a flea comb - they're fast, and they're flat, and they know how to hide!

A cat flea caught in a flea comb. Look fast - he's going to jump!

Flea dirt is another indicator of the presence of fleas. Flea dirt, or flea feces, can be recognized as tiny black specks about the thickness of a hair, often curved, that turn red when water is added and they are rubbed on a white towel. If you find flea dirt, you have fleas, even if you don't find the naughty critter himself. If a flea has been on your cat long enough to produce flea dirt, he's been there a while! If you find a flea but no dirt, then it's likely the flea hasn't been around long.

The flea life cycle

The best way to be certain that fleas never enter your home is to make sure that your cat is receiving a monthly flea prevention medication along with his or her heartworm prevention. We usually recommend the all-in-one product Revolution because it also prevents heartworm infections and has some additional effectiveness against ear and skin mites, ticks and some intestinal parasites. Advantage Multi is another good topical product that is similar. However, if your cat is already taking Heartgard heartworm prevention, you may want to choose Frontline or Advantage instead.

If you already have noticed a flea problem, make sure to read our tips on fighting fleas. It is important to
remember that if you see adults fleas on your cat, you are only seeing 5% of the problem, so one application of flea preventive is never enough to solve the problem. Your best weapons against fleas are prevention and patience. 

Fighting fleas fairly...for good!

They're everywhere, everyone's heard of them, and nobody likes them - fleas! This is the time of year that we start seeing a lot of flea problems at Exclusively Cats: on stray cats, on indoor/outdoor cats, and even on indoor cats. 

Fleas are pretty universal on outdoor critters like rabbits and squirrels, and cats love to lie in grassy areas that these smaller animals tend to inhabit. Even if the cat and the rabbit aren't in the same spot at the same time, flea eggs and larvae may be present in the soil where the cat chooses to sit, and thus, the problem begins...

CONCEPTS TO UNDERSTAND FOR BETTER FLEA CONTROL

The flea lifecycle and family pyramid

The flea life cycle is a metamorphosis just like many other insects such as the butterfly. There is an egg stage, a larval stage, a pupa (cocoon) and an adult.

In Michigan, correlating with humidity, the flea’s growth cycle begins in the spring, typically around tax day, April 15^th.

The flea’s most rapid growth cycle is from July to September and this is when most of us recognize the presence of the fleas and start working towards treatment.

If you see a flea on your cat, you are seeing only 5% of the problem. Fifty percent of the fleas in your home will be those in egg stage in the carpet or other areas where your cat likes to spend time.

Each female flea will produce up to 50 eggs per day. It can take as little as a single day for the eggs to hatch in ideal conditions (like a hot, humid summer), producing a single larva (caterpillar). Each larva takes up to 4 weeks before forming a cocoon (pupa, chrysalis). The adult flea takes up to 4 weeks to form within the cocoon.

Ten percent of the flea population is present in cocoon form. The adult flea may remain dormant for over 1 year in this cocoon. It is important to note that the flea's cocoon is like a tiny bomb shelter; nothing will kill the forming flea in the cocoon. This means that if you have fleas right now, 10% of the infestation is almost impossible to remove by any means. This is why effective control of the other life stages is imperative, and also why we must treat infestations for several months consistently to thoroughly eliminate all the fleas in a home.

Usually this flea will use its strong legs to break free from the cocoon and get on your pet in the early spring and summer. Fleas evolved to be very efficient about getting onto the animal on their first try. In humid conditions, the adult flea is stimulated to emerge in response to vibration, heat and exhaled carbon dioxide. In nature, the flea may only get one chance to succeed, and if they miss, they may become a meal for another insect.

Once on a host, the adult flea never leaves, and if removed will die within 72 hours. The female will begin laying eggs within 48 hours of her first meal, which translates to about about 2,000 eggs in her three to four month lifespan.

It is important to understand that if you discover fleas in your home during the months of July or later, you WILL have fleas in your home the following spring or summer. It does not matter what you do to treat your pet or household, fleas will persist in the cocoon stage into the following year. The best course of action is to treat your pets now and plan to begin treatment again in the spring in order to derail the life cycle of the flea.

We encourage vacuuming often, which may rid the home of a number of the cocoons, change your vacuum bag frequently and to treat each household pet monthly with Revolution or Advantage Multi. These products kill adult fleas, and have a weakening effect on the eggs and larvae. It is important to treat all pets in the home, even if they are not cats, because fleas will harbor on untreated pets in the home and the problem will continue. 


It has been found that flea collars are really not very useful, because all they do is deter the fleas to the tail end of the cat, and they have no effect on the eggs or larvae.

Flea dirt on a cat

Common signs of a flea problem are black specks in the fur called "flea dirt". This material is actually digested blood that has passed through the digestive tract of the adult flea, or "flea poop".  This material falls off the cat into the environment and nourishes the larvae there. You can distinguish flea dirt from actual dirt by collecting some on a paper towel and rubbing some water into it. It will leave red smudges on the paper towel, indicating that it is blood.


Many cats do not itch when they have fleas, and many will still maintain a beautiful, glossy coat, however some cats have a syndrome called Flea Allergy Dermatitis and will lose hair around the base of the tail and the neck where fleas primarily like to hang out. You may see scabs on the skin and your cat may be "twitchy" when you pet him. This problem requires other medications to help control the itching while the flea problem is eliminated. 


One further problem that can result from a flea infestation is that of the tapeworm. Cats ingest a large number of the fleas on their bodies. Dipylidium tapeworms are carried in the flea and transmitted to the cat when she grooms herself. Tapeworms are difficult to diagnose with a routine stool exam because the tapeworm segments (egg packets) that pass in the stool are mobile, and often migrate off the stool before it is collected to take to the veterinary office for testing. More often, cat owners see little tapeworm segments that look like grains of rice in the hair around the base of their cat's tail. Tapeworms are treated with a dewormer like Drontal Plus or Profender.


A monthly application of a flea and heartworm preventive like Revolution or Advantage Multi will prevent fleas from ever being an issue. Topical flea-only preventive products are usually "you get what you pay for" in terms of how effective they are. If you are committed to getting rid of your flea problem, buy a safe, effective flea product, not the lowest cost product on the market. While we do recommend broad spectrum anti-parasite medications, targeting the fleas with flea-specific Frontline or Advantage II is also an option.