Yes she doesn't look happy. I can feel her suffering more ever day she's with us and I'm more in tune with her. I cannot understand why her previous owners didn't see this. I'm going to do my best for her, but something has to be done to help her. I just hope I'll know what that is. ?
@moonbeam Ever since I read your first post about your kitty, I've felt I needed to say something-- several thoughts have been swirling around in my mind.
I can empathize: I have lost my share of pets over the years. When my son was 7, we got him a cat from the shelter. He adored that cat, but he (the cat) came down with Feline Infectious Peritonitis and died 3 months after adoption. (The FIP had probably been incubating since the adoption.) FIP is almost 100% fatal. I hoped kitty would be one of the lucky few survivors, so I tried everything I could, including veterinary acupuncture. I was even giving that cat subcutaneous fluids multiple times a day when he stopped eating and drinking. I wouldn't have gone that far if it hadn't been for my son. In the end, the cat was suffering too much and it was futile so we had him euthanized. My son was overwhelmed with grief, however he is an "old soul" and he understood. I think children often understand more than we give them credit for. We had kitty cremated and buried the ashes near the roots of a flowering shrub so that he would become part of the flowers every spring.
That said, until you know the diagnosis and prognosis, you may not be confident that euthanasia is the right path. Is there any chance of getting the kitty to a veterinary teaching hospital or other facility with specialists and high-end diagnostic facilities? We are fortunate to live close to a university vet school which has a small animal clinic open to the public, plus 24-hour emergency service. The vets can just run down the hall and consult a veterinary neuorologist or cardiologist or whatever if needed. Every fancy tool is right there, ready for use. And in this case, they cost no more than a regular generalist veterinarian. You may not have this kind of an option but you could at least look into it-- maybe ask your vet.
I am thinking of you, your family, and your kitty Starlight.
@ana. @moonbeam I can attest to the tragic consequences of euthanizing at the advice of a vet I'd consulted successfully for 30 years, and then later learning the standard testing procedures used by vets for my cat's condition were flawed. I now have to live with the regret that my precious kitty might have survived.
When an animal is sick with more than the obvious ailments, I have learned to take @ana's advice and consult with a veterinary teaching hospital rather than with the usual vet.
@ana, thank you so much for your kind words. It helps that people think of her. Good vibes. Alas we do not have an animal hospital around due to the fact that I live in a rural area. Vets mostly treat farm animals here. However, the vet I have specializes in cats! She sat with us for over half an hour and is consulting with others before the testing begin this Monday. However, I also learned to rely on my gut instinct, which is why I posted here. I do not trust myself to be objective when it comes to the ones I love;-) Input from this forum helps.
So thank you all for your words of advice and @jeanne-mayell for your words of warning. It does help to get the big picture. It is clear to me that she is suffering, however, if this suffering in temporary and can be treated... In olden days people would have killed an animal right away, but we are supposed to be evolved/enlightened and I wish to extent her the courtesy of chances even if she didn't come out 'right'. If it has to be a short life I want to give her all the love and comfort I can possible give these few weeks.
Thank you again for your words and advice. It really, really helps me. ❤️ Will keep you posted.
@jeanne-mayell what a lovely picture that is. A beautiful soul. ?
@moonbeam. I like that you are going to go with your gut instincts. You have good intuition, as evidenced by so many of your past posts. And love and empathy are the best sources of intuition. You have that in abundance. When the target of your intuition is close to you, it is challenging, but you can do it. And we can help.
@jeanne-mayell, @moonbeam First of all, Jeanne, thank you for removing my friend's name from my post- i didn't think it would matter, because she is not a professional reader. But this morning i did a google search, and sure enough, there were other people with her same name who do readings for money. I have no idea who those people are, and was definitely not trying to endorse anyone.
I did ask my friend to do a reading for you, Moonbeam, and your kitten. We actually spent a couple of hours on the phone, while she threw cards and runes. The results were inconclusive each time. We were both stumped. So today i pulled 3 cards, from the Mystical Cats deck (of course!):
-the Fire King (King of Wands): the accompanying book says "Whatever task you undertake now can be accomplished well if you apply all of your energies to it."
-the Earth Tom (Knight of Pentacles): the image shows an adult cat carrying a small kitten over a ditch, to safety. The book talks about your "steady work and a cheerful willingness to help others"...."This card can also indicate someone who is available to help you with practical aid and support."
-Six of Fire (Six of Wands), reversed: I wasn't sure what to make of this card. Maybe it is referring to a lack of answers about the kitten's health issues? I just don't know, so i pulled another card, for clarification:
-the Star:(!!!) "Have faith that everything in your life is unfolding exactly as it is meant. Trust that the pattern will become clearer to you in time. Choose your next actions with the surety that you are being divinely guided."
I don't have a whole lot of experience reading the Tarot, but i hope this helps. Maybe someone else on here can give you a more detailed interpretation?
@moonbeam @unk-p When I tune into her, my mouth and jaw hurts, as if I have a tooth abscess, and that pain makes my head also hurt, like a form of T.M.J.
I love that @Unk-p got the Star card. The reversed six of wands, not so good. But it doesn't tell me anything I didn't already know -- that her regular functioning isn't working. Her body is out of balance. The shivering is because she is sick and in pain. She gets relief from the pain when you caress her. It may be that the problem is all in the mouth and jaw and there is a surgical solution.
Once the vet does a complete diagnosis and plan, you could deal with the cost, even set up a Go-Fund me page. If you were going to have to put her down due to financial issues, then make that clear in the Go-fund-me page and post it all over the place. And get friends to post it in their Facebook pages. Send it to me too. There might be vet services that also do some pro-bono or foundations that contribute to feline care.
@moonbeam. I like that you are going to go with your gut instincts. You have good intuition, as evidenced by so many of your past posts. And love and empathy are the best sources of intuition. You have that in abundance. When the target of your intuition is close to you, it is challenging, but you can do it. And we can help.
@moonbeam, this ^ sounds a lot like the Star card to me. And the part were Jeanne says "And we can all help" reminded me of a dream i had last night. I dreamt that the Forum family was gathering together for a meeting at an old church. It looked like it was somewhere in Europe. Just as we were about to get started, the door burst open, and someone said that a baby was missing. We all got on our bikes, and went out searching the city. Eventually we found the baby, and it was happy and fine. It was a white baby, with a little tuft of red hair, lol.
We all got on our bikes, and went out searching the city. Eventually we found the baby, and it was happy and fine. It was a white baby, with a little tuft of red hair, lol.
I'm going to be laughing about this all night. Last night I dreamed I was in some weird place although it seemed normal to me, that resembled a Dr. Seuss illustration. It was a little hill town with hills and dales and with little open sheds for shelters and pillows for furniture, and there was a Dr. Seuss-type bicycle there that was rubbery and stretched when I grabbed it. It was my transportation. I don't remember the church but it was probably there too. We are in a Dr. Seuss story.
I also wanted to add that if kitty's problem is her teeth, don't worry if they have to be removed. I've got a cat sitting next to me right now who is missing all four "fangs" and a lot of other teeth on account of tooth resorption. She's happy, otherwise healthy, and has no trouble eating at all.
@unk-p, thank you so much for that reading and the hours you spent with your friend! The Star is a beautiful sign. It's symbolic, but also so very much the situation here at the forum ❤️
Your card of the Earth Tom, made me sniffle. I have talked about this forum before about my cat, Holly, whom I had for 19 years, and basically was my cat soulmate. She passed in 2016 and I never saw her again, although @vestralux mentioned she was my guide now. Two days before Christmas she appeared in my dreams for the first time in four years and I felt a great urging towards Starlight. This dream is what pushed me over the edge to go and get her; not knowing what I was getting into. So that was 100% on the bal, Unk;-)
@jeanne-mayell, you are such a kind, kind lady. Thank you so much. I will try to go at it without GoFund me first, since my independent spirit is that obnoxious, but if money becomes the reason between life and death I will GoFund instead of choosing euthanasia.
I think you are right about her mouth. Since I had the special soft food from the vet she's been shaking less. She gets enough food in her now due to the fact of not being served 'hard' nibbles anymore. She walks unsteady and shakes, but she plays a little more, so the mouth definitely plays a large part in this. I am thinking that if they cannot find the reason for her shaking in the blood-work etc. I might ask to put her on anti-tremor medicine. Apparently that's a thing. We can't fix a neurological defect anyway, but if she's happy, we'll take it. I'll keep her inside in that case since she's too unsteady on her feet to face the dangers of nature (I live near a forest), but indoor cats can still live a wonderful life.
@ana, thank you! Do you give her wet food only? I'm leaning towards that indeed, her mouth is malformed so something has to be done, but she's so young and small I am not sure she will survive anesthesia at the moment...
Again, thank you all, my friends. I cannot express the level of comfort you have given me. I feel much more clearer in my path and more certain that I can give this special needs kitty what she needs. ❤️
@unk-p, thank you so much for that reading and the hours you spent with your friend! The Star is a beautiful sign. It's symbolic, but also so very much the situation here at the forum ❤️
Your card of the Earth Tom, made me sniffle. I have talked about this forum before about my cat, Holly, whom I had for 19 years, and basically was my cat soulmate. She passed in 2016 and I never saw her again, although @vestralux mentioned she was my guide now. Two days before Christmas she appeared in my dreams for the first time in four years and I felt a great urging towards Starlight. This dream is what pushed me over the edge to go and get her; not knowing what I was getting into. So that was 100% on the bal, Unk;-)
@ana, thank you! Do you give her wet food only? I'm leaning towards that indeed, her mouth is malformed so something has to be done, but she's so young and small I am not sure she will survive anesthesia at the moment...
I think your dream combined with unk's reading tell you all you need to know: You were meant to give a home to this kitten. Whatever comes next, was meant to be.
As to feeding a cat with missing teeth: My cat gets canned food but she is capable of eating kibble. I was surprised when the vet (veterinary dentist!) told me that many completely toothless cats will happily gulp down dry food with no problem. Perhaps you can keep kitty going until she is old enough for anesthesia. I think there are special nutrient-rich supplemental foods that are available-- might be something that would help her thrive.
@ana, thank you for asking! I've been waiting to see when to post due to the upheaval the US is going through. Didn't want to jump in with a kitten with the 6th happening;-)
The situation with Starlight sure is a journey... When we went to the vet last week they were supposed to give her a complete checkup, but didn't manage much due to her feisty behavior. So no blood work, but they did do a check on her urine sample and found she doesn't have diabetes (which I felt wasn't the case anyway).
The vet then said that it was likely she had a neurological defect, I should think about euthanasia, and that was it. Two days later she stopped eating. Stressed out I took her to the vet again on Thursday. They believed it was cat flu. This didn't sit well with me, since, how was she supposed to have gotten this?! Vet again said that it was OK if I wanted to let her go through euthanasia (since she wasn't natural), which I refused again. So, I went home with antibiotics and painkillers. She also got a vitamin shot and ate again at the vet.
It went well until Saturday when she stopped eating once more. I went to a different doctor on Sunday, due it being the weekend, and she didn't agree with the diagnoses at all. Within minutes she'd discovered that the reason Starlight didn't eat was that she only wants fresh food! Now I already have the most expensive recovery food available, but she doesn't want it anymore when the can has been open for more than 12 hours! She also doesn't smell that well, which adds to the no eating if it's not nice and smelly.
The vet then looked at her movements. She agreed that it might be neurological, but actually thinks Starlight might miss a connection in her brain, a lack of dopamine, similar to people with Parkinson's. Apparently we have a cat neurologist in the Netherlands, and the vet advised to go see him *if* Starlight makes it to adulthood.
So, basically, we persevered and didn't put her down. She sleeps a lot due to the tremors, and some of her teeth have to go when she gets older, but for now she seems to pull through. She loves to play and run just like 'normal' kittens. Loves sleeping on our laps and chase after our older cats. She does get lonely now and then, due to my cats not wanting to spend time with her, but I hope that will change. She's a sweet soul. She is just at a disadvantage.
So, basically, we persevered and didn't put her down. She sleeps a lot due to the tremors, and some of her teeth have to go when she gets older, but for now she seems to pull through. She loves to play and run just like 'normal' kittens. Loves sleeping on ur laps and chase after our older cats. She does get lonely now and then, due to my cats not wanting to spend time with her, but I hope that will change. She's a sweet soul. She is just at a disadvantage.
Ah, see you were meant to have Starlight and help her. Most people would have put her down. But you saw that she deserved another chance.
I am glad you listened to your "BS detector" and went to a second vet.
I keep wondering if the neurological problems are rooted in a nutritional deficiency. If you follow the path: malformed jaw and teeth >>> poor eating habits (maybe poor nursing from mom cat too)>> malnutrition.
Keep feeding kitty that good smelly food she can't resist. Warming it will make it smellier, if necessary. And/or you could pour some sardine oil on top of it... yum (for cats). Then see what happens-- as she eats she will get stronger and the neurologist can have a look, or maybe you won't even need a neurologist.
edited to add-- just as I saved this post, my mostly-toothless cat jumped up beside me, purring enthusiastically.
@ana, thank you;-) Yes I am trying. She has stopped eating again though.. it's becoming very hard to keep her alive. I've tried every single bit of quality food as possible. Hope she pulls through...
@moonbeam Smelly food is what cats like-- if you need to buy some sardines and tuna and squish them up and warm them a little-- do it. If they cannot smell, they will not eat.
Also, is kitty still on pain meds and/or anti-inflammatories to make her jaw more comfortable? She should be, IMO.
@ana, I've tried a lot, let me tell you ? After one and a half days she started to eat again this morning. I'd almost given up. I started to spoon feed her and she perked up. Going for another bout of yummy, smelly food in a bit.
She is on pain meds and antibiotics now. We'll see where it goes, but for now I am just so happy that she's eating!
My hope is that she'll get stronger with a few weeks so she can actually grow up. She is small for her age and so very thin now. Will you hope with me that she will pull through?
. Will you hope with me that she will pull through?
Of course!! Please keep us posted!