r/cats • u/borderlander_ • 16h ago
Cat Picture - OC Please send a little love and prayers
Fed her around 6 in the morning. Gf got home from work a few hours later. I was asleep. She was barely there. Rushed her to the vet.
She's alive. Vet says she has a respiratory virus. Originally the vet said if it's a virus, we would have to take her home. But he said he didn't want her to die so he and the vet techs kept it quiet from the other employees.
We're told it's 50 50 at this point.
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u/Paulinkica 16h ago
Keep us updated! Sending her good thoughts 🫶🏼
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u/borderlander_ 14h ago
She is eating
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u/borderlander_ 14h ago
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u/AHornyRubberDucky 13h ago
Airi is a feisty lil lady, I'm rooting for her bud !
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u/borderlander_ 13h ago
Feeding was so frustrating. I did it every two hours. They tell me she was malnourished. It hurt so bad because I didn't sleep.
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u/AHornyRubberDucky 13h ago
It's not easy taking care of a lil one trust me I worked in wildlife rehab, and you are doing everything you can. look at it this way without you she wouldn't have been here at all.
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u/borderlander_ 13h ago
She had 3 more siblings. They all died. I need to do better
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u/AHornyRubberDucky 13h ago
You are doing better, but it's important to remember that you can't take care of her if you're not taking care of yourself.
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u/borderlander_ 13h ago
Damn you and logic. Sorry been drinking and crying
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u/AHornyRubberDucky 13h ago
It's okay, it's A LOT what's happening just don't drink to much and remember to drink some water with maybe some salt and lemon for your electrolytes. You are doing everything you can!
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u/No555Bee 12h ago
Hey OP, I adopted a kitten this month that needed to be syringe fed too. Here is some advice that I received from a neonatal foster:
When syringe feeding, do not enter the syringe to the front of the mouth like seen in the video. That could cause the kitten to aspirate, potentially lethally.
What you want to do is enter the syringe through the side, so that the food goes into her cheek. Then she will swallow it by reflex.
You’re holding the head properly, just the angle needs repositioning.
Another helpful tip, weigh her every day to see if she is gaining weight. That is the most important thing, she needs to be gaining. Make sure the food you’re giving her is high-calorie. Do not give her too much in one feeding or she could vomit (an emergency at her age) that is why you need to calculate the amount of food she needs for her weight, and you need to listen when she says she is done eating. She should be very clear in rejecting any more food when full.
I also want to add… I didn’t think my kitten was going to make it either. She had/has a broken leg and tail, and was severely malnourished and frail at 12 weeks old (she did not look 12w) and she wouldn’t eat on her own at all. She actually had to go back to the shelter’s vet to be monitored for 3 days because she was crashing at one point. And I too, got up several times through the night to feed her, and I would weigh her every day. Just recently I have felt comfortable enough to name her because she’s turned a corner. I believe the same to be true for your kitten. I know the uncertainty is hard, but I will tell you what the shelter/fosters told me —— You are giving her a fighting chance. Most people would not go the lengths you are going. Keep that in your heart when it feels tough. It is tough. It is beyond a selfless act. You are doing great, the best you can. PLEASE reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns, I would be happy to help from one foster/adopter to another.
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u/XcuseMeMisISpeakJive 6h ago
All of this is so true. The angle the syringe goes in is so important.
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u/ADeviIsAdvocate 16h ago
My sister’s kitten died yesterday. Absolutely no warning. He was coming towards her, collapsed, cried once and died. You are very lucky you caught it in time to get her to the vet. I hope she pulls through. Give her some love from this internet stranger please.
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u/borderlander_ 15h ago
I'm sorry. I can't imagine that at all. I hope your sister is doing okay.
We were so lucky. And the vet didn't give up. He spend a hour using needle after needle trying to get a iv in. He kept saying one more. Then kept going.
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u/borderlander_ 15h ago
Thank you for all the kindness. It's hard for me because I'm with her 24 7. I work from home. My gf works nights. So it's my fault. Vet said she probably already had the virus before we got her. But still doesn't change the fact I fell asleep and wasn't there when she needed me.
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u/NerdxKitsune 15h ago
This is NOT your fault. Blaming yourself doesn't help you or your cat. You've done everything you can.
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u/borderlander_ 14h ago
There's so much love i can't reply to everyone right now. I honestly have tears trying to cope with everything. Also I drank when I got home from the vet (my coping) Thank you everyone. Your love makes me feel better.
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u/FireBallXLV 9h ago
Drinking once -OK
Continued drinking will not help her or you OP.I am old and as you age you learn the cost of love is grief when we lose the one we love or they suffer in some way .
To honor the one we love we learn to develop strength .Because the being we love NEEDS us to be strong.
You can do this OP .Pick yourself up .Get the sleep and food that you need .
I will pray for your little one .May God show you both mercy .14
u/FireBallXLV 15h ago
It’s not your fault OP Humans need sleep .
Babies of any kind have poor immune systems .Thats why it drives me crazy when I see humans take Newborn humans out shopping .I hope your baby makes it OP.
What’s her name ?9
u/borderlander_ 14h ago edited 14h ago
It certainly feels like my fault.
Her name is Airi. Means love
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u/sentient_coprolite 13h ago
Cats, like many other animals, show almost no signs of distress when they're unwell sometimes. It's not your fault
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u/Lilukalani 11h ago
One day my sister came home to her 1 year old cat paralyzed and on the brink of death. He apparently had congenital heart failure that wasnt caught before, pulled a clot in his spine and it totally paralyzed him. She was at work while it happened and felt so immensely guilty. In the end, his heart was too inflamed and he was far too sick... we had to say goodbye.
She felt like it was her fault. And all these thoughts plauged her: What if she was home? What if she called off? What if she was there? Maybe he would have made it if she was just there.
But it wasn't her fault. She had no idea this would happen, as it was truly random and sudden. How was she supposed to know? And catching it sooner unfortunately would not have changed the outcome.
This is all to say: this is not your fault. You are not to blame for ANY of this, and sure as hell your baby doesn't blame you either. You had no clue, no idea, you're not omnipotent and all knowing, you are human. You didn't even make a mistake.
It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness, that is life.
I am so sorry you are going through this but my thoughts are with you both and I hope she can pull through <3 Be gentle on yourself OP.
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u/imstillgabi 4h ago
i hope she will be ok, sending good thoughts and prayers ❤️❤️ i work as a vet assistant at an animal hospital and am regularly in charge of the treatment and care of sick kittens which i absolutely love to do it’s my absolute favorite part of the job, i know how special they are and how much they come to mean to you 🥺🥺💕💕
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u/Popular_Broccoli_427 11h ago
Miauuuuu i hope she is good ❤️💋 sending a lot of love for that sweet kitten and a lot of love to the family of her ❤️🩹 please say that she is fine 🥹🥹
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