Help with kitten health problem?

[BigAlsGal]

We recently adopted a feral kitten. She's very sweet. We've done all the typical deworming, flea meds, first vaccination.

Problem is from the very start she seems to have an issue. A breathing issue. She makes noise when she breaths like she's got something blocking her nose. I've taken her to the vet 3 times with my concerns and they have come to the diagnosis of a polyp in her sinus/ear area.

Has anyone dealt with this? I'm worried about her. They said they would take a closer look when they do the spay but that's weeks away. She's so quiet. She's never really had a meow. She opens her mouth to meow but nothing comes out. She's so young but spends most of her time not being curious and playful but curled up and sleepy looking. Her food intake seems to be low but existent.

Any info or experiences would be greatly appreciated.

 

[MIGrandma]

Aw, what a cute little kitty!

I have experience with a polyp and breathing issues with my indoor cat. She is 14 years old (was born outdoors, her mother was a barn cat) and has had the issues most of her life. I actually took her to the vet several years ago to have the polyp removed as he did see one in her ear, but when they put her under anesthesia they couldn't find it! They said it must have dissolved. Thankfully, when I picked her up the next morning, they didn't charge me anything.

The vet has given me medication 3 separate times for a "respiratory infection." The first 2 times I thought it might have helped, some. But her breathing issues always came back. She breathes very noisily, and sneezes a lot, snuffles, sounds like a duck sometimes. The mucous is white, never green/yellow so it's NOT an infection. The third time the vet gave me the medication it was a different vet than she had been to before (our old vet retired and a new one took over the practice). The medication didn't do a thing. She still sneezed and snuffled the entire 10 days she took it. I did talk to him about her possibly having a polyp in her nose, and he (as did the old vet) said it could be possible but neither have ever looked in her nose to find out.

From talking with others here about her issues, I found others have had the same issues with their cats. I thought maybe it was allergies so gave her drops for that, didn't help. But it was worth a try. It could be feline viral rhino pneumonitis and she is due soon to have her rabies shot so I'm going to discuss that with the vet when I take her in. I'm not sure if there is any medication she could take for that.

She doesn't seem too bothered by her nose issues, I think it bothers me more than her as I feel so sorry for her. And a lot of the time, when she's sleeping, her breathing is perfectly fine. It's odd. And just something she lives with.

 

[BigAlsGal]

Aw, what a cute little kitty!

I have experience with a polyp and breathing issues with my indoor cat. She is 14 years old (was born outdoors, her mother was a barn cat) and has had the issues most of her life. I actually took her to the vet several years ago to have the polyp removed as he did see one in her ear, but when they put her under anesthesia they couldn't find it! They said it must have dissolved. Thankfully, when I picked her up the next morning, they didn't charge me anything.

The vet has given me medication 3 separate times for a "respiratory infection." The first 2 times I thought it might have helped, some. But her breathing issues always came back. She breathes very noisily, and sneezes a lot, snuffles, sounds like a duck sometimes. The mucous is white, never green/yellow so it's NOT an infection. The third time the vet gave me the medication it was a different vet than she had been to before (our old vet retired and a new one took over the practice). The medication didn't do a thing. She still sneezed and snuffled the entire 10 days she took it. I did talk to him about her possibly having a polyp in her nose, and he (as did the old vet) said it could be possible but neither have ever looked in her nose to find out.

From talking with others here about her issues, I found others have had the same issues with their cats. I thought maybe it was allergies so gave her drops for that, didn't help. But it was worth a try. It could be feline viral rhino pneumonitis and she is due soon to have her rabies shot so I'm going to discuss that with the vet when I take her in. I'm not sure if there is any medication she could take for that.

She doesn't seem too bothered by her nose issues, I think it bothers me more than her as I feel so sorry for her. And a lot of the time, when she's sleeping, her breathing is perfectly fine. It's odd. And just something she lives with.

Thank you!

 

[MIGrandma]

You're welcome.

 

[nancygirl1]

Your kitty looks very young. Our kitten was supposed to be 10 weeks when we got him, but he was a barn cat that was pretty much thrown away so we really had no idea, but we figured he was only about 8 weeks. He was sick from the usual feral cat issues. He was so lethargic for the first few weeks. He, too wasn't interested in playing/running around. In order to get him to eat more the vet recommended a prescription food from them or plain ol' tuna fish out of the can. He refused to eat the vet food. He gobbled up the tuna and it literally saved his life. He had breathing and gagging issues. The gagging was pretty bad, but he has mostly grown out of it. The breathing backed off after he got healthier.

I would try high protein food for him. We didn't really worry what we fed him at the beginning as long as he ate. The vet told us that it was more important that he ate. I don't know what you're feeding him, but just feed him whatever gets him to eat. The wet food was the best for him.

We've adopted all feral's and the first de-worming did not work for some of them. We had to give them the meds a second time and one of them 3 times. That will make them lethargic too and if the worms are really bad they can even get in their lungs.

God bless you for rescuing this little cutey

 

[BigAlsGal]

Your kitty looks very young. Our kitten was supposed to be 10 weeks when we got him, but he was a barn cat that was pretty much thrown away so we really had no idea, but we figured he was only about 8 weeks. He was sick from the usual feral cat issues. He was so lethargic for the first few weeks. He, too wasn't interested in playing/running around. In order to get him to eat more the vet recommended a prescription food from them or plain ol' tuna fish out of the can. He refused to eat the vet food. He gobbled up the tuna and it literally saved his life. He had breathing and gagging issues. The gagging was pretty bad, but he has mostly grown out of it. The breathing backed off after he got healthier.

I would try high protein food for him. We didn't really worry what we fed him at the beginning as long as he ate. The vet told us that it was more important that he ate. I don't know what you're feeding him, but just feed him whatever gets him to eat. The wet food was the best for him.

We've adopted all feral's and the first de-worming did not work for some of them. We had to give them the meds a second time and one of them 3 times. That will make them lethargic too and if the worms are really bad they can even get in their lungs.

God bless you for rescuing this little cutey

Thank you! We've got round 2 of worming coming up. Sunday we just lost one of our old cats to renal failure. I just want to keep this sweet thing with us. She's pretty precious. I will try the tuna! Thank you!

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

I can't talk about the other issues but can about the meow. We adopted a 9 month old kitten who didn't meow. She is 2 years old now and just has a tiny squeak.
It cracks me up. I don't think she ever learned how to meow. When our oldest cat meows then she tries so mimic him and can get a larger squeak but it never lasts long. She still doesn't actually meow.

 

[mom2rtk]

We adopted a feral kitten and had all sorts of issues when he was little. Not the breathing issues though. I hope she does ok. Just don't be afraid to go back to the vet if you think she's not eating or breathing. Don't feel like you have to wait for the spaying. If there's more than one vet in the practice, try seeing a different vet for a second opinion. We had one vet miss an issue in our older cat that our regular vet picked up on.

Also on the worming, stay with it and don't be afraid to go back if the first round of treatment doesn't clear up all the issues. Ours had a variety of parasites after living in the wild. It took a fair number of visits and medications (different ones for different parasites) but we eventually got him all cleared up. And he's just one of the best cats ever.

Your little girl is adorable. Hang in there with and for her!

 

[TipsyTraveler]

I'm assuming they've already treated/ruled out an upper respiratory infection?

The silent meowing is a perfectly normal meow, just done at a frequency too high for you to hear. The kitty's meow is just fine, it's your ears that are the problem.

 

[nancygirl1]

My kitty has a silent meow and one of my former one did, too. It's hysterical to see them open their mouth and nothing comes out lol

Also, about trying a different vet...it made a big difference for us. The first vet we saw after we got him told us to put him down. We saw another vet soon after and she was the one who recommended the tuna.

 

[nancygirl1]

Then....... Now.....

If you click on the thumbnail you can see just how sickly he looked.

 

[LSUmiss]

I'm assuming they've already treated/ruled out an upper respiratory infection?

The silent meowing is a perfectly normal meow, just done at a frequency too high for you to hear. The kitty's meow is just fine, it's your ears that are the problem.

That’s what I was going to ask about the respiratory infection? That’s one of the diseases that cats are vaccinated for. But even if she had shots, she’s not immune til she’s had a few boosters. I would be more concerned about the eating & lethargy. She is adorable!

 

[toystory1130]

Have you had the little one checked for leukemia? I only ask because our cat does have leukemia and was very sick ( upper respiratory) when we found her on the side of the road 13 years ago. She was so sick her eyes were glued shut

 

[PollyannaMom]

We recently adopted a feral kitten. She's very sweet. We've done all the typical deworming, flea meds, first vaccination.

Problem is from the very start she seems to have an issue. A breathing issue. She makes noise when she breaths like she's got something blocking her nose. I've taken her to the vet 3 times with my concerns and they have come to the diagnosis of a polyp in her sinus/ear area.

Has anyone dealt with this? I'm worried about her. They said they would take a closer look when they do the spay but that's weeks away. She's so quiet. She's never really had a meow. She opens her mouth to meow but nothing comes out. She's so young but spends most of her time not being curious and playful but curled up and sleepy looking. Her food intake seems to be low but existent.

Any info or experiences would be greatly appreciated.
View attachment 278471

Oh, she's absolutely precious!!!

I do have a cat who "snores" when she breathes sometimes, but the vet has never noticed anything wrong with her nose, so I think it's just a slight pollen allergy. I do a double-take sometimes, but it doesn't seem to bother her at all.

I expect the reason they told you they'd check out the polyp during the spay appointment is that they can get a better look (or even remove it) while she'd under anesthesia, and they don't want to put her out twice.

How long have you had her? The sleepiness might just be that she's still recovering from "life before rescue". I definitely second the idea of offering her tuna (or whatever her favorite thing is). I'd try mixing it with whatever healthy food you'd eventually like her to have, so it will be easy to transition after she's eating well. - For now, make it mostly favorite and a little of the other, and later on, gradually flip-flop the ratio.

The silent meowing is a perfectly normal meow, just done at a frequency too high for you to hear. The kitty's meow is just fine, it's your ears that are the problem.

I never knew that! Both of my cats are - shall we just say - plenty vocal in my normal hearing range. (I'd kind of like to meet a quiet one.)

Then....... View attachment 278595 Now..... View attachment 278596

If you click on the thumbnail you can see just how sickly he looked.

He grew up to be very handsome!!

 

[BigAlsGal]

Then....... View attachment 278595 Now..... View attachment 278596

If you click on the thumbnail you can see just how sickly he looked.

Oh so handsome!

 

[BigAlsGal]

I'm assuming they've already treated/ruled out an upper respiratory infection?

The silent meowing is a perfectly normal meow, just done at a frequency too high for you to hear. The kitty's meow is just fine, it's your ears that are the problem.

Yeah. He's given her multiple inspections. Listened to her lungs. Temp is normal. She's been on 2 rounds of antibiotics so far. The first one was for an infection she had when she was still feral. Eye was swollen shut. Grandma (even though she doesn't claim the cats) will still take them to the vet if sick or injured.

 

[BigAlsGal]

Have you had the little one checked for leukemia? I only ask because our cat does have leukemia and was very sick ( upper respiratory) when we found her on the side of the road 13 years ago. She was so sick her eyes were glued shut

I guess not leukemia. We did FIV. She was fine there. I guess I just want to believe if the vet was concerned he would happily charge me the money to test for more things. He really just thinks she's "fine". Idk.

 

[BigAlsGal]

My kitty has a silent meow and one of my former one did, too. It's hysterical to see them open their mouth and nothing comes out lol

Also, about trying a different vet...it made a big difference for us. The first vet we saw after we got him told us to put him down. We saw another vet soon after and she was the one who recommended the tuna.

She liked the tuna! She didn't eat a bunch but it's nice to see her get some nutrition.

 

[TipsyTraveler]

Chicken baby food usually works well to tempt picky eaters.

 

[nancygirl1]

She liked the tuna! She didn't eat a bunch but it's nice to see her get some nutrition.

Fabulous!!!!

Sammie is my sweet boys' name. He is the sweetest, most even tempered cat we have ever had. If you notice the red, droopy left eye in the first picture he has herpes. Not unusual for a feral. The vet recommended a natural supplement to put in his food for the rest of his blessed life. If anyone is interested I'll tell you more about it.

Like Pollyanamom said, some of it could be recovering from "life before rescue."