Poorly kitten with cat flu.

[ToffeeWhirl]

Our six-month-old Balinese kitten has a recurrence of cat flu again . He first had it a month ago. This time, he has a high temperature, an eye infection, the sneezes and is sleeping all the time. He is still eating and drinking, thank goodness, but he is very underweight.

If he gets another recurrence, the vet will check for other diseases.

I have come away from the vet with a bagful of medicines and a much depleted bank account.

The vet did reassure me that this wasn't life threatening. We are all besotted with this kitten, particularly my oldest son. The other day, DS1 fell asleep during the day and I found him and the kitten tucked up under the duvet, both heads on the pillow .

Has anyone else had a cat with cat flu? If so, did it keep coming back? Any tips?

Also, any tips on telling the breeder would be welcome. I chickened out of telling her the first time round, but I really feel I should this time. However, I don't know what to say without sounding as if I'm asking for a refund or blaming her in some way. Also, I'm not sure what she can do about it if her cats are carriers. Does it mean that she shouldn't be selling kittens, or is this just a risk you take when you buy a cat from a breeder?

Incidentally, the only reason we bought a pedigree was because I am allergic to cats and this was one of the few breeds that don't trigger my allergies. Am not particularly bothered whether I have a moggie or a pedigree, just don't want to spend my days sneezing and wheezing.

Am awake with ToffeeKitten. Have just given him a tin of Applaws because he was asking for food. He is on my lap now, grooming himself (not biting). Hoping to get more sleep soon...

Good to read he is still eating well and running/jumping around he sounds relaxed enough and as cozie said if he has his own space to go to he should be fine.

A girl cat I had used to rip patches of fur out, I never ever got to bottom of it, I just remember her bald patches, i wonder if a babygrow would restrict his movement a bit too much, Ive done it with kittens before after ops but never a 6 month old.

Im going to try get some sleep I hope you and toffeecat can do the same.

Hope you all got some more sleep.

Yes, I went back to sleep - then overslept and only just managed to get DS2 to school on time. ToffeeKitten refused to lie down when I was trying to get back to sleep and sat up like a sentry beside me. He is very hungry this morning and very vocal. He was determined to go upstairs after breakfast, so DS1 hovered behind him as he went up. Once up there, he was stuck - he seems to know it's risky for him to come down - so DS1 carried him back down.

He climbed up onto my shoulder a moment ago and almost gave us all a heart attack by jumping off. However, he landed fine. I know I shouldn't get my hopes up, but I can't help hoping it was all some weird nerve inflammation that is resolving itself. Not even sure if that's possible.

Had a good chat with DS1 about the situation this morning. He said again that he will never have another cat, so I told him MumnGran's story about her friend and pointed out how sad it was that he had never had another dog. I said that having a pet is painful as well as joyful because they can get sick and die, but that is no reason to cut yourself off from the joy of having a pet. He said again that no cat could replace our cat and I agreed with him, but explained that we would love a new cat for itself, not as a replacement. He looked thoughtful. Am really touched by how he's dealing with this.

Hopefully, the vet will ring sooner rather than later and we'll know what we're dealing with.

Yep - he's happy, now. His person has come round. The sitting up like a sentry would be checking that you were actually preparing to sleep and not going to sneak out on him. (Bet he lay down/snuck in with you once you were out for the count?)

Has he overgroomed this morning as far as you know?

I'm not really hovering here, by the way - just still waiting for Seniorboy to pee so at a loose end. Can't go downstairs to work so it's books or the laptop.

Aww, you think? I like your explanation for him sitting up like a sentry. I have no idea what happened after I fell asleep, but you may well be right.

He hasn't overgroomed so far this morning.

He keeps wanting to climb back up on my shoulder and onto my back, though, and it's not safe for him. I know he landed fine once, luckily, but it makes me nervous. Maybe he's staking his claim to me? He might know there's not a lot else I can do if he's perched on me .

Toffee ...am hoping that the improvement is because his system is back to functioning well enough to clear build up of toxins . The signs are very positive - particularly the increased appetite and rising activity level.
Remains to be seen what the vet will say based on results, but would hope that the wobbliness will also start to improve.

Fingers crossed for your appointment today!

DS1 will get there. It is hard for children to extrapolate how they will feel in the future dependant on differing circumstance. I was, and am, a huge believer in having proper funerals .....mine even buried the goldfish!! .... and I still treasure a eulogy written by my (then) 7 year old to a hamster who apparently was " a trouthful pet" (among his other outstanding qualities)

However, repeat repeat repeat .....KS is improving!! you are still on wait and see..... and if crossed fingers are any indicator, he will come through.
ahead of vets visit.

Good luck with the pee collection this morning. I love the fact that Seniorboy pees into an antique saucer.

You do get 'climbers' - I recall that Thirdboy used to want to go around draped over people's shoulders to the great consternation of some builders we had in. (He was very sociable with strangers, unusually.)

Usually, though, it's just a desperate attempt to be close to their person. When you get a close one (and I reckon he is - in spades) they can have quite a large 'need tank' and they like to keep it topped up.

Good that he's not overgroomed so far. I had hoped that sleeping with you would help.

cosie ...I'm definitely hovering, as a work avoidance ploy!!

Toffee .... I have had a Siamese and also a moggie who were shoulder sitters. The trick - if you don't mind living your life with a feline version of Long John Silver's parrot - is in realising that they do manage to find a balance as you move. Not so firm with KS at the mo, obviously, so I wouldn't do any housework or zooming up and down stairs while he is wobbly, but its amazing how they can manage to stay put through all sorts of manoeuvring. I swear my poor posture is down to the moggy sleeping across my shoulders whenever I was standing at kitchen counters.

Ha! Pee collecting- Ha!

(So what did you do with your day yesterday cozie?)

The blighter crossed his legs yesterday until it was too late to make the vets with fresh pee for testing. He had two poos but no pee - and the look on his face when it got to 18.00, I gave up, and he could finally sit and squat, was (I swear) one of undisguised glee. 'That'll show her! Teach her to take me for a blood test.'

So now we're back waiting. He has his second AB jab early afternoon so I'm hoping against hope that he'll give in and pee before we have to leave the house. Given that he's flat out on his blanket, I'm not holding out a whole lot of hope.

sooooo have the t-shirt on that one!! my vets eventually gave me a mass of 'needle covers' (small, plastic, non absorbent but enough to scratch in!) which went into the lit tray instead of litter. Helped a lot.

Do hope he improves though Cozie, and that the pee - when finally caught - isn't too badly out of kilter.

I think he's fine and the flu seems better. I know ABs shouldn't help a virus but his nose has dried up and his snoring (Pah!) isn't too stertorous at all. He's also eating like a horse.

The vet just likes to cross her Ts (quite rightly) and he's getting his own back for me vetting him on Tuesday. I'll get it eventually - when he has a moment of inattention - but it doesn't look like today.

Still waiting for the vet to ring. I wish he'd hurry up.

Mum - I love the 'trouthful' hamster eulogy . Agree with you about holding proper pet funerals. My grandfather and I did that for my family dog and we both visited his grave, at the end of our garden, regularly. It was comforting.

God, I hope you're right about his system clearing out the toxins. He does seem less wobbly this morning. He climbed the stairs alone, again (but won't come down) and he has been able to jump on my lap and jump off again. His fur looks awful though - straggly and with all the hairs separated, as if he's been using hair gel.

He is perched on my shoulder again whilst I type. I am fine with that normally, but don't want him to hurt himself jumping off. However, he has really settled down there at the moment and seems very comfy .

cozie - that's so great that Seniorboy is improving. Very frustrating about the lack of pee collection though.

Just stopping in to see how things are going.

Glad it sounds as though Seniorboy's improving.

Really do hope that apparent improvements in KS are real-and-lasting. I have everything crossed for you. He sounds as though he is a happy little kitty, especially for getting to spend so much time with you. Definitely sounds as though you are His Human & being near you makes him feel happy-safe-loved.

Take care

Bother, took me so long writing I crossed with your post.

Afraid I giggled at the idea of a cat wearing hair/fur gel, though obviously not at the fact KS is looking so bedraggled. Is prolly to be expected with his having been such a poorly wee poppet I suppose, but must be hard to see.

Hope so so vet rings soon & that news is good.

Toffee, I always think the coat is the last thing to come back up to healthy look ....its certainly usually the first thing to "go"!
The "starey" look of an open coat is horrid on them, isn't it. Grooming doesn't help much, but it does right itself once they feel good again

Toffee

As a Balinese, his fur is longer than a Siamese so maybe, as he's six months, it's starting to grow a little - as well as showing signs of his illness, I won't deny that. Have you done any light grooming, recently?

Be sure to tell the vet that his condition seems a bit better - as indeed, it does. My vet usually rings mid-late afternoon but I guess the timing is dependent on when they usually get lab results back in that practice.

Yay! (Phew.) Sample now in vets' hands.

No word yet, Toffee?

Well done, cozie.

Nope. Not a word. He is going to ring whilst I'm on the school run, isn't he?

ToffeeKitten is needing non-stop attention today, so I am carrying him around with me wherever I go. If I do leave him alone at all, he waits by the door for me to come back.

Thank you, Zebra, Mum and cozie for checking in to see if there is any news. Wish I had some to report. I thought vet'd ring first thing.

No - usually during the day and later on in my experience. (You're probably right about the school run.) If they're doing full bloods they usually send them to an outside firm so you've got logistics intervening.

Yep - I'm afraid you're 'the person' now. That's good for his illness because while he's focussing on you, he'll be happier and (hopefully) won't overgroom or lick walls.

How is the allergy doing with all this close contact?

No allergy symptoms except I am wheezier than usual and that might be kitty or it might just be the weather. Nothing that my inhalers can't deal with.

I'll have my mobile with me on the school run, but it's so hard to take in information when surrounded by loads of school children chattering away, not to mention my own DS wanting my attention. And I won't be able to write anything down.

You are right about kitty not being able to overgroom or lick walls whilst he's with me. He did have a sneaky lick around the fireplace earlier, when I was chatting with a friend over coffee, but I picked him up and he dozed off on my lap.

If I do put him down to do anything (was determined to clear our messy dining-room table today, so I put him down whilst I did that), he just stands there, looking at me and making whispery miaws.

He has eaten more and I managed to get some vitamin paste on his paws, although he shook a lot of it off. Will have another attempt later.

The weather is real muggy, yes. Keep an eye on it, though.

If/when he recovers, I'm afraid that this is the difficult time. (Says, Toffee - 'Oh Sure, Tell me about it! ) If he's bonded with you, he'll be very clingy and needy being so young. The good news for your sanity is that it does ease off as they get more confidence in you and mature. Talking to them a lot is good for the process in my experience - always answer if they yowl.

Sorry Toffee Ive been out at and and pre interview i was stressing about interview.

I'm hoping/praying for some good news from the Vet.